Clearbell lets student housing at Belgrade Plaza, Coventry

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, today announces that Clearbell Property Partners II LP (Clearbell) has let 64 one and two-bedroom flats to Future Lets, the Coventry University housing department, at Belgrade Plaza on a 12-year lease for the entire residential block.

Belgrade Plaza is a 129,500 sq ft mixed-use site at the heart of Coventry, built in 2008, offering residential, leisure and retail facilities. It is made up of the residential apartments, a 120-bed hotel, 4 restaurant/leisure units and a gym. The site has recently undergone refurbishment, including the re-decoration of its common areas and the introduction of energy efficient lighting.

Clearbell acquired the asset in 2016, with plans maintain the residential occupancy and pursue lease re-gears with the hotel and restaurant tenants.

Dominic Moore, Head of Asset Management at Clearbell Capital, said: “Coventry is a city undergoing great change. It has always had significant economic drivers, including strong local industry and the two Universities. Yet to date Coventry has lacked sufficient residential accommodation and facilities to match growing demand to live and work in the city.

“As the home of both Coventry and Warwick Universities, there is a particularly strong need for accommodation for students and staff in Coventry. This long-term letting at Belgrade Plaza demonstrates the desire for universities like Coventry to ensure supply of high-quality student and staff accommodation.”

Obi Okwuadigbo, Managing Director at FutureLets, said: “The need for more student accommodation is well documented and people can see the new schemes being developed in the city centre. We also need to ensure there is enough accommodation for staff and visitors and that’s the reason behind our decision to lease Belgrade Plaza. The lease has been taken over 12 years and began at the end of August this year in time for the academic year ahead.”

This letting follows news last month of a lease extension to Premier Inn on the 120-bed hotel at Belgrade Plaza to 2038. Clearbell was advised by Bromwhich Hardy.

Clearbell Capital and Gaw Capital Partners Jointly Announce Transaction of 4 and 5 Harbour Exchange

Clearbell Capital and Gaw Capital Partners today announces the transaction of 4 and 5 Harbour Exchange in London, with Clearbell Property Partners II LP (Clearbell) agreeing to sell Harbour Exchange to Gaw Capital for £36.2m.

The assets, comprising two office buildings in the Harbour Exchange estate, cover 95,000 sq ft in total. Harbour Exchange is a multi-let office estate located in the Isle of Dogs, offering one million sq ft of office space. The site is in close proximity to South Quay DLR station and is a 10-minute walk to the Canary Wharf estate, with access to the Underground’s Jubilee Line.

Clearbell acquired Harbour Exchange in February 2014 to cater for businesses looking for cheaper rents in London, having been priced out of central locations.

A series of asset management initiatives and new lettings were undertaken to drive income, including:

• Overhaul of the Mechanical & Electrical (M&E) throughout
• More efficient lighting at 4 Harbour Exchange
• New reception areas and external entrances
• Five new lettings to new tenants at 4 Harbour Exchange

With over 13 years of investment experience, Gaw Capital Partners is distinguished for its ability to add strategic value to real estate through revitalisation, redesign and repositioning. The firm has an excellent investment track record in the London market, with a number of strategic and high-potential commercial properties in its portfolio, including Lloyd’s Building, 123-151 Buckingham Palace Road, Milton Gate and Tower Place.

Dominic Moore, Head of Asset Management at Clearbell Capital said, “This sale demonstrates an appetite for prime office space in desirable locations beyond the City of London. The development of this business hub in the Isle of Dogs is testament to the attractiveness of peripheral locations in London, as tenants seek Grade-A space at reasonable rates. We pursued this investment against a backdrop of rising rents in the City, looking to deliver high quality office space to high quality tenants being priced out of the City.”

Christina Gaw, Managing Principal and Head of Capital Markets at Gaw Capital Partners said, “As freeholders of the Harbour Exchange buildings, this acquisition will enable us to further consolidate our holdings at the estate. These buildings represent exceptional value for tenants, providing access to Grade-A office space in a fantastic location with excellent transport links, at rents far lower than those found in the West End, City and other fringe locations.”

Gryphon Property Partners and Knight Frank acted for Clearbell. Michael Elliott acted for Gaw Capital.

Clearbell lets 10,000 sq ft at Pacific House, Reading, on 10 year lease

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, today announces the letting of 10,000 sq ft to Bytes Security Partnerships at Pacific House, Reading, on behalf of a fund it manages.

Bytes Security Partners has signed a new 10-year lease for part of the first floor of Pacific House, with a break in year 5. The tenant will pay rent of £231,357 per annum, equating to £23 per sq ft (£247 per sq m).

Pacific House is a 57,000 sq ft multi-let office building, acquired in 2015 by the fund as part of the Chalk Portfolio of South East offices.

