Investor AXA IM Alts, Europe’s largest owner of affordable real estate, has shrugged off the latest delay in the federal government’s key housing legislation, saying it planned to expand its Australian portfolio over the next five years and develop thousands of units.

The underlying need for mass market rental accommodation made Australia attractive even without the federal government’s $10 billion affordable housing fund and the investor with just one 400-unit project to date aimed to grow, AXA IM Alts head of Australia Antoine Mesnage said.