Reading shopping centre changes hands for £16m
A shopping centre in a Reading suburb has been sold by Federated Hermes in a deal worth around £16m.
St Martin’s Centre in Caversham comprises 92,000 sq ft of commercial accommodation including 19 shops, and is anchored by a 40,000 sq ft Waitrose and a 13,000 sq ft Iceland. Other notable tenants include Costa Coffee, Boots, and Superdrug.
The scheme produces an annual net income of around £1.3m and has a weighted average unexpired lease term of 7.6 years to expiry (at time of marketing).
St Martin’s Centre – which sits on a four-acre site – is supplemented by 254-space car park, and is also home to Caversham Health Club as well as 10 flats and one office suite.
The scheme was refurbished in 2017, with the introduction of new cladding, shop-fronts, signage, paving, and lighting.
Further asset management opportunities are available at the centre, including the potential development of mixed-use retail and residential accommodation, reletting or residential conversion of certain retail units, and the construction of a decked car park.
Rob Dales, partner at KLM Real Estate, which represented Federated Hermes, said: “The pricing and level of interest achieved on this sale shows that the shopping centre market continues to improve. This is especially true for South East food anchored centres where the rents have been re-based and there is a strong tenant trading story.”
Lunson Mitchenall acted for the purchaser, Sorbon Estates.