Total asset sales in 2015 completed by Acuitus, passed the £110m mark as the May auction raised £45.29m with the sale of 82% of the lots offered.
Acuitus auctioneer, Richard Auterac, commented: “Investor demand in the commercial property auction room is undergoing a significant change of emphasis and this auction illustrated that vividly.
“A year ago, there was only very strong, concerted demand for lots in London and the south east but this catalogue was notable for its very wide geographic and sector spread. Of the 64 lots offered, only a handful were from London and its immediate environs and yet there was sustained investor demand throughout.”
The average price achieved for the sold lots was more than £870,000 with the Yates’s public house in Wolverhampton achieving the highest price of £3.035m. Guaranteed by Stonegate Pub Company, the pub was let on a new 25-year lease and produces current income of £265,000.
Investor interest in leisure and restaurant assets was a recurrent theme at the sale. The Odeon cinema in Foregate Street, Worcester which was sold for a global investment manager achieved £1.54m at a yield of 6.3% while a drive-thru KFC restaurant in Queenborough, Kent sold for £895,000 at a yield of 7%.
Elsewhere there was further evidence of investors’ increasing confidence in the retail sector. A freehold retail investment in Harrow sold for £2.7m at a yield of 3.8% while a bank let to National Westminster until 2027 in Alderley Edge, Cheshire sold for £659,000 at a yield of 4.4%.
Richard Auterac comments: “The depth and breadth of interest was exhilarating encompassing not only our major UK investor buyers but also telephone bidders from three continents. These are well informed investors and whilst London and quality investments are in strong demand, skilled pricing and close engagement with our buyers is still a perquisite for successful sales of secondary assets.
“Our auction on July 9th will offer a similarly good quality catalogue and presents a great opportunity for sellers to capitalise on the new levels of demand.”
Other sales in the May auction included:
The fourth Acuitus auction of 2015 will take place on July 9th at the Radisson Blu Portman Hotel, Portman Square, London W1.
