Brixton has sold four industrial units to AEW Europe’s European Property Investors Special Opportunities Fund (EPISO) for £70.25m and sealed its first letting at its X2 shed in Heathrow.

The industrial REIT sold the properties at yields ranging from between 6.7% to 8.1% - below the prime industrial average initial yield of 8.25% according to Cushman & Wakefield – but higher than its December average portfolio valuation yield of 5.25%.

The sale prices equated to an average reduction of 19% on the company’s December valuation.

AEW Europe has bought Heathrow Gateway for £43m at a net initial yield of 8.1%. Unit 1 is let to Royal Mail at a rent of £10.23/sq ft for 16 years, while unit 2 is let to Ceva Freight at £11.19/sq ft for 13 years.

It paid £11.2m for Unit 3 at Polar Park in Heathrow, which is let to the Metropolitan Police Department for 19 years, at a net initial yield of 6.7%.

It also bought a single unit at Oldfield Lane, Greenford, for £15.5m, for a net initial yield of 7.8%. The property is let to Kuehne & Nagel Drinkflow Logistics at a rent of £9.56/sq ft on unexpired lease term of 13 years.

The sale comes in the same week that AEW Europe’s EPISO fund spent another €147.5m on industrial property in Europe including a €119.5m portfolio of seven properties totalling 2.5m sq ft from ProLogis European Properties.

Peter Dawson, chief executive said: ‘These sales are in line with our stated strategy of providing additional financial flexibility for the Group. We continue to progress other initiatives in particular debt refinancing and a potential equity raising with the aim of reaching a comprehensive long-term solution for all stakeholders.’

King Sturge and CB Richard Ellis acted for Brixton on the sale while AEW Europe was represented by Strutt & Parker.

The industrial REIT has also completed the letting of 82,683 sq ft over units one, two and three at its two-storey warehouse scheme X2, Heathrow and two units at The Heathrow Estate.

The space has been let to Airworld Services, a cargo support company, on a five year lease at a headline rent of £13.61 sq ft with the equivalent of one year rent free.

To enable the letting Brixton has agreed the surrender of three units at The Heathrow Estate and one at Fairway Trading Estate, Heathrow.

It has also agreed to let units 11 and 12 at the Heathrow Estate, totalling 42,018 sq ft, to Swiss Post International (UK) until February 2015.

The agreed rent is £11.80 sq ft with three months rent-free on unit 11 and four months on unit 12, as well as the surrender of the lease of 25,329 sq ft at unit 1, Riverside Cargo Centre, Heathrow.

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