23rd May (Issue 97)

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

Dublin 1: Coldwell Banker Commercial is guiding c. €5.25m for two adjoining retail outlets located along the Millennium Walkway in Dublin 1, along with eight underground car spaces. The main unit is occupied by Spar, extends to 5,349 sq. ft. and produces a rent of c. €318k p.a. The second unit is occupied by Sunshine Tanning Shop, extends to 1,496 sq. ft. and produces a rent of €65k p.a. on a lease which expires in November. The eight underground parking spaces should produce additional rental income of c. €20k p.a., resulting in a total rent roll of c. €403k p.a. and offering a gross yield of c. 7.9%. The Irish Times, 17th May 

Carrick-on-Shannon: Cushman & Wakefield Galway is guiding €2.25m for a Bank of Ireland (“BoI”) premises in Carrick-on-Shannon, which offers a return of c. 6.87%. BoI occupy the ground and first floors of the building on a 25-year lease from July 2008, at a rent of €162k p.a. The second floor is vacant, and when let will increase the rent roll of the 9,000 sq. ft. property. The Irish Times, 17th May

 

OFFICE

Number One Ballsbridge: The Sunday Business Post (“SBP”) and The Sunday Times (“ST”) both report on leasing activity at Number One Ballsbridge, a new development of over 130,000 sq. ft. of office space by the Comer Group in Dublin 4. The SBP reports that a record rent of €70 psf has been reached by the Comer Group and a Chinese aviation company, while terms have also been agreed with another tenant for a rent of over €50 psf. The ST reports that the Aircraft leasing group Avolon has agreed a lease for c. 40,000 sq. ft. of office space in Number One Ballsbridge, but the rent psf is not specified. The Sunday Business Post & The Sunday Times, 21st May

Audi Ballsbridge: Browne Corrigan Chartered Surveyors will be seeking a rent of c. €1m p.a. for the high-profile office and showroom known as the Audi Centre, located on Pembroke Road in Ballsbridge. The three-storey building, which extends to 18,456 sq. ft. and comes with at least 28 car parking spaces, will be restored to office use and offered for letting from next October. The building has most recently been in use as a flagship Dublin showroom for Audi, who are due to move to a new HQ in Sandyford. The property was bought for c. €10m in 2003 by Bernard McNamara and Gerry O’Reilly. Following the economic downturn, the property sold for €3.6m, before being sold again within two years for over €7m to a company within Jones Engineering. The Irish Times, 17th May

Eastpoint Business Park: Ardstone Capital has sold Block P2 in Eastpoint Business Park in Dublin to Avestus Capital Partners and Ares Management for €12.05m, realising a c. €3m profit on the sale. The 49,653 sq. ft. block is the last of Ardstone’s Dublin office investments to be sold following its decision to offload its office portfolio and instead focus on the Dublin housing market, where it intends to deliver over 3,000 new houses to the market over the next three to five years. The Irish Times reports that the building has a current rent roll of c. €647k p.a. (c. €12 psf and c. €700 per car space), and has been under-rented for some time, with several adjoining buildings let at double that level. The Irish Times, 17th May

 

HOTEL

Dalata Transactions: Hotel group Dalata has entered into an agreement with receiver Kieran Wallace to acquire the freehold interest of sections of two Dublin hotels – the Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane, Dublin 2 and the Clarion Hotel Liffey Valley, Dublin 22, at a cost of c. €62.5m. The transaction sees Dalata acquire the freehold interest of 170 bedrooms of the 304-bedroom Clayton Hotel and 159 bedrooms of the 353-bedroom Clarion Hotel Liffey Valley. Dalata has also announced plans to acquire the freehold interest of the Maldron Hotel in Portlaoise, alongside the adjoining Midway Foodcourt, from receivers. As part of this transaction, Dalata has agreed a simultaneous sub-sale of the foodcourt to a third party, bringing the net cost of the transaction to c. €6.8m. The purchases are consistent with Dalata’s strategy of buying out the freehold interests of leased properties which it believes have future unpredictable rent reviews. The Irish Times, 18th May 

