1st August (Issue 107)
Welcome to the Origin Capital Weekly Irish Property Review. This update is designed to provide you with a full recap of the latest property news from the media over the last seven days.
MARKET COMMENTARY
Commercial Property Returns: The Society of Chartered Surveyors’ Ireland and IPD Quarterly Property Index has noted that the value of Irish commercial property investments rose by c. 2.1% in Q2 2017, a figure which is below the c. 3% return in Q2 2016. The index showed that commercial property returned c. 10% YoY to the end of June 2017. According to MSCI, which produced the research, Irish commercial property returns have normalised since the recovery in the market took place. The Irish Times, 27th July
RETAIL
CastleCourt Shopping Centre: The Northern Ireland-based investment firm Wirefox has paid c. £125m (c. €140m) to acquire the 27-year old Castlecourt shopping centre in Belfast. The property, which extends to c. 340,000 sq. ft. of space, was previously owned by the fund manager Hermes. The centre is the third largest in Northern Ireland and is the largest single-asset transaction to take place in recent years. The centre is anchored by Debenhams and has annual footfall of c. 12.5 million. The Irish Times, 28th July
Kildare Village Extension: Value Retail, the owner of Kildare Village, has submitted plans for a c. €50m extension which would add 29 stores and two restaurants to the complex. If the scheme was to be approved, it would increase the number of stores to over 130 and provide employment for several hundred people. To facilitate the extension, an additional 460 car spaces will need to be provided. The Irish Independent, 30th July
Skerries Point Shopping Centre: Skerries Point Shopping Centre in north Dublin has been sold to US investment company Grand Coast Capital for €3.4m, c. €400k above the asking price set by Savills. The purchase price equates to c. €113 psf, and the investment will show an initial yield of c. 7%. The centre, which extends to 68,682 sq. ft., currently produces rental income of c. €335k p.a. from tenants which include Eurospar and Boylesports. The weighted average unexpired lease term is 6.5 years, and the centre currently has a vacancy rate of 57%. The Irish Times, 26th July
Jervis Shopping Centre: AIB has provided JSC Properties, a company controlled by Paddy McKillen and Padraig Drayne, with a seven-year, €155m loan facility to refinance the Jervis Shopping Centre in Dublin city centre. The 385,000 sq. ft. centre, which was developed in 1994, contains over 90 retail units, including Topshop, Tesco, PC World and Next, as well as a dedicated food court. The current rental income is c. €16m p.a., a figure which is due to rise to c. €18.5m p.a. over the next 18 months. The owners of the centre were advised by LeBruin and Eastdil Secured. The Irish Times, 26th July
Dawson Street / Nassau Street Development: An Bord Pleanála has upheld plans for a c. €58m development on the corner of Dawson Street and Nassau Street in Dublin 2. The project will involve the demolition of the existing buildings, and the construction of over 215,000 sq. ft. of commercial and retail space. The Sunday Business Post, 30th July
OFFICE
Beech Hill, Clonskeagh: An unnamed investor has paid c. €8m to acquire one of the original office buildings at Beech Hill office campus in Clonskeagh, Dublin 4. The three-storey, 21,366 sq. ft. property is occupied by Topaz Energy under a 35-year lease from 1991, at a rent of c. €460k p.a. Based on the purchase price, the property offers a net initial yield of c. 5.5%. The property also contains 68 car parking spaces and was recently refurbished. The sale was handled by BNP Paribas Real Estate. The Irish Times, 25th July
Tallaght Land Bank: Bohan Hyland & Associates are guiding €3.5m for a 2.2-acre land bank at Greenhills Road in Tallaght, Dublin 24. The site comes with full planning permission for a 125,000 sq. ft. office development. The selling agents believe that while the current planning permission covers the development of an office building, the site will be of particular interest to nursing home operators and residential developers. The Irish Times, 25th July
HOTEL
Radisson Blu Hotel: Luxor investments has been granted planning permission by An Bord Pleanála for a c. €35m extension to the four-star Radisson Blu hotel on Golden Lane in Dublin city centre. The owners had been seeking an eight-storey extension which would have added 103 bedrooms to the 152-bedroom hotel, however the owners later revised their plan to seek a reduced extension of six-storeys. The targeted completion date for the works is H2 2019. The Irish Independent, 29th July
Dublin 1 Hotel: Weiyu Wu has sought planning permission from Dublin City Council to convert a five-storey, over-basement building located at 72 Middle Abbey Street in Dublin city centre into a 10,000 sq. ft., 17-bedroom hotel. The application will involve a change of use for the premises, which is currently designated for retail use on the ground and basement floors, and retail storage on the upper floors. NAMA Wine Lake, 30th July
The Avalon Inn: Joe and Julie Comerford have been granted planning permission by An Bord Pleanála to convert their bed & breakfast, the Avolon Inn, into a 39-bedroom hotel in Co. Kilkenny. Once the c. €5.4m renovation is complete, it is expected that the property will also feature a wedding venue and ballroom capable of facilitating up to 250 guests. The Irish Independent, 27th July
