LONDON (Alliance News) - F&C Commercial Property Trust Ltd Monday said it has recently bought one property and conditionally exchanged contracts on another for GBP10.75 million in total.
In a statement, the property investor said it has bought a retail warehouse in Solihull for GBP4.5 million that's adjacent to one of its largest current investments. Tenants at the new site include Magnet Ltd and Multiyork Furniture Ltd, with a weighted average unexpired term of 8.4 years. The property provides a total rent passing of £326,784 a year, equating to an average of GBP24.32 per square foot. F&C thinks it has good rental growth prospects. The purchase price represents a net initial yield of 6.9%.
The conditional exchange is for a London property on the St Christopher's Place estate that has been in the hands of its current owners since the 1930s. St Christopeher's is F&C Commercial property Trust's largest investment.
The purchase price for the property is GBP6.25 million and the deal is expected to complete in April. The property had retail, offices and residential property, and the company thinks it represents a good redevelopment prospect.
F&C Commercial Property Trust also said that the forward deal it had done in 2012 to buy four office blocks in Aberdeen will now be completed in the first quarter of this year, rather than in October 2013 as it had previously expected. It didn't give a reason for the delay, but said the properties will be formally valued when they are acquired and any rise in value will be recognised in its net asset value per share at the subsequent quarter end.
F&C Commercial Property's shares were down 0.7% at 123.484 pence Monday morning.
By Steve McGrath; stevemcgrath@alliancenews.com; @SteveMcGrath1
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