St Andrew’s Lane: Appalachian Property Holdings Ltd has applied to Dublin City Council to construct a 50,000 sq. ft., nine-storey hotel on St Andrews Lane in Dublin city centre. The proposed 155-bedroom hotel will be located just off Dame Street in front of the old Central Bank building and the project will involve the demolition of an existing two-storey, 7,000 sq. ft. building on the site. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st May

St James’s Street: Mullins Investments Ltd has applied to Dublin City Council for permission to build an aparthotel on St James’s Street, near the Guinness Brewery. The building will extend to 70,000 sq. ft. over three-to-seven stories over two basement levels, and although the number of apartment units hasn’t been specified it is likely to be above 100. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st May

 

RESIDENTIAL / LAND

RTE Donnybrook Site: Cairn Homes, Chartered Land, Cork developer Michael O’Flynn (backed by Avenue Capital), Bartra Capital and Bridgedale have all submitted first-round bids for 8.64-acres of land being sold by RTE at its Donnybrook complex in Dublin. The agent Savills is believed to be set for the next stage of the process, with the next round of bids due by the 8th of June. Savills is guiding €75m for the site, although property sources have indicated that it could sell for up to €90m. The Irish Times reports that the site is being sold without planning permission, and as such development plans could potentially lead to objections from local residents. The Irish Times, 18th May

Dorset Street Student Accommodation: Minfey Ltd has applied to Dublin City Council to build a new student accommodation development on a 0.5-acre site adjacent to The Big Tree bar on Dublin’s Dorset Street, at the junction of Dorset Street and North Circular Road. The project will involve the demolition of the existing two-storey building and the construction of a 65,000 sq. ft. four-to-six storey building containing retail space, an extension to The Big Tree Bar and 161 student bed spaces on the upper floors. NAMA Wine Lake, 21st May

Dún Laoghaire Apartments: Cushman & Wakefield is inviting offers of c. €4m for two Dún Laoghaire seafront period office buildings which could be converted into 13 apartments. The proposed Crofton Hall development would involve the conversion of the two adjoining buildings, which are located on Crofton Road, overlooking Dún Laoghaire harbour. After the conversion, the scheme would contain eight two-bed apartments, four three-bed homes and one one-bed unit, and seven of the apartments would have duplex layouts. The Irish Times, 17th May

House Price Inflation: According to a new report from Goodbody Stockbrokers on the economy, the average price of a house is due to rise by c. 10% this year, and by a further 8% in 2018. The report also notes that house completions are due to grow strongly, but it will take a number of years before they match demand, which is estimated at c. 30k units p.a. The company stated that greater-than-expected demand had led to it increasing its forecast on house price growth, as the number of people being approved for a mortgage is significantly ahead of the number of units on the market. The report notes that the increase in demand is being boosted by changes to the Central Bank’s mortgage rules, the Government’s help-to-buy scheme and population growth. In addition, up to 58% of purchases are being made by cash buyers, which is making it more difficult for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder. The Irish Independent, 18th May

Dublin Urban Quarter: The plans for the proposed development of over 1,000 homes off South Circular Road as part of a Dublin City Council social housing regeneration scheme are expected to be available for public consultation this week. The lands for the development consists of three sites; the former Players Wills cigarette factory, the former Bailey Gibson packaging plant and St Teresa’s Gardens, a Dublin City Council flat complex. Together these sites extend to c. 10.6 acres. The council is hopeful that planning applications for the Players Wills / Bailey Gibson sites will be submitted to An Bord Pleanála within the next few months. The Irish Times, 22nd May

 

OTHER

Allsop’s Auction: In excess of €26m of sales were transacted in the latest online auction of residential and commercial properties by Allsop’s, which took place last week. Within the residential offering, multi-unit residential investments drew substantial interest, and some of the biggest sales included 38 apartments (all with vacant possession) in Portarlington, Co. Laois being sold for over €1.5m, while 10 fully-occupied apartments on Kelly’s Row in Dublin 1 were sold for €1.35m. On the commercial side, high value commercial lots also drew competitive bidding. The Athlumney Centre in Navan, Co. Meath, consisting of three tenanted and six vacant units sold for €1.3m, while a mixed-use investment in Bishopstown Co. Cork comprising a ground floor bookmakers and two overhead apartments sold for €1.1m. The Irish Independent, 22nd May

 


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