A Superdrug store in Worthing, West Sussex, will be the largest lot offered at Allsop’s May auction, with a £3.1m guide price.
Despite the severe business disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the associated switch to online-only sales, the auctioneer has pulled in 55 lots with guides totalling £48m for the auction on 19 May.
Sixteen lots are guided at £1m-plus. Assets offering safe and long-term income are likely to be the most sought-after on the day. This includes high street and alternative investments that are able to remain open during the pandemic, such as convenience stores and pharmacies. A portfolio of four Co-op convenience shops located in Bristol, Kent, Cornwall and Sheffield, are expected to generate significant interest. The combined portfolio is guided at £4.9m.
Convenience store investments make up almost 15% of lots listed.
Allsop said investors were “increasingly looking at ways to continue to operate”.
One instruction – Lot 4, a freehold shop and two flats on Muswell Hill Broadway, N10, guided at £1.6m – was even generated during the March online-only sale.
George Walker, partner and auctioneer, said: “Despite market conditions, investors are busy and ready to go with some showing early interest for assets located in London and the South East and for convenience stores, which have the long-term resilience that buyers are seeking.
“This catalogue offers a good spread of assets across the UK, and in a number of cases we are working with joint auctioneers to help deliver clients the certainty of an auction sale.”
Allsop’s May ballroom sale last year generated £71m from 115 lots sold, a 79% success rate. Its first online-only auction after the lockdown began raised £27m from a 69% success rate, selling 57 lots. This has since climbed to £35m with sales post-auction.
Highlights from the May catalogue include:
- Lot 16, Worthing, West Sussex – a freehold 10,030 sq ft shop in a pedestrianised town centre position let to Superdrug until July 2024. Guided at £3.1m
- Lot 17, Old Street, Shoreditch, London – a freehold shop and residential leasehold, comprising a shop and four flats, subject to ASTs. Guided at £2.5m
- Lot 24 , Crayford, Kent – a freehold shop and residential parade, with six shops and seven self-contained maisonettes with development potential. Guided at £2m – £2.2m
- Lot 15, Upton Park, London – a freehold mixed-tenure site consisting of two ground-floor shops, two offices and three flats. Guided at £1.7m.
Prospective buyers will need to register to bid remotely by Friday 15 May.
To send feedback, e-mail julia.cahill@egi.co.uk or tweet @EGJuliaC or @estatesgazette
