PROPERTY AUCTIONS P30 30 JAN 2013HAMODIA

BY ELI ZVI

As the first Auctions take place this year auctioneersare confident of a really good start. Allsop have theircommercial auction of 87 lots on February 4 and areconfident of a successful sale, they include an unbrokenparade of 5 shops and 5 flats plus an advertising hoard-ing with rents totalling £189.000 the guide price isbetween £2.5m and £2.7m there is also a job centre inBirmingham let to the Government for £117,000 itcomprises of 11,200 sq.ft of offices with parking for 24cars. Guide price is in excess of £1,1m.

Allsops residential Auction takes place on February13 and includes a Freehold detached building with carpark in Bushey and has planning for conversion into 3flats and one 3 bed detached house guide price is£850,000 -£900,000. On the market for the first timein 25 years is a terraced building in Willesden Greenarranged as 2 one bed flats and one 2 bed flat guideprice is between £500,000 and £550,000.

Lambert Smith Hampton has its auction at theMillenimum Hotel on February 24 and have a longleasehold retail investment in Clapham Park Road SW4currently let until 2018 with a rental income of £15,000,they are also offering , with vacant possession a pair ofretail/ residential buildings which require refurbish-ment at 1 and 3 Southampton Road London NW5

Strettons enjoyed an average of 78% sold last yearwith sales reaching £70m their next auction takes placeon February 10. Strettons opened a West End officeduring 2013

Richard Auterac of Actuitus is buoyant about 2014with their next Auction taking place on February 13,Among the comprehensive list of properties are anoffice investment in Leeds, Hume House in TowerHouse Street currently let and producing £188,000p.a.x. There are five individual freehold retail invest-ments in Southend, tenants include Specsavers andThomson Travel current rent over £178,000 p.a.x.Acuitus are also offering a Bank investment in Bristol

Road South Birmingham with the majority let to HSBCBank and the West Bromwich Building Society, thebuilding contains 4 self contained flats, current rent is£115,800 with one flat vacant and to be let.

Andrews Scott Robertson have their auction onFebruary 17 at the Hotel Russell and are offering a firstfloor purpose built 2 bed flat in Finchley N12 with along lease it has full vacant possession, they also have aformer public house in South Croydon arranged as 10bed sits with permission to covert to 2 x 2 bedroomhouses.

Savills enjoyed an 89% success rate in 2013 with over£320 million worth of properties sold, they have 265properties for sale at their next auction on 10/11February including a 3 bed semi detached house in

Stanmore with garage but need renovation they alsohave a large 6 bed house in Hampstead NW3.

Auction House London sold 90% in 2013 and sold100% at their December Auction, their next Auction ison February 27

McHugh and Co have their next Auction on 26February at BAFTA in Piccadilly, McHugh recentlysold a property in Marylebone which was the highestvalue residential lot sold at Auction, it went for £3.74m

With increasing number of properties coming on tothe market and banks being encouraged to lend theindustry is looking forward in anticipation to a goodyear ahead. When the results of the February Auctionsare announce we will have a clearer picture, but it doeslook decidedly better.

Confidence Soars As Auctioneers Start 2014

Lake Business Park in Milton Keynes sold by Allsop & Co. for £26.65m 8.6% yield.

PROPERTY AUCTIONS P32 30 JAN 2013HAMODIA

Dealing with all commercial property transactions

including:

Landlord and tenant matters Including lease renewals, new leases and licence

applications

Buying and selling commercial property

Experienced in acting for both Landlords and Tenants With particular emphasis on Landlords with medium sized

portfolios (upwards of 15 properties)

For further information contactLisa Raymond

Tel: 020 8359 1226

lisa.raymond@keystonelaw.co.uk

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY LEGAL SERVICES

Lisa has over 20 years experience as an Associate and Partner in

www.lsh.co.uk

Lambert Smith Hampton

February Auction11am on 24 February 2014 at Millennium Hotel

56 Clapham Park Road, London SW4 7BG• Long leasehold retail investment• Let to individuals until 2018• Current rent £15,000 per annum• Potential for alternative use (subject to consents)

73 Leigham Court Road, London SW16 2NR• Freehold care home investment• Let to Mencare Holdings until 2018• Current rent £70,000 per annum• Potential for alternative use (subject to consents)

1A Lithos Road, London NW3 6DX• Freehold commercial studio/storage investment• Let to an individual (holding over)• Current rent £3,400 per annum• Potential for alternative use (subject to consents)

1 & 3 Southampton Road, London NW5 4JS• A pair of freehold retail/residential buildings• Requiring refurbishment• Vacant possession

11 Southampton Road, London NW5 4JS• Freehold retail/residential building• Requiring refurbishment• Vacant possession

Ground Floor, 33/35 York Street, Twickenham TW1 3JZ• Long leasehold estate agency investment• New 10 year lease to Spicer Haart• Current rent £42,500

per annum

To receive our auction catalogue register online at www.lshauctions.co.uk or call 0906 500 1105 (Calls to 0906 500 1105 cost £1.50 from a BT landline. The cost to call from other networks and mobile phones may vary.)

