06 January 2012
Property Week
View all stories from this issue.
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Sports Direct labels Blacks board decisions “disappointing”
10 January 2012
Sports Direct has hit out at the Blacks Leisure Group board for turning down an offer for the business last year, which was yesterday sold out of a pre-pack administration to JD Sports for £20m.
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‘No hay, no pay’ has agents champing at the bit
06 January 2012
As the Christmas music dies down, the words of George Michael live on. To be honest, if, last Christmas, he gave you his heart, this year it would be the liver, kidneys and all other organs as well.
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£30m revamp mooted for Birmingham's Grand Hotel
5 January 2012
The Grand Hotel in Birmingham’s Colmore Row may soon be redeveloped, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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Abstract and Kames' £22.5m Birmingham plans approved
3 January 2012
Abstract Land and Kames Capital have been given planning consent for the 153,000 sq ft redevelopment of 55 Colmore Row in Birmingham, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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Allied Irish Bank Investment Management completes City sale
06 January 2012
Allied Irish Bank Investment Management has completed an off-market sale of 1-3 Royal Exchange Buildings in the City of London on behalf of an Irish investor.
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Allied London plans water rebirth in Leeds
5 January 2012
Allied London has bought an underperforming Leeds mixed-use scheme, and has drawn up plans to drastically turn around its fortunes.
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Another Colliers director quits central London team
22 December 2011
One of Colliers International’s City investment agents has quit the central London team, following the departure of his boss Mike MacKeith last month.
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ASR retail fund raises €380m
21 December 2011
ASR Real Estate Investment Management, has raised €380m at first closing of the ASR Dutch Prime Retail Fund, beating the €300m target.
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Bill Hughes’ Desert Island Bricks
06 January 2012
Legal & General Property’s managing director shares his favourite buildings with Christine Eade
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Blacks heads for administration
6 January 2012
Blacks Leisure has signalled its intention to appoint partners at KMPG as administrators.
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BNP Paribas Real Estate proposes to shut Manchester and Cardiff offices
4 January 2012
BNP Paribas Real Estate this week outlined proposals to shut its Manchester and Cardiff offices, PropertyWeek.com can reveal.
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BNP Paribas Real Estate to make 70 UK positions redundant
29 December 2011
BNP Paribas Real Estate is proposing to make 70 roles in its UK business redundant, propertyweek.com can reveal.
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BP oils wheels of west London
06 January 2012
BP this week began a search for up to 180,000 sq ft of office space between Staines and Weybridge.
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C Le Masurier has Broad plans for £150m Jersey office
06 January 2012
Jersey developer C Le Masurier has been granted planning permission for a 300,000 sq ft office scheme on Broad Street in the centre of the island’s financial district.
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Candy caned by comic
06 January 2012
What better way to mark a recent engagement than be mocked by a Welshman on Christmas day TV?
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Capital values have rallied in spite of household income squeeze
06 January 2012
UK residential capital values have held up well over 2011, despite a weakening economic outlook — both at home and abroad — and an unprecedented squeeze on household income.
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CBRE poaches Jones Lang LaSalle national director
5 January 2012
One of Jones Lang LaSalle’s best known investment agents has moved to CBRE.
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China is Asia-Pacific’s headline act as European pantomime continues
06 January 2012
This is my fourth Christmas in Asia and I am learning that the property markets out here don’t stand still for very long — 2009 was an earth-scorching “bust” when values fell by up to 60%; 2010 enjoyed a rapid recovery when office rents rose by 40% in some markets.
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City sees £1.1bn of December deals completed
28 December 2011
The City of London had a bumper December, with £1.1bn of deals completed despite the turmoil in global financial and property markets.
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Costa Coffee to milk UK for 100 further shop locations
06 January 2012
Costa Coffee experienced a growth spurt at the end of last year. It opened 16 coffee shops in the two months before Christmas, and aims to continue its expansion.
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Crosstree and Aviva complete Mayfair deal within two weeks
21 December 2011
Ernesto Bertarelli’s property company has concluded its purchase of Aviva Investors’ 1-3 Berkeley Street, less than two weeks after putting it under offer.
