LondonMetric sells £27m of retail and office assets

Real estate investment trust LondonMetric has announced the sale of five retail and office properties, in separate transactions, for a total of £26.7m.

The largest of the assets is a 51,000 sq ft convenience-led retail asset in Weymouth, which has been sold for £14.3m. The property has a weighted average unexpired lease term (WAULT) to break of 12 years, and was recently developed by LondonMetric.

The other retail assets included in the disposals are an 11,000 sq ft drive-through site in Birstall, which has been sold for £4.1m, as well as a 1,400 sq ft high street unit in Kingston, which fetched £1.2m. The Kingston asset was previously a part of the CT Property Trust, which LondonMetric acquired last year.

LondonMetric has also disposed of a 19,000 sq ft office asset in High Wycombe for £3.9m, and a 15,000 sq ft office in Halesown, near Dudley, and adjacent land for a combined £3.2m. The assets have a WAULT to break of three and four years respectively.

Andrew Jones, chief executive of LondonMetric, said: “These sales represent our exit from further non-core and lower growth assets where we have completed on our business plans. Since the end of March, we have now sold almost £100 million and expect to exchange on further sales shortly.

“As we continually upgrade our portfolio, the sales proceeds will be reinvested into higher quality assets, which offer superior rental growth potential.”