Since acquisition, both the internal and external space has been refurbished, including new ceilings, LED lighting, raised floors, and new carpet throughout. A concierge service and amenities with a café, bicycle storage and showers have been added, and the external landscaped areas upgraded.

Pacific House is home to five incumbent tenants and is well located, close to Junction 11 of the M4 motorway, and a short drive to Reading mainline station, a central hub with routes across the UK.

Duncan Jarvis, Director at Clearbell, said: “We built a portfolio of offices in the South East as part of our Chalk investment to capitalise on businesses looking to move out of London to avoid rising rents.

“The provision of Grade-A office space has struggled to keep pace with demand in many regions including the South East, as tenants are increasingly demanding more from their workspaces.

“We have transformed Pacific House to include facilities such as cycle racks and showers, attracting a swathe of potential tenants.”

Clearbell was advised by Parkinson Holt and Montagu Evans. 

Clearbell lets 35,800 sq ft in Coventry

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, today announces that the Fund it manages has completed leasing deals on c.35,800 sq ft in Coventry across two assets.

The deals comprise of 10,800 sq ft at Earlsdon Park and c.25,000 sq ft at Belgrade Plaza.

Band Hatton Button has let office space at Earlsdon Park, totalling 3,000 sq ft, as well as a former retail unit of 7,800 sq ft, which will serve as front-of-house for the tenant.

Existing tenant Premier Inn has agreed to extend its lease obligations on a 120-bed hotel at Belgrade Plaza to a straight 20 year term.

Dominic Moore, Head of Asset Management at Clearbell said: “These lettings demonstrate the buzz and strength of business in the regions, and Coventry is no exception.

“With its vibrant business community, the city has benefited from the recent rise of Birmingham as a destination for big business. Locations on the outskirts of Birmingham, like Coventry and Solihull, will continue to see the ripple effects of the business boom in the region. Regeneration in Coventry is appealing to local businesses and driving demand for good office space.”

About Earlsdon Park

Earlsdon Park is a prestigious site based in Coventry. It is a mixed-use site comprising office, leisure, hotel, and residential space, including a 100-room hotel and a 620-seat theatre. It was originally built as a technical college in 1935 and has since been transformed into offices.

Earlsdon Park was purchased by the Fund in 2015, with plans to deliver Grade-A office space in Coventry, where quality office space is in high demand. Since the acquisition, a number of asset management initiatives have been undertaken. This has included the full re-landscaping of external areas, and full refurbishment of the ground floor office space.

About Belgrade Plaza

Belgrade Plaza is a mixed-use scheme in the centre of Coventry, covering residential, leisure and retail. Belgrade Plaza was purchased by the Fund in 2016 with plans to lease the residential accommodation and to pursue lease re-gears with tenants at the scheme.

Clearbell lets 66,000 sq ft space in Kinning Park, Glasgow

Clearbell Capital today announces that it has let 66,000 sq ft of warehouse space at 211 Maclellan Street in Kinning Park, Glasgow, on behalf of a Fund it manages. The space has been let to BeeInspired Clothing, for a 5-year lease from July 2018.

Kinning Park forms part of the Fund’s mixed-use Amber portfolio, comprising 16 assets. The Amber portfolio is part of a UK-wide investment strategy and is split between the retail (53%), industrial (35%) and office (12%) sectors.

The Fund acquired the asset with plans to undertake complete refurbishment works to suit future potential tenants. The asset has been extensively refurbished both internally and externally, including improvements to the industrial warehouse itself, and also to the two-storey office within.

211 Maclellan Street boasts good transport links, located within easy reach of Glasgow City Centre, good links to the M74 and easy access to public buses and the underground.

Dominic Moore, Head of Asset Management and ESG Director at Clearbell said: “As part of our asset management plans at Kinning Park we have renovated the space to appeal to high-quality tenants. With the rise of online shopping and fast fashion, the need for higher capacity warehousing is increasing, with many retailers choosing to consolidate their logistics into larger facilities.”

The Fund has undertaken refurbishment and repositioning of a number of the Amber assets to ensure a diverse spread of lettings. Other assets in Amber include the newly refurbished Fothergill House, Nottingham, which was recently fully let.

Clearbell recently reported a letting of 390,000 sq ft of logistics space to Jack Wills Limited at Parkway Works in Sheffield, on behalf of the Fund’s Polaris portfolio. Jack Wills will use this space as its global distribution centre.

Clearbell lets CC3, Churchill Court, Crawley to Regus on 15 year lease

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, has today announced it has let 27,309 sq. ft to Regus at CC3, Churchill Court in Crawley.