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Deka buys Manchester office
6 January 2012
Orchard Street Investment Management has sold the Belvedere building at Booth St in Manchester on behalf of client Railway Pension Fund Nominees to German fund manager Deka Immobilien, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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Don't Banksy on it
06 January 2012
Shaw & Co must have thought Christmas had come early when a Banksy original appeared on a building the agent was selling at the start of December.
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DTZ would have ‘run out of cash by January’ says report
06 January 2012
A report to creditors of DTZ has highlighted the desperate state the company was in before its “prepack” administration sale to UGL last December.
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Financial occupier trio flock to Jersey’s 37 Esplanade
06 January 2012
Three financial services tenants have taken space at Dandara’s 37 Esplanade development in Jersey.
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Financier sweet on Sugar’s St James’s office
06 January 2012
Lord Sugar has sold a £5.9m block in London’s St James’s that he used as his office.
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Four favourable forecasts for the new year
06 January 2012
As spending cuts continue to bite, the environment for public sector property professionals will remain challenging. But several government measures expected to gather momentum in 2012 could provide some much-needed support for the industry. Sarah Townsend reviews them
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Gerald Eve increases profits by 12%
06 January 2012
Gerald Eve increased its pretax profit by 12% to £8.05m in the year to 5 April 2011, despite incurring the cost of moving its London headquarters and upgrading its IT.
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GIC invests down under
06 January 2012
A joint venture between Singaporean and Canadian investment funds is to buy Australian office REIT Charter Hall for $1.2bn.
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Glasgow site powers up: Scottish Power drops 220 Broomielaw from HQ plan
06 January 2012
Scottish Power is eyeing the former Elphinstone Tower site for its new Glasgow headquarters, after abandoning talks to buy a plot on the River Clyde.
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Government warned on office-to-resi U turn
28 December 2011
Government back tracking on legislation that would facilitate the conversion of office space into residential usage risks hampering the UK economy, a UK property agency warned this week.
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Green light for Zog’s 650,000 sq ft Tower Bridge scheme
30 December 2011
Zog Group has won planning approval to develop a 650,000 sq ft mixed-use scheme next to Tower Bridge in the City of London.
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Grosvenor ponders Savills HQ refurb
06 January 2012
Grosvenor is considering whether to redevelop Savills’ offices at 20 Grosvenor Hill in London’s Mayfair, after the firm agreed to move to a new headquarters building off Regent Street.
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Hansteen buys £150m Spencer industrial portfolio
22 December 2011
Hansteen Holdings has bought the properties owned by The Spencer Group of Companies for £150m.
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Hansteen buys Spencer’s sheds
06 January 2012
Hansteen has swooped on a £150m UK portfolio of largely industrial properties with a high vacancy rate.
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Henderson's last-minute spending spree
06 January 2012
Henderson Global Investors sealed close to £60m in retail deals during the final months of 2011, including the £31.9m purchase of Almondvale Retail Park, in Livingston (pictured).
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Hines snaps up 1 Bartholomew Lane
6 January 2012
Hines has bought a prime City of London office building on behalf of an Asian investor making its overseas property debut.
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Howard de Walden posts stellar results
30 December 2011
Howard de Walden Estates, the landed estate focused around Marylebone in London’s West End, has posted bumper results for the year 2011, including a 20% jump in profits.
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Hyde Park grows new hedge fund
06 January 2012
A Hyde Park-based hedge fund has set up a vehicle to invest in European property debt and preferred equity.
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Iacobescu, Bear and Ronson honoured in New Year’s list
3 January 2012
George Iacobescu and Michael Bear have received knighthoods and Gerald Ronson has been named a CBE in the Queen’s 2012 New Year’s Honours list.
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Imperial reveals plans for BBC site
06 January 2012
Imperial College London has submitted plans for a campus on the former BBC site on Wood Lane in White City, known as Imperial West.
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In land contracts, the pen is mightier than the word
06 January 2012
The message: Oral contracts relating to land must be recorded in writing.
