MORNING NEWS: Gaw scores education deal of the century

Good morning. Here’s your daily round-up of the latest news and views from EG and a collection of industry-relevant headlines from the nationals. Gaw Capital UK has secured the biggest educational letting in London’s Docklands this century, and the largest letting in the Docklands – excluding the Canary Wharf estate – across all sectors in more than a decade. The owner of the nine-acre Harbour Exchange development has signed a 15-year lease with the University of Sunderland, which will see it increase its footprint in the building tenfold. Demand for open storage land has risen year-on-year amid a diversifying occupier base, according to data from Carter Jonas shared exclusively with EG. Enquiries for open storage sites rose by 29% to 537 in 2023 compared with the previous year, and were up nearly fourfold on 2020 levels. Researchers at Carter Jonas said the rise stands in sharp contrast to three years ago, when open storage assets were almost entirely absent from investment portfolios.  Cushman & Wakefield has completed a repricing of $1bn (£789m) of its term loan due 2030, citing “strong market demand and lender support”. The agent said it has decided to prepay $50m of its term loan due 2025 in Q1, generating cash interest expense savings of about $6m annually. And, housebuilder Vistry Group has agreed two deals with Homes England to develop 1,000 mixed-tenure homes in Birmingham and Northamptonshire. The majority of the homes will be manufactured off-site using timber frames from its factory in Leicestershire. All of the news from EG, plus a selection of headlines from the nationals: Homes England appoints Vistry to develop 1,000 homesCushman reprices $1bn of term loanGaw Capital secures deal of the centuryOpen storage demand grows while rental growth slowsFirst shots fired in WeWork’s UK battle with landlordsProprium sells Motel One stake for €1.3bnLandsec gets approval for Hill House redevelopmentNew flex operator takes space at Invesco’s Square Mile blockLand deal boosts Birmingham City stadium plansCOMMENT: The gritty reality of the planning committeeSwiss Life enters London co-living market with jvStudent slice of £700m Bristol project put up for salePlans in for new Scunthorpe business parkAllsop promotes three to partner in promotions roundMcCarthy Stone orders CFO from Pizza ExpressMainly for Students: A word on the streetsLocal Space secures £120m funding from MetLifeCouncil set to approve £40m Shepherd’s Bush hotel revampNext and Frasers Group eye up stricken Ted Baker (£)Britain’s biggest pub company scrambles to plug £2bn black hole (£)Gucci owner Kering buys Milan building for €1.3bn in Europe’s biggest property deal since 2022(£)Why Mohammed bin Salman has been forced to rein in his dreams of a mirror city (£)High mortgage rates lead to rise in lending scams (£)