As post-election hopes faded with predictions of an economic recovery, 1992 became a year of introspection for the property industry. Estates Gazette records the events as they happened.
Jan
1 Chesterton and De Groot Collis merge.
2 Financial Times All-share index at 1188.44; Property share index at 786.38 and Government Securities index at 87.00; sterling at $1.8675 and gold at $352.25 at close of first day’s business in London.
10 Olympia & York shelves plans for $C250m Moscow hotel/office complex.
20 Gold at year’s high of $358.43 an ounce.*
22 Rosehaugh and Stanhope abandon merger talks.
24 Michael Heseltine announces urban development corporation for Birmingham Heartlands.Olympia & York announces Canary Wharf lettings of 90,000 sq ft to D’Arcy Masius and 38,000 sq ft to Maersk.
27 Mountleigh announces pretax loss of £73.7m. Wereldhave and VIB announce possible merger plans.
27 Air France announces daily services from London City Airport.
30 Prince Charles launches Institute of Architects.
31 Hotel/residential plans for London’s County Hall revived.
Feb
1 Conrad Ritblat incorporates.
3 RICS council votes against changes to institution’s structure.
6 Olympia & York launches £215m EZ property trust to finance Canary Wharf. Michael Heseltine announces demolition of DOE Marsham Street, SW1, tower blocks.
10 New development plans system in force.
11 Plans announced to switch Birmingham’s main station to £50m out-of-town terminal.
14 Godfrey Bradman resigns from board of Rosehaugh.
17 British Waterways/Trafalgar House scheme for Paddington Basin gets planning consent.
18 Michael Heseltine announces further £750m for inner-city urban renewal.
19 RICS publishes Housing the Nation.
25 Paternoster Square planning application called in by Michael Heseltine. Government scraps plans for private toll motorway between Manchester and Birmingham M6 to be widened.
27 Action for the Countrysidepolicy document launched by Government. Michael Hopkins design for new Parliament building announced.
Mar
6 Michael Heseltine rejects plans for 1m-sq ft business park/3,000-house scheme in A45 corridor at Cambridge.
9 BZW gets planning consent for 450,000-sq ft Hammersmith Embankment office scheme.
10 Budget Randsworth goes into administrative receivership.
12 Associated British Ports announces plans for generalpurpose port on the Humber.
19 O&Y withdraws from £215m Cabot Square EZ Trust.
22 London’s County Hall sold to Shirayama Corporation for hotel/leisure centre.
24 O&Y announces appointment of financial advisers.
26 Slough Estates reports pre-tax profits down from £86.4m to £68.3m.
27 Heron International announces intention to reschedule net debt of £1.3bn. Spitalfields redevelopment gets outline planning consent.
31 Speyhawk announces pre-tax losses of £216.8m and restructuring of £300m in debts.
Apr
3 Heron announces £100m losses and pledges to sell its £1bn property investment portfolio.
7 Heron’s £450m bonds called into default.
10 Paternoster Associates withdraws redevelopment scheme for St Paul’s. RICS General Council approves major overhaul of the institution.
12 Norwich Union puts 25% of its £125bn central London office portfolio up for sale.
13 O&Y asks banks for £350m of new funds. Mowlem announces withdrawal from property development.
14 Hongkong & Shanghai Bank launches £3.1bn bid for Midland Bank. Hammerson announces pretax profits down 21% at £55.5m.
14 NatWest announces £80m redevelopment scheme at Threadneedle Street/Old Broad Street, EC2. Taylor Woodrow announces withdrawal from US contracting and makes £46.5m write-downs.
24 Local Government Boundary Commission announces extensions to City of London boundary.
27 Richard Ellis announces acquisition of Hepper Robinson in Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Coventry.
29 Rosehaugh announces pretax loss of £31.93m.
30 Mountleigh calls off sale of Merry Hill shopping centre.
May
5 Banks base rates cut from 10.5% to 10%.
7 Olympia & York invites its bankers to become shareholders. European Court of Justice rules that “equivalent” qualifications of estate agents must be recognised in other EC countries.
11 British Land submits planning application for 680,000-sq ft office/residential complex on West Middlesex Hospital site. Lynton prelets 200,000-sq ft operations centre at Heathrow to BA.
12 BAA announces plans for £800m£900m fifth terminal at Heathrow.
13 Mountleigh defers preference dividend.
14 O&Y files for insolvency protection in Canada and USA.
18 Government rules out Jubilee Line extension without O&Y cash.
20 Land Securities announces nav down 16.9% but pretax profits up 5.7% to £227.5m.
23 Randsworth lets 51,000 sq ft at 25 Berkeley Square, W1, to Cadbury.
26 Banks asked for £500m to keep O&Y afloat.
27 Hongkong Land sells 300,000 sq ft Queens Road, Central, toChinese group for $HK3.8m.
25 Mountleigh banks call in receiver.
28 O&Y files for official administration at Canary Wharf. MEPC reports pretax profits down
13% at £58.6m.
