Where capital is going next: DTRE on living, life sciences and the power of data

DTRE is unquestionably one of UK real estate’s biggest success stories over the last 15 years. Founded in 2010 by David Turner and Keith Dowley, the firm built its reputation in industrial and logistics just as the sector began its ascent into almost every institutional portfolio. Since then, the firm has steadily expanded into alternatives, following capital into living, life sciences and technology driven real estate.

Glatman traces DTRE’s origins back to its founders’ time at CBRE and before that Holley Blake, one of the early specialists in the UK industrial market. “The core focus was industrial logistics from both an investment and agency point of view,” he says, adding that office work was also a meaningful part of the early business.

What has distinguished DTRE since then, Glatman argues, is not just sector focus but the way the firm has grown. “We have invested very heavily in technology, data and financial analytics, and that has allowed us to grow rapidly alongside the household names,” he says.

That growth has also been cultural, with seven of the firm’s thirteen partners having started at DTRE as graduates or surveyors. Glatman is adamant that this matters, given advisory, he says, is ultimately about people, experience and judgement, leaders having been shaped by the firm’s culture allows for a team where talent is on the same page.

He acknowledges that DTRE’s lack of legacy infrastructure has helped. “We are not dealing with some of the legacy issues that longer-established firms have had to manage,” he continues, but adds that recruitment has been equally important. “It has been strategic recruitment, bringing the right people in at the right level.”

One of those hires was Matt Smith, who joined in 2022 from BioMed Realty, part of the Blackstone group and one of the most active life science developers globally. Smith describes his move as a response to a moment in the market. “The sector popped its head up in the UK in a big way after Covid,” Smith says. “I had been involved in more lab leasing transactions than almost anyone else in the market, advisors included, and I saw a window of opportunity to bring that lived experience into advisory.”

DTRE’s move into life sciences reflects what Glatman calls “following the money”. Global real estate capital, he notes, is increasingly concentrated in logistics, life sciences and living, especially as the same investment committees typically approve allocations across all three. “The people making those decisions are already comfortable with DTRE,” he says. “We have used the brand and the goodwill to establish teams in new sectors.” Additionally, this being an understated advantage of having continuity from junior to senior levels, where talent has the opportunity and incentives to build relationships with decision makers across institutional capital.

Living, particularly residential and operational formats, is now central to that strategy. The UK living market, Glatman points out, is the largest investable asset class in UK real estate. DTRE’s pitch to investors is that while the asset class may look new as an institutional offering, it is still real estate at its core. “We provide broad brush advice across sectors, supported by data and analytics,” he says, allowing for a greater understanding of market dynamics and the role shifts can play across asset classes.

The discussion inevitably turns to the state of the market, where Glatman echoes much of the industry, pointing to planning, viability and regulation as key constraints. “The reduction in affordable housing and S106 contributions is a positive sign,” he says, particularly for London. However, the Building Safety Act and Gateway 2 remain major bottlenecks. “Speed matters. The longer a developer holds a site, the more profit is eroded.”

Despite this, Glatman remains positive on rental demand which he sees as being fundamentally sound. While the for-sale market is weak, he argues that demand for build to rent, PBSA and co-living in London remains structural. “There is huge strain on the HMO market,” he says, which pushes students into PBSA and young professionals into co-living.

On PBSA, he acknowledges that performance varies by product and demographic. “Early schemes were studio-led and very high quality, designed for overseas students,” he says. That demand can fluctuate due to geopolitics and policy. Where he sees strength now is in more affordable, cluster-led schemes that compete directly with HMOs. Institutional capital, he says, remains keen on sub-250 bed schemes with lower risk profiles and potential university nomination agreements.

Smith then widens the lens to life sciences and the role of academic anchors. He describes the sector through the “triple helix” of academia, government support and industry. “Sixty-five percent of UK life science fundraising goes to companies based in or spun out of universities in the Golden Triangle,” he says, referring to Oxford, Cambridge and London.

He addresses the sceptical view that life sciences had its boom three years ago and is now in retreat. “It is a real estate sector like any other,” he says. “A lot of people bought in near the peak.” However, he believes momentum is turning. Government policy has placed science and technology at the centre of its industrial strategy, and large capital commitments such as the Ellison Institute’s investment in Oxford underpin long-term confidence.

More importantly, Smith argues that future demand is already funded. “Billions have been raised and are sitting on balance sheets,” he says. “That money has to be deployed to reach research milestones. In that sense, demand is baked in.”

From a practical perspective, Smith highlights common mistakes in lab leasing strategies. The challenge, he says, is finding the right level of fit-out. Too much capital spent upfront may never be recovered, while too little increases void risk. The market is becoming more nuanced, recognising the difference between wet labs, dry labs and hybrid requirements. “Adaptability is the key,” he says.

Housing remains a recurring theme. The question of how residential markets around Oxford and Cambridge are evolving to support growing science clusters is increasingly pressing. Glatman points to significant housebuilder activity, major masterplans such as Waterbeach, and rising institutional interest in single-family rental. “Flexibility is what people want,” he says. Professionals may move between Cambridge, Oxford and London over a few years, and rental housing accommodates that mobility.

Single-family rental, he argues, began as a reactive solution for housebuilders during a slowdown in sales. Going forward, it will become more strategic. “If you sell before construction, the apparent discount to open market value largely disappears once you factor in incentives, debt and holding costs,” he says.

Looking ahead to new towns and housing targets, Glatman expects institutional investors to play a role, but not to dominate. New towns, he says, will be driven by infrastructure, education and healthcare, creating strong rental environments alongside owner-occupation.

The conversation closes with reflections on careers and culture. Smith encourages others to take risks. “Roll the dice and go for it,” he says, noting the difference between buy-side constraints and conservatism with the freedom advisory affords. In explaining his move into property Glatman contrasts real estate with law. “Real estate values entrepreneurialism,” he says. “I joined the partnership at 29. That simply would not happen in a law firm.”

Asked about defining themes for the year ahead, Glatman points to the institutionalisation of co-living, evolving into studio-led build to rent. “The demand is tangible and broad,” he says, spanning students, professionals and older renters. Smith highlights a turning point in life science occupational markets, the rise of hybrid science-industrial buildings, and renewed capital markets activity.

Taken together, their views reflect a firm shaped by cycles rather than distracted by them. DTRE’s expansion into alternatives is not presented as a pivot away from its roots, but as a continuation of a philosophy built on timing, data and a clear understanding that real estate, in all its forms, remains a long game.