The serviced office provider has signed a new 15-year lease with break in year 10 on the whole building and will pay an annual rent of £682,201, equating to £25.50 per sq. ft (£274 per sq m).

The deal follows the £4 million refurbishment of CC3 undertaken by Clearbell to reposition the office as a flexible Grade A and EPC A asset. This comprehensive back to frame refurbishment included an architecturally designed entrance and reception, new glazing at ground and first floor levels, new M&E, raised floor and LED lighting, among other improvements.

Churchill Court is a self-contained campus of three buildings totalling 106,000 sq. ft prominently located at the junction of Manor Royal and Gatwick Road.

Duncan Jarvis, Director at Clearbell, said: “We are delighted to have let CC3 following the £4M speculative refurbishment in what is the largest single office letting in the Crawley/Gatwick market for over 2 years. The letting to Regus further improves their offering in the South East, most notably in Manor Royal, a prime business hub for the region. CC3 offers high quality flexible office space which will assist Regus in attracting high-quality clientele.”

Andrew Birtwistle, Development Director IWG, plc said “CC3 will establish the Regus brand in a very prominent location within the successful Crawley Manor Royal business district.We very much look forward to the new centre opening later this year.”

Councillor Peter Smith, Cabinet member for Planning and Economic Development at Crawley Borough Council, said: “This is wonderful news for the Manor Royal Business District. This significant commitment shown by Regus is testament to the hard work of the Manor Royal BID and the council to improve the area and make it an attractive proposition for incoming businesses.”

Churchill Court was acquired by Clearbell as part of the Chalk portfolio, comprising seven office assets in the South East. Clearbell made its first acquisition to the Chalk portfolio in 2014 and has since aggregated a South East office portfolio, taking advantage of the ripple effect of London office rents.

Clearbell was advised by GVA, Vail Williams and SHW. Regus was advised by Vail Williams. 

Clearbell sells Lingfield Point to Frogmore for £44m

– Lingfield Point is an 85-acre business park in the heart of the North East

Clearbell Capital today announces the sale of Lingfield Point, an 85-acre business park in the North East, to Frogmore, on behalf of a fund it manages.

Lingfield Point is a mixed-use business park, located in Darlington, and is recognised as one of the North East’s most prestigious property developments. The site incorporates office, industrial and residential space. The site was originally a wool mill factory and has been central to a two-decade long regeneration project in the area.

Lingfield Point is home to many well-known businesses, including the Student Loans Company, and Capita, the outsourcing firm, which leases both office and warehousing space. Lingfield Point is also home to Amec Foster Wheeler.

Lingfield Point was acquired in November 2014 for £23.7m, pursuing a cash-on-cash investment strategy. As part of this strategy, a series of lettings and asset management initiatives to drive income were undertaken. Initiatives have included:

• Significant capex to introduce new infrastructure across the site
• A 42,000 sq ft office letting and a 350,000 sq ft warehouse letting to Capita
• A lease re-gear for the Student Loans Company
• A new ­5-year lease with Four Seasons Health Care.

Dominic Moore, Head of Asset Management & ESG Director at Clearbell, said:

“Our team has a breadth of knowledge of the UK market, enabling us to identify investment opportunities UK-wide. The business community in the North East is thriving and Lingfield Point is perfectly positioned to benefit from this buzz. There has been sustained tenant demand over the past few years highlighting confidence in the North East as a place to do business.

“As businesses continue to demand more from their offices Lingfield Point is ushering in a new generation of modern workspaces. We’re proud to have been involved in the development of such a historic site.”

Patrick Smith, Head of Acquisitions at Frogmore, said:

“This is an exciting opportunity for Frogmore to reinvigorate the award-winning site, engage with the community and provide further modern, relevant accommodation through our asset management expertise.

Tees Valley is a well-connected area to which businesses are attracted and we look forward to providing innovative real estate solutions for their requirements. Lingfield Point provides a strong cash on cash return of over 10% with significant potential to add value as well as providing both sector and geographical diversification for our investors.”

Lingfield Point is home to c. 3,000 staff, who benefit from a range of facilities including an on-site nursery; concierge services and on-site café.

Montagu Evans acted for Clearbell and Everton Phillips acted for Frogmore.

Clearbell acquires Octagon Retail Park, Stoke, for £28m

Clearbell Capital, the private real estate fund manager, today announces the acquisition of Octagon Retail Park in Stoke for £28m, on behalf of one of its funds. The net initial yield is 8.3%.

The asset is the first acquisition in Clearbell Property Partners III to be announced since the successful fundraise of £310m.

Octagon Retail Park is located in the core of Stoke’s out of town retail provision, the dominant centre between Birmingham and Manchester. The park is the region’s leading furniture and homewares retail park.