June
1 Building Regulations 1991 come into force.
2 Denmark votes against Maastricht Treaty. Government announces move of 2000 DOE staff to Docklands.
5 Kumagi Gumi announces plans to sell £430m of overseas property.
10 Regalian accounts qualified.
11 British Land reports pretax profits up 7.4% to £33.3m. NAV down 18%.
23 O&Y announces plans to sell a third of its US offices portfolio.
25 Texaco postpones relocation to Canary Wharf. Hongkong & Shanghai Bank £3.7bn bid for Midland Bank accepted by Midland shareholders.
26 Inner-cities minister gives go-ahead for 25-acre East Quayside development at Newcastle upon Tyne.
30 Debenham Tewson & Chinnocks cuts final dividend after pretax profits down from £4.06m to £1.559m. American Express plans to pull out of Canary Wharf blocked by Canadian judge.
Jul
6 Plan announced for sale of Canary Wharf building to DOE. Hachette announces sale of Boulevard St Germain offices to Immopar Group for Fr500m.
10 FT report reveals £500m wiped of value of Church Commissioners’ property investments. Olympia & York writes down property portfolio (excluding Canary Wharf) by $C1.4bn.
16 Prospective Canary Wharf tenants threaten to pull out if Jubilee Line not extended.
21 Government announces plans for inner-city urban regeneration agency.
22 Government announces tighter control of public spending.
29 Government rejects Canary Wharf purchase plans from administrators. MEPC sells Appollo & Lunar House, Croydon, to Rotch Properties for £50m.
31 LSE bids £65m for London’s County Hall.
Aug
4 London Residuary Body urges Government to reject LSE bid.
6 Camden Council approves £3bn Kings Cross scheme.
13 190,000-sq ft Thames Exchange let to Midland Bank. Hanson Trust pulls out of Canary Wharf talks.
24 Shirayama wins judicial review of County Hall decision.
27 Slough Estates reduces dividend.
Sep
2 Mowlem announces plans to sell its 90% stake in London City Airport.Sterling at year’s high of $2.004.*
8 Herring Baker Harris reports pretax profits of £1.6m, down 10% on Herring Son & Daw figures. Wimpey announces £7.2m loss and halves dividend. O&Y surrenders 55 Water Street, New York (its largest NY office block) to bondholders.
13 Italian lira devalued by 7% in EMS.
14 German interest rates cut by 0.5%. Receivers called in at Hatfield Galleria.
16 Sterling suspended within the ERM.
17 Reed/Elsevier merger announced. Amex abandons plans to move to Canary Wharf.
20 French vote yes to Maastricht Treaty.
22 Banks base rate cut to 9%.
23 Chemical Bank announces plans to move European HQ to Alban Gate instead of Canary Wharf. Canary Wharf bankers reject takeover bid from US investors. Debenham Tewson & Chinnocks announces merger talks with Bernard Thorpe.
25 Government rejects LSE bid for London’s County Hall in favour of Shirayama hotel scheme.
28 Plans for £220m Crystal Tower redevelopment of Manchester’s Victoria Station announced by Vector Investments and British Rail.
Oct
1 Hong Kong Land buys 14% stake in Trafalgar House. Tarmac takes over PSA projects division. Reichmans sells stake in New York’s World Financial Centre.
5 FT SE100 Index falls 103.4 points.
10 Canary Wharf bankers offer £100m towards Jubilee Line extension.
16 Banks base rate cut to 8%.
21 Hammerson warns of 50% cut in dividend, with pretax profits down from £31.1m to £23.3m.
22 Housing and Urban Development Bill published.
30 Mountleigh receivers sell Spanish store chain Galerias Preciados for £124m.
Nov
1 King & Co and J P Sturge merge as King Sturge & Co.
2 Environment Secretary gives go-ahead for 270-acre Wakefield Europort freight village.
6 Commercial Property & Company Borrowing published by RICS.
9 Ombudsman for Corporate Estate Agents, Annual Report 1992 published.
10 Gold at year’s low of $329.8 an ounce.*
12 Chancellor’s Autumn Statement: Jubilee Line extension to Docklands confirmed. Michael Howard calls off DOE move to Canary Wharf. Banks base rate cut to 7%.
18 Land Securities Announces 4% rise in pre-tax profits to £116m.
24 Norwich Union sells Ropemaker Place, EC2, to German fund DGI for £78m.
26 Banks agree five-year rescue deal for Rosehaugh Stanhope schemes.
27 FT-SE 100 index at all-time high of 2760.1. Sterling at year’s low of $1.5115.*
30 Rosehaugh goes into receivership. FT All-share index at 1313.02, Property share index at609.01, and Government Securities index at 95.56; sterling at $1.5135 and gold at $334.45 an ounce at close of business in London.
* As at November 30.
