British Land sells €326 mln of retail and office property (UK)

British Land has sold a retail and office portfolio in an off-market deal to Legal & General Property for £219.6 mln (approx. €326 mln), ahead of September book value. The portfolio comprises: Kingswood Retail Park, Hull (sold for €74 mln, at a 5.7% NIY), House of Fraser, Birmingham (sold for €91mln, at a 6.8% NIY) and Grenfell Island office, leisure and retail block, Maidenhead (sold for €115 mln, at a 5.9% NIY).
In addition, Green Lanes Shopping Centre in Barnstaple was sold before Christmas to a private client of Rockspring Property Investment Managers for €46 mln, also ahead of September book value, reflecting a net initial yield of 6.5%.
This activity is in line with our strategy to evolve the portfolio to meet the needs of our occupiers and their customers.  Throughout the financial year, we have taken advantage of strong investment markets to make selective disposals of more mature assets.  These latest deals bring total sales of UK income generating assets to c. £620 mln (approx. €790 mln) (British Land share) over the last 12 months. The net rental income associated with these assets is c. £16.6 mln (approx. €21.1 mln) and the proceeds will be used to repay bank facilities.
Kingswood Retail Park, Hull is a freehold out-of-town retail park totaling 12,077 m².  It is fully let to 14 retailers for a weighted average unexpired lease term of 8.3 years.
House of Fraser, Birmingham comprises a 45,522 m² majority freehold department store let to House of Fraser.
Grenfell Island, Maidenhead is a 18,348 m² freehold office, leisure and retail block which was completed in 2000. The 10,480 m² of office accommodation is let to Hutchison 3G with an expiry in October 2020 and the remaining leisure and retail space is fully let until 2025.
Source: British Land