AEW, the new manager of Home Reit (HOME ), has wrestled back the leases on 38 properties from Eden Safe, which has not paid rent since October 2022.

The community interest company, whose properties make up 2% of the portfolio, owed £1.1m to HOME by the end of October. 

In a stock exchange notice, the suspended homeless accommodation provider said it had reached an agreement for the surrender of the leases, the majority of which are occupied by private rented sector (PRS) tenants on assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs).

These ASTs will now transfer to Home, meaning it can directly collect the underlying income from the properties, increasing rent collection and facilitating asset management opportunities.

Centrick, a national residential property services company, which already looks after 25 of the properties, will be appointed property manager, responsible for the day-to-day management and rent collection.

The notice emphasised the current occupiers of the properties will not be impacted as a result of this transaction.

Since AEW’s appointment the firm has sought to stablise the portfolio. It has sold assets well below their asset value, with 191 properties sold for a total of £36.5m since August, in order to raise money to pay down its £216m debt pile and provide working capital.