UK property manager Capco has come in for a 26 per cent stake in London-focused property firm Shaftesbury for £436m. Capco has bought the stake from a trust set up by Hong Kong tycoon Samuel Tak Lee for 540p per share, representing a discount of 13.9 per cent to the
The Manchester-based property group has promoted Anna Main to the board after less than a year with the business, as it looks to expand its commercial asset division. Landwood, which has its headquarters on Peter Street in the city centre, is a firm of surveyors, asset managers and auctioneers. Main joined
ANWYL Homes is offering “access all areas” remotely with a virtual relaunch of its first Lancashire development. Show homes at Bluebell Meadows in Fulwood, near Preston, opened in mid-March and dozens of people were lucky enough to see them before the development closed temporarily when the country went into lockdown.
One of the main questions when it comes to asbestos is if asbestos testing is required by law. In many cases, asbestos testing is a legal requirement. Occupying or working in a building that hasn’t had an asbestos survey might mean you’re breaking the law. The whole point of an
UK property manager Capco has come in for a 26 per cent stake in London-focused property firm Shaftesbury for £436m. Capco has bought the stake from a trust set up by Hong Kong tycoon Samuel Tak Lee for 540p per share, representing a discount of 13.9 per cent to the closing Shaftesbury share price on 29 May. Ian Hawksworth, chief executive of Capco, said: “As long-term investors in the Covent Garden estate and the West End, the investment in Shaftesbury represents a unique opportunity to deploy our capital in an exceptional portfolio at an attractive entry price, which we believe will generate long-term value for Capco shareholders. “Capco’s world-class estate, strong balance sheet and significant financial flexibility ensure that the company is well positioned. Whilst we can expect continued market uncertainty in the near term, we are confident about the long-term fundamentals and prospects for the West End and prime central London.” Shaftesbury said it “looks forward to engaging with Capco as it would with any other shareholder in the company”. Capco said it believed the deal was attractively valued, “with an implied price of approximately £1,200 per square foot and a yield of 3.3 per cent based on Shaftesbury’s 2019 total dividend of 17.7p per share”. Capco said it was funding the investment through the £705m Covent Garden revolving credit facility, of which £255m remains available for drawdown. In the light of the deal, Capco said it has decided not to complete the return of £100m to shareholders through the share buyback programme announced earlier this year, under which £12m had been returned to shareholders prior to being suspended in March 2020. Tak Lee has repeatedly clashed with Shaftesbury’s management after feeling he was left in the dark over a 2017 share placing. Today Shaftesbury said Tak Lee has withdrawn legal proceedings against the company related to the 2017 fundraising. In January Tak Lee voted against resolutions to reappoint some of the company’s key management figures including chief executive Brian Bickell, finance director Chris Ward and chairman Jonathan Nicholls. Rothschild & Co is acting as lead financial adviser and sponsor to Capco on the transaction, BofA Securities is acting as financial adviser and Herbert Smith Freehills is acting as legal adviser. Capco shares rose 1.5 per cent to 166p and Shaftesbury shares fell 1.5 per cent to 617p.
The Manchester-based property group has promoted Anna Main to the board after less than a year with the business, as it looks to expand its commercial asset division. Landwood, which has its headquarters on Peter Street in the city centre, is a firm of surveyors, asset managers and auctioneers. Main joined the company last August having spent the previous four years as a director and head of asset and property management at consultancy Avison Young. She joined Landwood to head up the firm’s newly formed commercial asset division and, following a successful nine months, has been promoted to the board, bringing the total number of directors to eight. Main heads a team of five in the commercial asset division, which manages assets on behalf of clients including FRP and Grant Thornton. The team is expected to grow further to cope with an increasing workload, and recruitment is underway. Main said: “I came here to bring a fresh approach to asset management and am delighted with the results so far. “As businesses re-open, we are really looking forward to building an even larger client base of high-net-worth firms, property trusts and property owners.” Mark Bailey, managing director at Landwood Group, added: “It’s been a period that nobody could have predicted, but Anna and her team have been agile to spot opportunities and grow their arm of the Landwood business significantly.”
ANWYL Homes is offering “access all areas” remotely with a virtual relaunch of its first Lancashire development. Show homes at Bluebell Meadows in Fulwood, near Preston, opened in mid-March and dozens of people were lucky enough to see them before the development closed temporarily when the country went into lockdown. Ahead of Bluebell Meadows reopening to visitors by appointment only, Anwyl is inviting homebuyers to an online virtual relaunch via its social media channels this Saturday (June 13). Matthew Gould, head of sales for Anwyl Homes Lancashire, explained: “Bluebell Meadows is our very first development in the actual county of Lancashire; the first place where we’ve built Hartford and Delamere style show homes and now it is going to host our first ‘Access All Areas by Anwyl’ virtual event. “Anwyl is renowned for delivering thoughtful homes and while our sales offices and show homes have been temporarily closed, we have been carefully considering how to embrace fresh ways of helping homebuyers find a new home. We already have video tours of our show homes available, but Access All Areas by Anwyl is an innovative way for us to interact with buyers through a series of short films available across our social media channels.” The virtual event starts at 10.30am on Saturday (June 13) with an introduction to Anwyl and the exclusive 26-home Bluebell Meadows development. There will also be a chance to “meet” the site manager; find out more about the process of buying a new Anwyl home, including the Move Simple scheme; and to hear from an independent mortgage advisor. “This virtual event will enable buyers to experience everything they’d normally see and hear when they visit the development and more,” Matthew added. “The advantage of it taking place virtually is that there’s no need to worry about social distancing or restricting numbers. Plus if you can’t make it on the day, you can watch later; or you can pause, re-wind and share with family and friends. Of course, nothing quite beats viewing a property in-situ and so we’ll also be inviting people to make an appointment to see the show homes for themselves.” Anwyl has introduced strict social distancing guidelines across its developments, with a limited number of visitors allowed on site and in the show homes by appointment only and hand sanitising stations to help keep staff and customers safe. Located off Ladybank Avenue, in Fulwood, Bluebell Meadows features a choice of four-bedroom detached homes, with prices from £331,995. The virtual relaunch of the development takes place from 10.30am on Saturday (June 13) via Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. The sales office and show homes will be open by appointment only from Saturday afternoon. For more information, including the latest availability and pricing, see the website www.anwylhomes.co.uk/our-developments/bluebell-meadows-fulwood.
One of the main questions when it comes to asbestos is if asbestos testing is required by law. In many cases, asbestos testing is a legal requirement. Occupying or working in a building that hasn’t had an asbestos survey might mean you’re breaking the law. The whole point of an asbestos survey is that you know if your building is safe to occupy, or that your renovation/demolition is safe to do. Having this information can not only save your life but save the lives of other people working or living in the building. Exposure to asbestos usually happens when the person responsible for the property didn’t have an asbestos test completed. There are legal requirements for asbestos surveys, but there are also instances that you are not required to have one completed. For clarity, here are the areas where you will need asbestos testing: Property built before 2000 and; A public area of a domestic building or, Construction work or, Non-domestic buildings. The age of the building will be one of the deciding factors. Any building that predates the year 2000 has a high chance of containing ACM (asbestos-containing materials). Asbestos was a popular material used for construction. It can often be found in insulation, sheeting, rainwater goods, partitions, doors, ceiling panels, vinyl tiles, and many more places within the home or commercial building. You are unlikely to be able to tell if something is asbestos just by looking at it. Which is why an asbestos test will become your first line of defense. Asbestos fibers are tiny, and when they are disturbed, they cause many asbestos-related illnesses. For asbestos testing, a sample of the material will be taken and tested in a lab. This will be able to tell you if the material contains asbestos and the amount and type. For non-domestic public buildings – schools, hospitals, and offices, here is the Control of Asbestos Regulations. 3. To manage the risk from asbestos in non-domestic premises, the duty holder must ensure that a suitable and sufficient assessment is carried out as to whether asbestos is or is liable to be present in the premises. 4. In making the assessment— such steps as are reasonable in the circumstances must be taken; and the condition of any asbestos which is, or has been assumed to be, present in the premises must be considered. The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 Duty to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises For part, domestic buildings, with public/shared spaces: The ‘duty to manage asbestos’ requirements of regulation 4 of CAR 2012 do not normally apply to domestic premises. However, the requirements do apply to common parts of premises, including housing developments and blocks of flats […]. Examples of common parts would include foyers, corridors, lifts and lift shafts, staircases, boiler houses, vertical risers, gardens, yards, and outhouses. HSE Asbestos: The survey guide pg.9 For a domestic residence, the landlord or owner is responsible and should ensure that when there is a suspicion of asbestos or renovation work to be carried out, they provide that a risk assessment is carried out. Failing to do so can mean a landlord can be prosecuted.
