British Land adds to Basildon holdings
Published: 23 March, 2011
British Land has bought the Mayflower Retail Park in Basildon for £51m
British Land has purchased the Mayflower Retail Park on the edge of Basildon town centre in Essex from Scottish Widows Investment Partnership for £51m. The purchase price represents a net initial yield of 6.3 per cent, rising to 6.9 per cent upon letting of the park's one vacant unit, with significant opportunities to improve rental levels.
As part of the transaction, British Land will sell the Valley Leisure Park in Croydon to Scottish Widows for £28m , representing a net initial yield of 7.1 per cent.
Mayflower Retail Park comprises 11 retail units totalling 153,000 sq ft of Open A1 space serving a catchment population of over 300,000 people. Current retailers on the park include Homebase, Currys, Harveys, Mothercare and Next. The park is also situated adjacent to a Tesco superstore.
Valley Leisure Park, Croydon was acquired by British Land in 2000 for £21m. The scheme comprises 135,000 sq ft of predominantly leisure space, anchored by an eight-screen cinema.
Charles Maudsley, head of Retail at British Land said: "This is another attractive acquisition for British Land which is in line with our strategy of recycling capital into assets with higher rental and value growth prospects. Mayflower is a popular trading location where rents are affordable and retailers trade well. By refreshing and modernising the park, we believe there are significant opportunities to attract new retailers to the scheme and grow rents. Along with Eastgate Shopping Centre in the heart of Basildon, we now own the town's two most dominant retail assets where we anticipate future growth."