Contact the team: 020 7198 2000 Auction Venue: Millennium Hotel, 44 Grosvenor Square, London W1

On behalf of Cambridgeshire, Camden, Carmarthenshire, Cardiff, Denbighshire, Derbyshire Dales, East Lindsey, Essex, Lambeth, Middlesbrough, Newport, Northamptonshire, Peterborough and Sandwell Council, as well as Joint LPA Receivers, Trustees, Major UK Banks, amongst others. A variety of commercial and residential property throughout the UK for investment or owner occupation (unless sold prior or withdrawn), including:

BY MARK DANSKY

It has been turbulent times for commer-cial property since the late summer of 2007but things are starting to look up. In thesummer of 2013 there were early signs ofincreasing buyer demand and improvingmarket sentiment, specifically in our auc-tion room. We tentatively suggested thatthe market may have reached a turningpoint.

Confidence certainly appeared to bereturning with investors firmly in buyingmode and becoming increasingly comfort-able about moving up the risk curve. Recenthigh volume of sales by our private treatyteam and successful results in both ourOctober and December auctions have con-firmed this view.

We expect the market to continue risingin the short to medium future for a numberof underlying reasons.

Primarily there is substantial room forrecovery particularly in secondary proper-ty. The average peak to trough price declineduring these cycles has been 26% with thecurrent downtown more severe at 37%.

On a broader outlook, economists onaverage are forecasting that the UK econo-my will grow by 2.5% during 2014. This isagainst a background of continued lowinterest rates and growing employment fig-ures.

Historically competitive bank financehas generally followed approximately ayear behind a rising property market. Wetherefore expect funding to become morereadily available during this year which willresult in further underpinning of the mar-ket.

So what to buy? Whilst considering investment in com-

mercial property there is merit in analysingeach sector separately. Each sector has avariety of features which will make themsuitable for an individual investor.Personal preferences such as risk profile,timescale and location will have a bearingon stock selection.

High Street retail remains the most pop-ular sector for private investors accountingfor majority of our auction sales (approxi-mately 65%). As a result this asset class isthe most ‘liquid’ in terms of any futurerequirement for a sale that may arise.

The High Street has altered over thedowntown due to a change in shopping pat-terns such as internet shopping. This hasresulted in a narrowing of prime shoppingareas and a reduction in rents. Carefulresearch therefore needs to take place onthe tenant’s financial credibility, re- letabil-ity of the unit and most importantly thecurrent market rent.

In the office sector, London has outper-formed other regions. It is also thereforethe most congested and sought after mar-ket for investment, particular for overseasinvestors seeking a safe haven for theirmoney. This has caused a ripple effect incore M25 and South East markets and sub-sequently in other regional markets.

The lack of available developmentfinance has stymied speculative develop-ment since 2007. This has caused an acuteshortage of prime Grade A office space inmost core locations and has led to upwardpressure on rents as tenants have littlechoice in terms of quality.

The market for lower grade offices is sig-nificantly softer both on the occupationaland investment markets. Purchasers arewary of high vacant holding rates (i.e busi-

ness rates, insurance and security etc) andcapital expenditure required, specificallyon expensive equipment such as air condi-tioning, lifts and heating.

Furthermore current Government leg-islation is also pointing towards a mini-mum energy efficiency requirement whichagain may lead to expensive bills.

However on a positive note recent eas-ing of planning restrictions relating to‘Permitted Development Rights’ (simplify-ing the planning process for residentialconversion) has lent a new lease of life topreviously obsolete and redundant officebuildings.

Additionally, relocation costs for mosttenants are prohibitive and there is poten-tial to negotiate lease extensions in returnfor a reduction in rents or a rent free peri-od.

Last, but not least, is the logistics andwarehousing sector which has significantlyoutperformed others in terms of overallreturns. In a similar vein to offices therehas been little to no speculative develop-ment since the downturn leading to ashortage of good quality industrial units.This is having a positive effect on rentalgrowth and tenant demand.

