The final Acuitus auction of 2015 saw the sale of £43.08m of assets with a success rate of 87%.
A packed auction room and concerted bidding highlighted the depth of interest in commercial property by private buyers.
Acuitus auctioneer, Richard Auterac, commented: “This was an emphatic conclusion to our 2015 auctions. Investors were out in force and had an appetite for all the sectors across a wide geographic spread.
“The properties in the main are from portfolio break-ups, receiverships and asset rationalisations by investment institutions and funds selling their smaller properties. These are being snapped up by the growing volume of private investors who recognise the convenience of having a wide choice of investments in one catalogue. This makes it the most efficient and transparent route into the market for them.”
Of the 57 lots sold, 14 sold for more than £1m and the average yield achieved was 7.5%.
Demand for London properties remain undiminished with a freehold retail investment on Wood Green High Street selling for £2.1m at a yield of 5%. The 5,043 sq ft shop is let to Holland & Barrett until 2026 at a current rent of £111,200pax.
A 7,333 sq ft office investment on the Madison Business Park in Manchester sold for £1.35m at a yield of 7.7% while the KFC-occupied 33-41 High Street in Leicester sold for £1.3m at a yield of 6.4%.
Elsewhere in the sale, a 20,715 sq ft Gala Bingo Hall investment in Birmingham offered for sale by M&G Real Estate sold for £1.27m at a yield of 6.1%.
The auction also marked the first appearance on the rostrum of Jo Seth-Smith whose debut lots all sold and included the sale of a ground rent investment at a yield of 3.69%.
Richard Auterac comments: “We’re delighted that our auctioneer team has been enhanced by Jo, and it underlines our commitment to the sector.
“We expect the growing momentum that we have seen in the auction room since the summer to carry through into next year.
“A growing number of sellers are now favouring our multi-channel auctions which are clearly demonstrating their unique ability to harness huge amount of private equity openly and quickly.
“We are already preparing the catalogue for our first 2016 sale on February 11 so we are expecting a busy festive season.”
Other sales in the December auction included:
