EG London around the market: July 2016

6 Bevis Marks, EC3   Type of deal Sale Size 174,550 sq ft Seller AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets and BlackRock Buyer Middle Eastern client of Citi Private Bank Price £220m Louisa Clarence-Smith, EG’s City reporter, says: AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets and BlackRock sold 6 Bevis Marks, EC3, in a referendum-defying deal to a private Middle Eastern client of Citi Private Bank for £220m. AXA and BlackRock acquired the property as a development opportunity in 2011 and made the decision to press ahead with the large non-prelet development at a time when there was virtually no construction being started in the City of London. The 174,550 sq ft scheme completed in 2014 and is now almost fully let with an average unexpired lease term of 10 years. Cushman & Wakefield and JLL acted on behalf of the sellers. 23 King Street, SW1 Type of deal Sale Size 45,000 sq ft Seller Standard Life Buyer Chinese Estates Price £140m Yield 3.5% Shekha Vyas, EG’s West End correspondent, says: Joseph Lau’s Chinese Estates is in advanced talks to buy a prime St James’s asset in an off-market transaction. The investor is understood to be negotiating with Standard Life to purchase 23 King Street, SW1, for around £140m – a yield of just below 3.5%. The deal would be the third West End trophy that Chinese Estates has bought this year, in addition to the freehold of Zara’s new shop at 61 Oxford Street, W1, and the Mayfair headquarters of private bank Kleinwort Benson, 14 St George Street, W1. Savills is advising Standard Life in the sale; Chinese Estates was unrepresented. Competitive edge still stands Industry grandees speaking at Estates Gazette’s London Question Time event – held six days after the EU referendum – rejected fears that post-Brexit London had lost its competitive edge in the global cities race to attract capital. Property prices on the up LCP said prime central London property is likely to increase in value after the UK’s decision to leave the EU. The agency said that it received a “stream of enquiries” from the early hours of the morning of the result and that in light of that it would do a further fund raising. Hoblot clocks in to W1 The UK’s highest retail rent – £2,000 per sq ft zone A – has been paid by luxury watch brand Hublot for 1,800 sq ft on New Bond Street, W1. Hard Rock Hotel comes to UK The 1,000-room Cumberland Hotel at Marble Arch, W1, is to undergo a major makeover to become the UK’s first Hard Rock Hotel. Resi crash warning Deutsche Bank has warned of a possible crash in the London residential property market as the economic conditions for buy-to-let owners change substantially. Capital costs stall project Galliard Homes’ Capital Towers residential development in Bow, E15, could be stalled by high construction costs. People, places and peculiarities A world of opinion June was all about the EU referendum. Be it the hard-fought campaigning in the run up to the vote, or the unexpected and historic leave vote which sent shock waves not only around London, the UK and Europe, but around the world. BoJo says no to standing for PM Former London mayor and arguably the most ardent campaigner in the leave campaign – and the favourite to succeed Cameron as the next prime minister – Boris Johnson made a shock announcement that he would not run for the Tory party leadership, making way for Theresa May and Michael Gove among others. Capital can remain centre of European finance Jonathan Goldstein, chief executive of Cain Hoy, said the Brexit vote showed a “disconnect between London and the regions”, but Goldstein said that “come the calm after the storm”, London will still be seen to be the centre of European financial world. “I remain confident in London’s future, notwithstanding… bumps in the road until we get there.” London goes it alone? There was talk of London going it alone as a region as it voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU, whereas most of the rest of England did not. This split led to some calling on mayor Sadiq Khan to declare London independent, and apply to join the EU as a city. A ‘Londependence’ online petition garnered 28,000 signatures Meltdown for Cameron And finally, a lesser debated topic, but a nonetheless intriguing one – what will happen to David Cameron’s waxwork model now that he has quit his role as prime minister? It appears Madame Tussauds takes no prisoners, with Dave probably being decapitated and having his hands lopped off to be stored in the Madame Tussauds archives. Ouch.