There is growing demand from tradi-tional retailers and online retailers forlogistics and distribution sheds to supplytheir internet shopping platforms. Furtheroccupational pressure on warehousing willalso come from the British manufacturingsector. This sector accounts for 10% of theeconomy and is being forecast to grow by2.7% this year. This is well ahead of othermajor Western European economies suchas Germany 1.6% and France at just 0.7%.

Adversely, obsolescence can be a signifi-cant factor over time as tenant require-ments are moving towards modern highbay well specified units.

This year will no doubt have its chal-lenges, but we see no reason why the cur-rent momentum in the market should notcontinue well into the New Year, if not untilthe general election in 2015.

In a low interest rate environment theappeal of a tangible income producing assetand a hedge against inflation should con-tinue to attract buyers, particularly as theavailability of debt improves. This will bereinforced by improving tenant demandand stability as the economy grows.

The continued high volume and highsuccess rates of our market leading auc-tions in addition to the success of ourNational, West End and City Investmentteams provide us with a truly unrivalledknowledge of pricing, buyers and marketconditions. This we hope will enable us tohave another successful year for our clientsin 2014.

Commercial PropertyOutlook 2014

Mark Dansky, Surveyor in the Allsop NationalInvestment Team.

30 JAN 2013 HAMODIAPROPERTY AUCTIONS P33

Commercial Property AuctionThursday 13th February 2014

Lots including:

www.acuitus.co.ukPeter Cunliffe: +44 (0)20 7034 4850

The Co-op, 30 Cuckoofield Lane, Norwich Hume House, Tower House Street, Leeds

On behalf of The Defence Infrastructure Organisation, The Co-operative Estate,

Cushman & Wakefield Investors, Sapcote, Wesleyan Assurance, F&C Reit Asset Management,

M&G Real Estate and Joint LPA Receivers at DTZ and GVA amongst others.

OFFICE INVESTMENT

Leeds LS2 8NTHume House, Tower House Street

Let to Trillium (Prime) Property GP Limited.Rent: £188,000 p.a.x.

RETAIL INVESTMENT

Norwich NR14 8BAThe Co-op, 30 Cuckoofield Lane, Mulbarton

Trading as Co-operative Supermarket on lease until 2027 (subject to option).Rent: £72,000 p.a.x.

London SE13 5JH98 Lewisham High Street

Let to British Heart Foundation until 2023. Includes a self-contained 5 room maisonette.Rent: £74,400 p.a.x.

Great Yarmouth NR30 2BA

11A and 11B King Street and

11-13 Theatre Plain, Hamilton, Sandy

Entirely Let to H Samuel Ltd Until Sept 2022.Rent: £115,000 p.a.x.

Luton LU1 2AP

65-67 George Street

Ground & part first floors let to Savers Health & Beauty Ltd on a new 10 year lease until 2023 (subject to option) with 2,795 Sq ft vacant possession.Rent: £65,000 p.a.x.

Southend-on-Sea SS1 1JF

82A, 82B, 121, 123 & 125 High Street

Five individual freehold retail investments, tenants trading as Specsavers, Thomson Travel & others.Rent: £178,266 p.a.x.

TRADE COUNTER INVESTMENT

Glastonbury BA6 9FWUnits 1, 2 & 3 Genesis One, Marlands Business Park

Two freehold retail warehouse investments. Tenants trading as Topps Tiles & Screwfix.Rent: £75,000 p.a.x.

LEISURE INVESTMENT

Dorchester DT1 1UJPrezzo, 6 High West Street

Let to Prezzo plc on a new 25 year lease back expiring 2039 (no breaks).Rent: £60,000 p.a.x.

Bingo Halls, RotherhamScarborough & Blyth

Freehold leisure investments let to Mecca on a 15 year lease until 2021 with RPI uplifts. To be offered as 3 individual lots.Rent: £431,829 p.a.x.

BANK INVESTMENT

Birmingham B31 2NN770-772 Bristol Road South, Northfield

Majority let to HSBC Bank & West Bromwich Building Society. Includes 4 self contained flats.Rent: £115,800 p.a.x. with 1 flat Vacant and to be let.

Nottingham NG5 7EG134-136 Front Street, Arnold

Let to NatWest Bank plc until 2023.Rent: £59,000 p.a.x.

