- Green Oaks Shopping Centre in Widnes sold for well above the £3.5m guide prior to the auction and was the largest lot to sell
- Of the 82 lots marketed, 22 sold at £1m or above, with an average lot price of £1.84m
- Allsop commercial and residential auctions raised over £500m since the start of the year, making it the highest total for the period of Jan-Nov since 2017
Allsop’s November commercial auction raised over £63.2m following the sale of 82 lots, with an overall success rate of 83%, demonstrating a substantial increase on November 2020.
Retail assets made up a significant proportion of the assets sold, generating a total of £49m, which shows the ongoing investor demand for this asset class, a trend that has been on the rise since the beginning of this year.
London properties saw high levels of demand, with fierce competition for some of the lots located in Camden and Colliers Wood. The auction was also marked by strong appetite for mixed-use investments, which particularly appealed to those looking to diversify their exposure.
George Walker, partner and auctioneer at Allsop, said:
“As the economic recovery continues, two distinct types of buyers have begun to emerge: those who opt for the safety of long-let assets paying very low yields, and those who buy into the higher yields offered by larger high street retail investments.
“We have witnessed very competitive bidding amongst buyers for retail and mixed-use assets this year. Over the past few months, tenant demand has shown reassuring signs of recovery, and rents are starting to be paid in a more timely and consistent manner, which has sent a positive signal to the market and is reflected in the £49m raised from the sales of retail assets alone.”
Key highlights include:
Lot 24: A mixed-use parade in Meir, with a total site area of 0.732 acres, which includes 43 flats, seven shops, and on-site car parking, which was sold for £2.95m (NIY 8.8%).
Lot 75: Green Oaks shopping centre in Widnes comprising a total of 95,542 sq. ft of retail and leisure space spread over two floors, which sold prior to the auction, well above the asking price of £3.5m.
Lot 7: A mixed-use site in Camden comprising an estate agent’s office and four flats, which was sold for over £1.71m (NIY 4.9%).
Allsop’s next commercial property auction will take place online on 8 December 2021. Visit www.allsop.co.uk for more information.
