A major new co-living apartment scheme in Cardiff has struck a near £28m funding deal with Principality Building Society. The funding will support Urban Centric in completing its Traders Yard development near Cardiff Central Train Station, which will provide 182 new co-living apartments.
Scheme details and timeline
The scheme, which already has full planning consent, will help bring much needed new rental accommodation to the local market and aligns with Principality’s commitment to building homes within local communities.
Traders Yard will be split into two blocks. A five-storey block of 40 apartments is due for completion next year, while a 13-storey block of 142 apartments will complete in 2028.
Developer and lender comments
Chad Griffiths, senior portfolio manager at Principality Commercial, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting local property developers Urban Centric with a development of much needed rental homes in the centre of our capital city. We’ve known Urban Centric for a long time and been impressed with their delivery of a number of similar sized projects.”
“Supporting larger development funding projects, like Traders Yard, aligns with our growth strategy for Principality Commercial.”
Andrew Woods, managing director at Cardiff-based Urban Centric, said: “Our relationship with Principality spans nearly two decades, and we’re delighted to be working with them again on Traders Yard.”
“Their understanding of our business, and of the Cardiff market, has been invaluable in getting this project off the ground. Trader’s Yard is our most ambitious co-living scheme to date, and having a trusted local lender alongside us gives us real confidence as we deliver high-quality rental homes in the heart of the city.”
Project amenities and recent developments
The development will include a communal plaza, commercial floorspace, balconies, roof gardens and cycle storage. It will also provide shared amenity space including a gym, dining room, co-working areas, lounges, games rooms, cinema room and wellness areas.
Last month Urban Centric secured a new £24.25m funding deal for its Fitz & Knox project in Cardiff, the first co-living development in Wales. It provides 208 rented studio apartments alongside communal facilities including a cinema room, gym, games room, co-working spaces and a rooftop terrace.
Urban Centric, through special purpose vehicle Fitz & Knox Ltd, refinanced a funding facility with Handelsbanken. The previous facility, provided by Shawbrook, supported the completion of the scheme. The deal marks Handelsbanken’s first funding transaction in the growing co-living market. Lloyds is also an equity investor in the scheme through its Housing Growth Partnership arm, following a £7.9m investment. The 100,000 sq ft building on Fitzalan Place was previously occupied by financial services firm Legal & General, which vacated the building after moving to its new Welsh headquarters at the Interchange scheme in 2023. Fitz & Knox is at full occupancy.
