Private client of dohertybaines sells Huntingdon distribution facility to Aberdeen Property Investors for £4.1 million (UK)

A private investment client of dohertybaines has sold a state-of-the-art production and distribution facility in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire to Aberdeen Property Investors. Unit C, The Interchange Industrial Estate, located on Latham Road in Huntingdon, was purchased for £4.1 million (approx. €4.8 million), reflecting a net initial yield of 6.5%.

The approx. 4,500-m² unit is currently let to leading specialist meat-packing business, the Hilton Food Group. The company has 22 years remaining on its lease (12 to the break clause), which includes fixed annual rental increases.

Rob Nelson, Partner at dohertybaines, said: “The property is a modern, high quality unit let to a strong tenant which, combined with guaranteed rental growth provided by annual uplifts, will offer long-term secure income for the purchaser. The price achieved was above expectations and reflected the lack of quality product in that sector on the market at that time.”

dohertybaines instructed on 274/275 Abbeydale Road, Park Royal HA0 1TW

dohertybaines have been instructed by Kingston Estates to dispose of 274/275 Abbeydale Road.

The unit comprises a modern warehouse/industrial unit which has recently been refurbished and benefits from a large secure yard and an eaves height of up to 8.7 m.

The property is available as a whole (60,760 sq ft) or alternatively can be split to provide units from 22,120 sq ft. It is available on a leasehold or freehold basis.

For further information, please contact Michael Haines.

Are you still paying empty rates?

The government handed out more than £1bn in empty property relief last year as clever avoidance tactics employed by the industry started to take their toll.

Figures from the department for Communities and Local Government show the government missed out on £631m of empty property rates in 2009-10. The figures reveal that it awarded £1.1bn in relief last year, a 56% increase on the £487m concession a year earlier. A spokesman for CLG said the rise was due to the government's decision to raise the rate relief threshold temporarily from £2,200 to £15,000. However, the industry has disregarded that claim on the back of the fact that 2010 Valuation Office Agency figures show that the average rateable value of a non-domestic property in England and Wales was £32,200.

A major contributor to the rise in relief was the industry's use of tactics to avoid paying the tax. These tactics included intermittent occupation, whereby a tenant occupies a building for six weeks, enabling a six-month, rate-free period. If the occupier can make some use of the building for six weeks, they can claim a fresh rate-free period. There is no end to the number of times that can happen. A whole industry has sprung up around what they call the 42-day rule - more and more companies are saying we will occupy your building for just 42 days and then take a part of the saving that the landlord will achieve from the empty rate relief.

Between 2005 and 2008, empty property rate relief cost Whitehall roughly £1.3bn pa. Ministers then scrapped the relief, which cost the property industry £800m.

However, these latest figures show that the government is back to handing out near pre recession levels of relief.

Don’t miss out on your opportunity to avoid this tax, speak to dohertybaines today on how this can be avoided. dohertybaines are working with a number of occupiers who will occupy your premises and make use of the 42-day rule. Giving you up to 6 months empty rates relief on vacation.


For further information, contact Fiona Kelly.

Scotland expected to follow England in empty rates legislation

In Scotland the proposals for a “Tesco Tax” or an additional levy on large food stores and retail was kicked out by the Scottish Parliament last week. This left the Scottish Finance Secretary with a shortfall of circa £30 million in next year’s budget. The bad news is he is now considering “harmonising” with England and from next April Scotland will follow England and adopt the same empty property provisions. This will see empty rates relief on office and retail increase from the 50% rates currently payable to 100% and industrial property increase from 0% payable to 100%.

This is something that we have been expecting and if you have empty property in Scotland you should be preparing for the increase. Please call me if you would like information on your rates liabilities in Scotland.

Fiona Kelly
fkelly@dohertybaines.com