Irish real estate investment trust, Hibernia, has confirmed it is sitting on a €286m (£214m) acquisitions war chest partly funded from the disposal of around a third of the Dorville portfolio it bought from Ulster Bank a year ago. In an interim management statement, covering the four months from the start of October, the firm — which... Read More
Have you ever watched a new skyscraper thrusting its way into a once familiar skyline and wondered what your city will look like in 50 years’ time? Imagining the city of the future has long been a source of fascination for architects, designers, artists and filmmakers. Their visions have encompassed a wide range of fantastical... Read More
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has confirmed an £18m refinancing deal with Oxenwood Catalina, a Carribean-based investment joint venture formed by Oxenwood Real Estate and Catalina Holdings. The extra cash has allowed the Bermuda registered partnership to make its second purchase following its maiden acquisition last October of... Read More
Although many large scale leisure developments have been announced in recent months, the majority are taking place in major cities throughout the UK – a sign that developers have not yet regained all of the confidence lost by several years of recession. Bucking the trend is the Yate Riverside complex in South Gloucestershire, which... Read More
The end of the recession marked the conclusion of several years of uncertainty in the commercial property market, with areas which previously struggled to attract investors enjoying a welcome return to prosperity. This was particularly true of Belfast as a new report has shown its investors saw the strongest year in over three decades in... Read More
Enterprise zones have become huge drivers of growth in cities around the country, with the low business rates incentives and growing supply of space for emerging and established companies boosting local economies. However, until recently speculative development builds remained relatively low even in these areas, as developers remain wary of... Read More
The clock is ticking for Associated British Ports (ABP) after it was given seven days to decide its next move after the High Court threw out its call for a Judicial Review into a plan to build a multi-million pound energy facility on the south bank of the River Humber. The ruling by Mrs Justice Patterson, sitting in the Justice Queen's... Read More
British Land must overcome opposition from a heritage group before it can go ahead with its plans to deliver a mixed use scheme in Spitalfiields. The developer submitted a planning application last December for a 347,000 sq ft scheme on Blossom Street which would bring a mixture of office space, retail units and apartments to the City... Read More
A planning application has been submitted by architecture practice Stride Treglown’s Manchester studio for a new 16-storey office building in the thriving St John’s Quarter. The site is located next to the prime Spinningfields business district and close to the former Granada TV studios which is currently awaiting... Read More
Upmarket bar-restaurant concept The Botanist will soon be opening its doors in Birmingham city centre, having taken-up space on the ground floor of Cheltenham House on Temple Street. The property has recently undergone a £1.2 million refurbishment programme, creating a 5,000 sq ft space which was quickly snapped up by The Botanist’s... Read More
As retailers continue to expand amidst a favourable consumer environment, shopping centres in particular are noting a strong uptick in demand for prime units. This has seen the St David’s Shopping Centre in Cardiff sign a lease agreement with high end jewellery brand Alba Rose, which will soon open its first Welsh store at the retail... Read More
Towns and cities in the north of England have twice as many empty shops as those in the south — with the North-East boasting the highest rate of vacancies in the country. The latest figures from the Local Data Company (LDC) — which monitors 3,000 town and shopping centres and retail parks — claim that one-in-five shops in the north... Read More
The building housing one of London's longest standing attractions is being offered for sale. Property entrepreneur, Nick Leslau, is asking at least £300m for the Marylebone Road premises occupied by Madame Tussauds wax museum since 1884. The Marylebone asset was acquired as part of a larger portfolio nearly a decade ago. It is... Read More
Work is nearing completion on a scheme to transform one of Plymouth's historic naval buildings into a creative hub "of regional and national significance". The 11-month Ocean Studios project not only involves upgrading the Grade I listed buildings surrounding the Royal William Yard — originally built between 1826 and 1835 as a Royal... Read More
Hugo Boss has embarked on a major expansion and remodelling of its flagship store at Liverpool’s Metquarter. The German luxury style and fashion house has taken an additional floor at the designer shopping centre, increasing the size of its store to over 10,000 sq ft. The retailer will relocate to another unit in Metquarter for two... Read More
Many retailers struggled to adapt to the growing trend for online retailing during the recession, with the lower prices of cheap imports and the ease of home delivery proving immensely attractive to consumers. However, thanks to initiatives such as click and collect, more and more are recognising the benefits combining technological... Read More
Although the upturn in the economy has seen shopping centre vacancy rates plummet in the past two years, centre owners in areas with high levels of competition continue to struggle to attract top names. In Coventry, however, Shearer Property Group has had a novel idea to address this issue at its Cathedral Lanes development - to... Read More
The optimistic fallout from last year's Commonwealth Games looks set to continue driving Scotland's property recovery for the rest of 2015 — with host city Glasgow tipped to put in a winning performance. Researched and published jointly by commercial agents GVA and the banking group Santander, their Prospectus 2015 identifies... Read More
A twenty year vision to create a global professional services hub in Birmingham has been unveiled today. The Snowhill Masterplan outlines the redevelopment of the Snow Hill and Colmore districts of the city to deliver a Midland’s rival to Canary Wharf. The £600 million plan, launched by Colmore Business District and Birmingham City... Read More
The Crown Estate has taken advantage of a strong market in the south of the UK by offloading two industrial assets in deals worth a combined total of £21.5 million. Crown Industrial Estate in Taunton was acquired by Legal & General Property, on the behalf of its Industrial Property Investment Fund (IPIF) for a total of £17.25... Read More
Just days after it announced it was about to start work on its latest £1bn regeneration project, developer St Modwen has reported a record breaking 68 per cent rise in its annual profits. In its accounts to the end of last November, the Birmingham-based property investment and reclamation specialist revealed it had made pre-tax profits... Read More
While shopping centres and high streets nationwide continue to post more positive footfall results than have been seen since the beginning of the financial crisis, data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) indicates that out of town retail parks are still enjoying a higher level of success. This has seen local authorities grant planning... Read More
