23rd August (Issue 60)
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.
RETAIL
Debenhams Examinership: The Irish subsidiary of Debenhams has moved closer to exiting examinership after the High Court approved a restructuring proposal submitted by the examiner, Kieran Wallace of KPMG. The restructure, which was also approved by the majority of the subsidiary’s creditors, will result in no compulsory job losses. As part of the restructure, there will be 98 voluntary redundancies from the subsidiary’s c. 1,400 staff. The Irish Times, 20th August
OFFICE
Townsend Street: Carlisle Trust Ltd has submitted a planning application for the development of a seven-storey, 120,000 sq. ft. property on Townsend Street in Dublin city centre. To facilitate the development, an existing five-storey, 70,000 sq. ft. property will be demolished. The key individuals in Carlisle Trust Ltd are John and Ciara Byrne. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st August
16 – 18 Pembroke Road: Planning permission has been sought for the development of c. 45,000 sq. ft. of office space at 16 – 18 Pembroke Road in Dublin city centre. To enable the development, an existing 8,000 sq. ft. extension to the rear of the property will be demolished and a 30,000 sq. ft. extension will be developed instead. The property is owned by Brian Clingen, who paid c. €3m in 2013 to acquire it from the Pembroke Partnership. The Pembroke Partnership acquired the property for c. €26m in 2006. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st August
HOTEL
Ormond Quay: Monteco Holdings Ltd has submitted a new planning application to develop a 121-bed, 65,000 sq. ft. hotel on a site at 7 – 13 Ormond Quay in Dublin city centre. This is the second planning application which Monteco have submitted since acquiring the site in 2013. Their first application sought permission to develop a 170-bed, 70,000 sq. ft. hotel. However, no development occurred following the submission of this application. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st August
Tetrarch Hospitality: Damien Gaffney of Tetrarch Hospitality has revealed that the group may undertake “some form of capital event” in 2018 or afterwards to raise additional capital. Tetrarch has already submitted planning applications for a 158-bed budget boutique hotel at Sackville place and a 159-bed aparthotel off Pearse Street, both of which are in Dublin. The group is also preparing a proposal for a 250 – 400 bed scheme on Townsend Street in Dublin. The Irish Independent, 21st August
RESIDENTIAL / LAND
Neptune Building: A joint venture between Tristan Capital Partners and SW3 Capital has agreed to acquire the 197-unit Neptune Building in Dún Laoghaire, south Dublin for c. €72.5m. The c. 181,000 sq. ft. property is currently being constructed by the Cosgrave Property Group, who has the backing of NAMA. The transaction is expected to close once the property is completed, with Q2 2017 set as the target completion date. Property Magazine International, 22nd August
Coldcut Park: IRES REIT has agreed to acquire 89 apartments and 145 car spaces in Coldcut Park, Clondalkin, Dublin 22 for c. €18.3m. The apartments have an occupancy rate of 99% and the annualised rental income is c. €1.4m. The 89 units consist of 18 one-beds, 22 two-beds, 32 three-beds and 17 four-beds. The Irish Independent, 23rd August
Q2 2016 Rent Report: The latest report by Daft.ie on the Irish rental market shows that the number of properties available to rent continues to fall. On August 1st 2016, there were only c. 3,600 homes available to rent, a c. 1,000 decrease on the August 1st 2015 figure. Nationally, rents rose by c. 11% YoY in Q2 2016 to €1,037 p.m. and c. 3.9% QoQ. All regions in Dublin saw YoY increases in average rents. In Dublin city centre, rents were up by c. 10% to €1,505 p.m. while in South Dublin City, rents were up by c. 11.3% to €1,642 p.m. The Daft.ie Rental Report, Q2 2016
Docklands Apartments: Oxley Holdings has sought planning permission for 124 apartments in the north Dublin Docklands. The site of the proposed development is c. one-acre and is adjacent to the Central Bank’s new HQ. The apartments will be built in an 11-storey block, which will consist of 25 one-beds, 78 two-beds and 21 three-beds. The application also proposes to develop c. 5,000 sq. ft. of retail / medical / café space within the development. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st August
Binary Hub: The Student Housing Company’s 471-bed Binary Hub student accommodation complex in The Liberties, Dublin is now fully booked up for the 2016 / 2017 college year. Rooms in the complex start at €206 per week, which is significantly above DIT’s estimate of the average weekly rent paid by students at €115.50. The Binary Hub rent covers the cost of bills and the use of on-site facilities such as the gym and laundry. The Irish Independent, 21st August
Household Debt: A new report by the Central Bank shows that household net worth increased by c. €2.1bn (0.3%) to c. €628.7bn and household debt fell by c. €1.1bn (0.7%) to c. €148.5bn in Q1 2016. On a per capita basis, household net worth is at €132,141 while household debt is at €31,216. Household net worth peaked at c. €718bn in Q2 2007 before bottoming out at c. €454.1bn in Q2 2012. Household debt peaked at c. €207.3bn in Q3 2008 and has continued to decline in each of the past 30 quarters. Central Bank of Ireland, Quarterly Financial Accounts Q1 2016
OTHER
Mater Private: The owners of the Mater Private group have secured a €300m facility which will allow them to refinance their existing debt while also funding capital expenditure necessary to grow the business. The Australian bank Macquarie was the lead arranger in the transaction. CapVest is the majority owner of the hospital group with a 51% shareholding. The Irish Times, 22nd August
POD Nightclub: Clancourt Holdings has paid c. €6m to purchase the former POD nightclub and music venue on Harcourt Street in Dublin 2 from John Reynolds. Following the purchase, the group may look at redeveloping the property into office space, with a multinational technology company already believed to be interested in renting the property as office space. Clancourt Holdings is owned by the Kenny family and was valued at over €200m in 2015. The Sunday Business Post, 21st August
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