RESIDENTIAL / LAND
Dún Laoghaire Apartments: The Irish Times reports that Patrizia, the German real estate fund, is to purchase Ireland’s largest build-to-let apartment development, which is being constructed in Dún Laoghaire in south Dublin. The fund was the top bidder, at c. €132m, for 319 multifamily apartments being constructed in two five-storey blocks on the site of the former Dún Laoghaire golf course off the Upper Glenageary Road. There was substantial interest in the investment from other institutional investors such as Irish Life, AIG, SW3 and Tristan Capital Partners, underlining the continued confidence in the under-supplied rental market. According to selling agent Hooke & MacDonald, the 319 apartments will generate rental income between €7.17m and €7.84m p.a., providing an investment yield of 5.5% – 6%. The Irish Times, 26th July
New Bancroft Hall: The newly formed Dublin Artisan Development Fund has purchased a 131-unit portfolio of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments in New Bancroft Hall in Tallaght, Dublin 24, from Park Developments for over €30m. The fund, which was set up by Bill Nowlan, is on target to let all 131 apartments by the end of August, and it is expected that over 30% of the apartments will be let to social and affordable tenants. It is believed the newly formed fund is unlikely to be a direct site developer, but will consider pre-funding suitable projects. The Irish Times, 26th July
Shankill Site: CBRE is guiding €2.5m for Eton Brae, a large Victorian house located at Corbawn Lane in Shankill, Co. Dublin. The site of Eton Brae comes with planning permission to convert the 6,675 sq. ft. three-storey mansion into two large apartments, and also for the construction of 14 new houses – eight three-bedroom houses extending to 1,636 sq. ft. and six four-bedroom houses extending to 1,797 sq. ft. CBRE believe the property, which is located beside Shankill train station, has potential to be divided into several more residential units, and are expecting considerable interest in the sale. The Irish Times, 25th July
Craddockstown Development: Cairn Homes has been granted planning permission by Kildare County Council for a c. €30m, 258-unit development located at Craddockstown, Naas in Co. Kildare. Sunday Business Post, 30th July
Dublin Apartment Heights: The Sunday Business Post reports that the government is planning new laws which will allow for higher-rise apartment blocks in certain areas of Dublin city centre. The Minister for Housing, Eoghan Murphy, informed The Sunday Business Post that the government will seek to increase the density in housing and high-rise developments as part of changes to the housing and homelessness plan, Rebuilding Ireland. Mr Murphy stated that it was necessary to ‘go higher’, particularly in Dublin city centre, and that the government was seeking to make changes to current laws to facilitate this. In the same piece, Mr Murphy also outlined that the state will take a greater role in the construction of social housing in the future. The Sunday Business Post, 30th July
Goldenbridge Student Accommodation: Derek Kelly has sought planning permission from Dublin City Council to build a low-rise student accommodation complex at Emmet Court in Goldenbridge, west of Dublin city centre. The three-storey, 10,000 sq. ft. development will provide 31 bed spaces and communal student amenities. NAMA Wine Lake, 30th July
North Dublin: Cairn Homes has applied to Dublin City Council to build 89 homes on a five-acre site at Parkside in Balgriffin, north Dublin. The development will comprise 43 houses between 1,300 – 1,800 sq. ft. (consisting of two detached, 20 semi-detached and 21 terraced units), and 46 apartments / duplexes ranging in size between 950 – 1,300 sq. ft. The development will also contain a 6,000 sq. ft. crèche. NAMA Wine Lake, 30th July
OTHER
Hermitage Medical Centre: The owners of the Hermitage Medical Centre in west Dublin are planning a 62-bed extension to the private hospital. The new facilities would be located in a two-storey extension on top of an existing three-storey building at the hospital. The c. 29,000 sq. ft. extension will also include nurses’ stations and storage, as well as a multi-storey car park. The centre currently has 112 in-patient beds, 37 day beds and seven operating theatres. The hospital opened in 2006. The Sunday Times, 30th July
Action Health Enterprises: Action Health Enterprises, a new M&G-backed healthcare company, is planning a €250m investment in the Irish healthcare sector, having secured a portfolio of up to 25 primary healthcare centres. While the location of the majority of these centres has not been disclosed, documents filed with the Companies Office show that the company has taken over a care centre in Athenry, Co. Galway. The company, and its property partner Marlet (which is also backed by M&G) have agreed to take over the running of a number of primary care centres from the HSE. In addition, the consortium is refinancing other centres, and has agreed a deal with the HSE to develop its own centres. The Sunday Times, 30th July
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