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INTELLIGENCE: Jones Lang LaSalle’s new year forecast
06 January 2012
Jones Lang LaSalle’s annual property predictions paint a cautious picture of the year ahead and few chinks of light are expected to shine through. Here are the most notable findings:
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Investment volumes fell to £31bn in 2011
06 January 2012
UK commercial property transaction volumes sank by at least 14% in 2011, as the eurozone crisis deepened and European banks began to exit property lending.
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Invista’s Owen and co to join Schroders
06 January 2012
Duncan Owen and some of his Invista Real Estate Investment Management colleagues are poised to join Schroders later this month.
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Is that a tower in your pocket?
06 January 2012
For all those agents that secretly want to be landlords, there is an iPhone game that will make your dreams come true — or try very hard to
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It’s a grind ahead in 2012, but no calamity
06 January 2012
“We predict increased investment volumes of £35bn, but reduced returns of 7%-9%,” was how we kicked off 2011 in this column last year.
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JLL's 2012 predictions revealed
4 January 2012
Jones Lang LaSalle’s annual property predictions paint a cautious picture of the year ahead with a few chinks of light expected to shine through. Here, PropertyWeek.com presents the notable findings in retail, capital markets, offices, development and industrial.
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Kirsh exchanges on Tower 42 deal
21 December 2011
South African investor Nathan Kirsh has exchanged contracts to buy the iconic Tower 42 in the City for £282.5m.
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Knight Frank lands Battersea job
4 January 2012
Knight Frank’s residential team has secured the prestigious mandate of selling Battersea Power Station in London out of administration.
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La Senza kicks off retail cull
06 January 2012
A cull of stores by struggling retailers began this week, after a torrid Christmas caused a series of casualties.
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Land Secs secures new £1bn debt facility
22 December 2011
Land Securities has secured a £1,050m five year revolving credit facility at a headline margin of 120 basis points over LIBOR.
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Landlords warn of “development hiatus”
21 December 2011
Developers have called on the government to provide clarity on its proposals for planning reform and warned of a “complete development hiatus” in more than half the country unless local authorities are compelled to produce local development plans.
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Law Society commits to Birmingham move
29 December 2011
The Law Society has signed a deal to take 57,000 sq ft of office space at The Cube, in Birmingham.
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Liverpool and Everton fans unite for 'Football Quarter' regeneration
29 December 2011
Fans of the Liverpool and Everton football clubs have launched a campaign aimed at attracting developers to invest in 40 acres of land in North Liverpool.
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Lok'nStore wins Maidenhead green light
5 January 2012
Lok’nStore has received planning consent for a self-storage development in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
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London & Stamford likely to cash in on Meadowhall next year
28 December 2011
London & Stamford, the REIT set up by Raymond Mould and Patrick Vaughan, is likely to cash in on one of the biggest deals done during the depth of the downturn and sell its 50% stake in the Meadowhall shopping centre in Sheffield, according to the Daily Telegraph.
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London house prices grow, as regions dip further
30 December 2011
London is the only part of England and Wales to have experienced an uplift in property values over the past 12 months, data released today by the Land Registry reveals today.
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Lone Star buys £900m of Lloyds loans
22 December 2011
Lone Star has completed the purchase of £900m of loans from Lloyds Banking Group, as the UK’s lenders step up the deleveraging of their property lending legacy.
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Malaysian fund in £350m London debut
22 December 2011
Malaysian investment fund PNB has made its debut London purchase with a £350m deal to buy Milton and Shire House from Beacon Capital Partners.
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Mark Williams quits DTZ
3 January 2012
Mark Williams is to depart DTZ having spent 26 years at the firm.
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MEPC secures Basingstoke's biggest letting
4 January 2012
MEPC has secured Basingstoke’s biggest letting of the past six years at Chineham Park.
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Moorfield buys £50m Finsbury Circus building
06 January 2012
Moorfield Group, on behalf of the Moorfield Real Estate Fund II, has completed its purchase of the long-leasehold interest in Salisbury House on Finsbury Circus in the City of London.