When it comes to choosing a solicitor many compa-nies want to use a City law firm but then discover thehigh rates charged and seek to use alternatives. Onelaw firm is proving to be an alternative to the Cityfirms and features only senior lawyers who have previ-ously been at Senior Associate or Partner Level butwithout the price tag to match. Keystone law does notuse Juniors or trainees so you can be assured that yourmatters are handled by someone of sufficient experi-ence and gravitas each time and every time and nomatter how small or large the transaction is .

Lisa Raymond is a senior commercial property spe-cialist at Keystone Law with particular expertise inretail and leisure property and part of a wider team of22 dedicated commercial property specialists support-ed by additional teams of planning, construction andenvironmental lawyers.

Since Lisa qualified over 20 years ago she hasworked at leading City Firms Allen & Overy, SJ Berwinand DAC Beachcroft and has acted for a wide portfolioof clients including investors, blue chip property com-panies, household name tenants and smaller start-ups.

Lisa is particularly experienced with landlords own-ing a portfolio of properties handling the usual rangeof property transactions from buying and selling to thegranting of new leases, options and refinancing. Morerecently she has acted on the recent purchase of a hoteland the assembly of a site for development purchasedby way of option from a number of owners.

Lisa also acts for some national brand Tenants intheir acquisitions, disposals, lease surrenders andassignments.

Lisa invites you to get in touch to discuss your prop-erty legal requirements and assures that you will bepleasantly surprised at the fixed fees and agreed ratesshe can offer.

A City service without the price tag.

Law Firm OffersCity Alternative

Last year, leading specialist com-mercial property auction house,Acuitus, sold close to £200m of assets.Its 2013 auctions brought more than300 properties to market and achievedsales from £50,000 through to the£3.65m achieved for the WaterdaleShopping Centre in Doncaster andmore than £4m for a prime retailinvestment on London Road North,

Lowestoft. A 1,912-sq ft store atCamden Walk in London’s Islington letto Ben Sherman sold for £1.66m at ayield of 5.1%. More than a quarter of alllots sold by Acuitus in 2013 achievedprices of more than £1m.

Looking ahead to this year, RichardAuterac, Acuitus’s Chairman &Auctioneer, comments: “The auctionroom will continue to be a preferredmedium for bringing distressedassets to market but we are now alsoseeing an increased number of retail-ers carrying out sale-and-leasebacksto fund future expansion and this is apositive sign of increased economicgrowth.

“The distressed property situa-tions which date from the pre-crashboom now being gradually addressed,and investors are responding to thebrightening outlook. This process isbringing more stock into the auctionroom and creating a more fully func-tioning market than we have seen forsome considerable time.

“Sellers — whether they arereceivers, banks, property companiesor private individuals - should beexcited by the energy in the market-place and the opportunities it now

presents.“Our December auction illustrated

that investors remain very selective butwill buy in any sector if the investmentcharacteristics are right or if the pricepresents scope for achieving a properreturn following asset management.

“The fundamentals for buying this

year will remain the same and it willcontinue to be a market more for expe-rienced investors.”

Acuitus is now taking lots for its firstauction of the year which takes placeon February 13th at the MillenniumHotel, Grosvenor Square W1. Moredetails at acuitus.co.uk

Acuitus Assesses 2014 Auction Prospects

Richard Auterac, Chairman of Acuitus.

1/1a Camden Walk, Islington Green, London N1 8DY, Sold by Acuitus 17th October 2013 for£1,660,000 a net initial yield of 5.17%.

30 JAN 2013 HAMODIAPROPERTY AUCTIONS P35

Strettons have been instructed tooffer this extended semi-detachedhouse which has recently been redeco-rated together with a detached 2 bed-room annex in the rear garden, for saleby auction.

The house is currently subject to anAssured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) at arent of £1,600 pcm, equivalent to£19,200 pa. The rear annex is vacant andso may offer an opportunity to increasethe rental income.

Located within the Eruv off DeansLane approx. ½ mile east of Edgwareunderground station (Northern LineZone 5) and the Broadwalk ShoppingCentre and the further recreational andleisure facilities of Edgware are close by.

The house has been extended to therear to enlarge the kitchen and diningarea.

In the rear garden is a single storey2 bedroom annex that is currentlyvacant and is not included within theAST agreement so could be let sepa-

rately to increase the current rent of£19,200pa.

The property is to be offered by auc-tion on the 10th Feb by Strettons at theGrand Connaught Rooms, GreatQueen Street, London, WC2 B 5DAstarting at 11 am.

3 Bed Edgware Semi WithinThe Eruv for Auction

For deatils of forthcoming Property Supplements,speak to our Sales Director Alan Rubenstein on

020 8442 7777 or email alan@hamodia.co.uk