Landmark buys large commercial ground rent portfolio
Bolton-based Landmark Investments Group, the specialist ground rent investor, has acquired a significant commercial ground rent portfolio on the edge of Manchester city centre.
Consisting 366 properties and various plots of land, the portfolio covers approximately 42-acres spanning from the Manchester Evening News Arena, Cheetham Hill Road, across to Great Ducie Street and as far as Southall Street.
The ground rent portfolio was purchased from a private offshore investor and required no bank financing.
Tenants within the portfolio include Barclays Bank, Manchester City Council, AXA, Royal Bank of Scotland, property companies and parts of Boddingtons Brewery. The portfolio is the largest commercial ground rent acquisition to date by Landmark.
Mark Hawthorn, director of Landmark Investments Group, said: "We started to acquire commercial ground rents in late 2012 as part of our wider expansion plans. This portfolio fits perfectly with our strategy and we are at contracts with a number of other, larger deals across the UK, with substantial cash funds for further acquisitions. We have moved away from bank funding and are able to acquire cash which is far more attractive to any vendor.
"It's an extensive portfolio and the deal was complex due to its size and age. It will require extensive asset management which we relish – it's a big bonus being on our doorstep."