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Muse and Wilson Bowden shortlisted for Chesterfield regeneration
3 January 2012
Muse Developments and Wilson Bowden have been shortlisted for a regeneration scheme in the centre of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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Need to know: 2012 occupational hazards
06 January 2012
However bleak 2012 appears, it will be a period of occupational cost control. Rents are stabilising or falling, enabling multiples to expand and newcomers to debut.
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Need to know: impact of Goods and Service Tax Law
06 January 2012
Jersey landlords are under pressure to amend lease terms as this summer’s activation of the Goods and Service Tax Law draws closer.
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Nestle confirms Croydon exit
5 January 2012
Nestle has today confirmed its head office relocation to Legal & General’s 1 City Place in Crawley.
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Nestle to leave Croydon for L&G Crawley scheme
4 January 2012
Nestle has signed a deal to move out of its headquarters in Croydon to Legal & General’s 1 City Place in Crawley.
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New home approvals down 10%
21 December 2011
The number of new homes given permission in Q3 fell by 10% on the same time last year, according to a report.
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New year brings comprehensive no-confidence vote in UK property
06 January 2012
The latest confidence survey by one of the UK’s two largest property lenders makes grim reading for people hoping for a cheery start to 2012.
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New year promises reformed character for property
06 January 2012
This year brings a raft of legislative and other changes with which the property industry will have to contend. Sarah Townsend flags up the planning reforms that will have the biggest impact on property and examines further issues that will come to light in 2012
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OFT launches investigation in to CSC’s Westfield buy
11 January 2012
The Office of Fair Trading has launched a merger investigation into Capital Shopping Centres’ £73.3m purchase of the Broadmarsh shopping centre in Nottingham.
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Pedigree chums’ calamitous Christmas party
06 January 2012
Normally it’s a civilised affair — one at which old and esteemed friends toast a year gone by, at least until dessert arrives.
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Peel reveals plans for a further 5m sq ft at MediaCity
5 January 2012
The Peel Group has today revealed its plans for a further 5m sq ft of mixed-use development at its MediaCityUK scheme at Salford Quays.
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Peel writes down MediaCity value by £23.9m
4 January 2012
Peel Media, the company responsible for Peel Group’s investment in MediaCity:UK, has written down the carrying value of its investment properties by £23.9m, according to newly-filed accounts, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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People Moves: CBRE Global investors, Hammerson, Haslams and more...
06 January 2012
OBI Property has recruited Michael Morgan from his own firm, Morgan Surveyors, to head the professional services and asset management department.
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Pramerica secures Glasgow office trophy
4 January 2012
Pramerica Real Estate Investors has bought a 175,000 sq ft office building in Glasgow’s business district for £70m.
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Property Week Digital Edition - 06 January 2012
6 January 2012
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Property's Prophecies: What lies in store for property in 2012?
06 January 2012
David Hatcher explains how London retail and the Eurozone will shape 2012.
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Q+A: Guernsey’s Strategic Land Use Plan
06 January 2012
The Strategic Land Use Plan is a statutory document prepared by the States of Guernsey and was agreed on in November after 10 years of debate.
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Quayside scheme to complete Isle of Man revamp
06 January 2012
Heads of terms have been agreed with a developer to build out a mixed-use development on the waterfront of the Isle of Man’s capital, Douglas.
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Quinn blocked from pursuing bankruptcy in UK
11 January 2012
Irish property investor Sean Quinn has been blocked by the Irish court from pursuing bankruptcy proceedings in the UK.
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Redevco makes three senior appointments
3 January 2012
Dutch developer Redevco has appointed three employees to its board as chief operating officers and a chief human resources officer.
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Retail footfall at 2009 recession levels
28 December 2011
Boxing Day footfall for Britain’s retailers was at the same level as the economic nadir of 2009, as the sector struggles to pull itself out of the doldrums.
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Reubens get extension for racecourse operator takeover plans
3 January 2012
The deadline for a possible takeover of racecourse operator Arena Leisure by the Reuben brothers has been extended for a fourth time, TheBusinessDesk.com reported today.
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Rewrite planning reforms, say MPs
21 December 2011
The government’s proposals to reform the planning system should be re-written to give greater protection to the environment, an influential group of MPs said this week.