The site is located within a retail cluster in Hanley, Stoke. The site comprises 137,000 sq ft in total and is currently let to eight tenants, including DFS, Wren Kitchens and Sofaworks.

Clearbell identified this as an opportunity to reposition an asset in a strong Midlands location with minimal vacancy and clear asset management upside to consolidate Octagon’s position as Stoke’s leading furniture destination.

The retail park is focused on tenants selling bulky goods, with these retailers considered to be complimentary to the rise of online shopping.

Rob West, Partner at Clearbell Capital, said: “Retail is the main sector currently experiencing real distress, and this is starting to be reflected in pricing. The key is to buy off sustainable, rebased rental levels.

“Our research indicates that consumers purchasing large, expensive items like furniture tend to try before they buy and this is driving footfall resilience in retail warehousing.”

Clearbell was advised by Morgan Trend and Curson Sowerby. The seller was advised by First Alliance Properties and Harvey Spack Field. 

Clearbell lets 390,000 sq ft warehouse to Jack Wills as their global distribution centre

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, has announced the letting of 390,000 sq ft to Jack Wills Limited at Parkway Works, Kettebridge Road Sheffield.

The British clothing brand has signed a new 10-year lease with break option in year 6 for warehouse accommodation totalling 390,000 sq ft (36,232 sq m) and will use the warehouse as their global distribution centre.

Jack Wills will pay an annual rent of £750,000, equating to £3.25 psf, excluding mezzanine levels.

The deal follows the surrender of the previous incumbent tenant’s lease and simultaneous grant of a new lease to Jack Wills.

Duncan Jarvis, Director at Clearbell, said: “We are delighted to have let Parkway Works to Jack Wills for their global distribution centre. The warehouse is well located close to the A57 which provides fast access to Sheffield city centre and Junction 33 of the M1. Sheffield and the surrounding Yorkshire market continues to perform very well in the logistics market with take-up for 2018 already well ahead of the annual average for the region.”

Parkway Works was acquired as part of the Polaris portfolio, a portfolio which at acquisition consisted of 14 business and industrial assets split as 10% office assets, 67% industrial assets and 24% of distribution warehousing. The assets are located in the UK’s regions, with one asset in the South and the rest spread across the North West, North East and Yorkshire. 

Clearbell raises £310m value add fund focused on UK real estate

• £111m already committed to 4 investments
• Commitments from 14 investors based across the world

Clearbell Capital, the private equity real estate fund manager, announces the final close on its third value add fund, Clearbell Property Partners III (CPP III). Clearbell has raised £310m.

Clearbell has secured a strong investor base, with investors from the USA, Australia, Europe, Middle East and South America. 83% of commitments were received from Clearbell’s existing investors, as well as 17% from new investors, including pension funds, not for profit organisations and high net worth’s.

The fund is already invested in four UK opportunities across office, logistics and leisure:

• Cara: c.£100m aggregated portfolio comprising 20 industrial and logistics assets via four separate transactions
• Taurus: logistics portfolio acquired via two separate transactions with plans to aggregate a portfolio of mid to large sized logistics units
• Edmund House: 78k sq ft office accommodation and 10k sq ft retail and restaurant space in Birmingham’s central business district
• The Sloane Club: 75,000 sq ft private members’ club in the heart of Chelsea, London

Manish Chande, Senior Partner at Clearbell Capital, said: “We are extremely pleased to announce the completion of the fundraise. Though the Brexit vote has undeniably given overseas investors temporary cold feet towards UK value add real estate strategies, we’ve been able to draw on our strong track record and in-depth knowledge of the UK market to attract investment in this fund. The headwinds have been very strong, but we have navigated these to achieve a successful raise.

“Our team knows the UK market inside out and this shows in the deployment to date and in opportunities we continue to identify. Brexit has created investment opportunities in the UK for those willing to roll their sleeves up and focus on properties which require targeted and innovative solutions.

“Our first fund is substantially realised, the second is more than half realised, both are on target to deliver over double digit gross returns to investors and for CPP III we will continue to target investments with above average returns.”

CPP III will follow a similar investment strategy to its predecessors, focusing on the following five investment themes:

• Cash-on-cash: exploiting the wide gap between property yields and interest rates, especially in the logistics and industrial space
• Evolution of retail: capitalising on rise of delivery to acquire retail logistics including creating aggregated portfolios
• Recovery assets: sourcing good quality assets requiring capital investment
• Reverse ripple: pursuing London office markets where value should emerge post EU Referendum
• Beds: opportunities in residential and leisure accommodation due to lack of supply

Clearbell manages the three UK value add real estate funds in addition to its advisory mandates. This new fund brings Clearbell’s total assets managed to £2.2 billion including its advisory mandates.