Centurion Properties has acquired Lawnswood Business Park in Leeds, through a new joint venture vehicle, Centurion Capital Partners, funded by specialist property investment manager ICG-Longbow.
The partnership has purchased the modern business park from Canmoor for £17.25 million, reflecting a net initial yield of 8.6 per cent and an equivalent yield of 9.2 per cent.
Lawnswood Business Park is located just five miles from Leeds city centre in an attractive landscaped environment and comprises eight detached office buildings, providing a total of 147,335 sq ft.
At present, the park is multi-let to 14 tenants providing a total passing rent of £1.58 million per annum, although there are numerous asset management opportunities available to increase this further as the current vacancy rate stands at 27.4 per cent.
Lawnswood Business Park is the second acquisition of its kind this year for Centurion following the appointment of Chairman Richard Cotton to steer the company’s ambitious growth plans. In February the company snapped up Bretby Business Park in Burton-on-Trent.
Founder and CEO of London headquartered Centurion, Julian Rooth indicated that the joint venture partnership would be seeking further opportunities of this type in future.
He said; “The acquisition of Lawnswood and Bretby mark a significant step in Centurion’s evolution – both parks provide strong, sustainable cashflow, but offer significant potential to add value through asset management initiatives.
“At Lawnswood, there is the opportunity to lease the empty space, to explore lease re-gears and lease repositioning and to improve the space through a capital expenditure programme. Lawnswood represents our first acquisition with ICG-Longbow, and we are looking for similar opportunities throughout the UK”.
Kevin Cooper, Co-Head of ICG-Longbow, the Real Estate Debt division of Intermediate Capital Group, believes the vehicle’s first acquisition will prove profitable for each party in the joint venture partnership.
He says; “The Lawnswood Business Park is a high quality asset, being bought at an attractive entry price, and we are delighted to have been involved in partnering with Centurion in this transaction. This opportunity is typical of the assets we continue to support partners acquiring.”
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