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Royal Horticultural Society offloads 200,000 sq ft Victoria block
30 December 2011
The Royal Horticultural Society has granted a 999-year lease on Lawrence Hall in London’s Victoria to raise £18m ahead of a programme of investment it plans for the new year.
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RREEF rolled into Deutsche sell-off
06 January 2012
The world’s second-largest property fund manager is likely to change hands this year, as Deutsche Bank puts its €400bn asset management business up for sale.
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Savills buys central London firm Gresham Down
5 January 2012
Savills’ commercial arm has bought London investment specialist Gresham Down and appointed managing partner Stephen Down to lead its London capital markets team.
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Second anchor retailer to take Liberty at Harcourt’s Jersey mall
06 January 2012
Harcourt Developments is in advanced discussions with a fashion retailer to take a 10,000 sq ft anchor store at its Liberty Wharf waterfront scheme in Jersey.
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Second government bail-out for Abu Dhabi developer
29 December 2011
Abu Dhabi property developer Aldar has received a second government bail-out worth approximately $4.6bn following a crash in property prices.
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Shaftesbury JV agrees £120m debt facility
6 January 2012
Listed West End investment company Shaftesbury has secured a 15-year debt facility with Aviva Commercial Finance as part of its joint venture with The Mercers’ Company.
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Shopping, lending and planning: my three wishes for 2012
06 January 2012
Last year was a tough one for the property market, which faced some sustained challenges. Unfortunately, the general weight of opinion is that 2012 will be similar.
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Spanish hairdresser Marco Aldany cuts a dash in London
06 January 2012
Spanish hairdresser Marco Aldany will be the first foreign occupier to arrive in the UK this year, when it opens later this month at 93 Tottenham Court Road in central London.
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Struggling retailers report Christmas trading improvement
5 January 2012
JJB Sports and Clinton Cards have reported improved like-for-like sales over the Christmas period.
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Strutts West End partner to depart
22 December 2011
One of Strutt & Parker’s West End office agency partners is to leave the business to work for DTZ in Bristol.
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Sweaty Betty steps up expansion plan
06 January 2012
Women’s activewear brand Sweaty Betty is stepping up its expansion plans in anticipation of this year’s Olympic Games.
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Swedish property company in circa €450m retail deal
5 January 2012
Swedish property company AMF Fastigheter has bought three shopping centre in downtown Stockholm.
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Swindon’s Brunel Centre succumbs
06 January 2012
The Brunel Centre in Swindon was put into receivership just before Christmas, as indebted shopping centres outside London continue to struggle.
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SWIP buys Brighton retail park
5 January 2012
Scottish Widows Investment Partnership has bought Brighton Retail Park from Legal & General Property.
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The Kooples to open at Liverpool One
6 January 2012
French fashion brand, The Kooples, is to open at Grosvenor’s Liverpool One shopping centre.
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Trade unions back HS2
6 January 2012
Trade union leaders have backed the government’s proposals for a controversial £32bn high speed rail network.
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Turnstone gets green light in St Neots
10 January 2012
Turnstone Estates has been granted planning permission by Huntingdonshire District Council for a 32,000 sq ft leisure scheme in St Neots town centre, Cambridgeshire.
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UK’s year to remember could be overshadowed by world economy
06 January 2012
They say 2012 will be a year to remember and they’re not wrong. The Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee will guarantee some spectacular exposure for London and the whole of the UK, arguably doing what we have always done better than anyone: putting on a great show.
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UPP closes £230m Reading University deal
22 December 2011
The University of Reading has agreed to sell its entire residential estate to University Partnerships Programme for £230m, making it the largest private investment into a UK university residential estate to date.
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Watkin Jones' Gorse Stacks gets green light
6 January 2012
Chester Council’s Strategic Planning Committee has unanimously approved planning permission for Watkin Jones’ £30m Gorse Stacks scheme in Chester.
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WP Carey founder dies
4 January 2012
William Polk Carey, founder and chairman of investment management company WP Carey, has died.
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Year of two halves for listed property in 2011
06 January 2012
Capital & Counties was the star listed performer in 2011, in a year for property shares that began so brightly but ended so gloomily.
