The two largest lots selling at the Acuitus March auction vividly demonstrated investors’ diverse appetite for returns.
A mixed-use residential and retail investment in Enfield, North London producing annual income of £179,964 sold for £2.4m at a yield of 7.04%, while a retail parade in the Welsh town of Barry with current income of £373,550 sold for £2.43m at a yield of 14.45%.
David Margolis of Acuitus comments: “Given that these assets sold for almost the same price, they illustrate the current diversity of investor appetite.
“This is a positive signal for sellers and demonstrates our ability to price and successfully bring to market properties with very different characteristics in very different locations.”
A number of lots in the March auction sold just prior to the auction with a restaurant investment in Royal Tunbridge Wells occupied by Wagamama on a lease until 2038, and a supermarket investment in Newmarket let to Tesco Express until 2034 selling for a total of more than £2.5m combined. Both lots comfortably achieved more than their guide prices.
Jon Skerry of Acuitus comments: “These two assets benefitted from strong covenants backed by household brand names, and their sale shows the continued focus of many investors on security of income”.
During the first quarter of the year, Acuitus has now sold £40m of assets at an average sale success rate of 84%.
Richard Auterac, Chairman of Acuitus comments: “As the commercial property market continues to reshape itself in the face of a changing economic environment, our first auctions of 2025 have shown how we can connect buyers and sellers to achieve pricing which reflects a deep understanding of asset types and the demand for them.
“This is vital to keep moving the market forward and giving investors the pricing data on which they can base their strategies.
“There is a substantial amount of capital looking to target the UK commercial property market. Its deployment will be encouraged by a combination of clear transaction data from our auctions and hopefully a more settled economic environment.”
The next Acuitus auction will take place on May 15th at 1pm and will be broadcast via livestream on the Acuitus website with bidding online, by telephone and by proxy.
