Sale of Bullring shares could mark property turnaround
September 22, 2009
The largest retail investment trust in the U.K. has just sold its 33% stake in the countries most-visited shopping centre to an Australian firm. The U.K.’s Land Securities Group Plc has agreed a deal worth £210 million with Future Fund in Australia to off load its shares in the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham.
Although some analysts say that the price is lower than they expected and that perhaps Land Securities should have held on for a bit Land Securities have pointed out that the price was above the value of £205 million they had placed on the holding at the end of March this year.
Along with the sale of its stake in the Bullring, since April 1st this year, Land Securities have sold off around £780 million worth of its assets. This has been in an attempt to raise capital after incurring billions of pounds worth of debt because of all the property it bought just before the financial meltdown.
Property consultants King Sturge say that the rise in value of the Bullring has only happened over the last month and that this rise is the first in the past eighteen months. Andrew Burrell, a research partner at the company has said that the rise in prices could signify that property is starting its difficult climb back to growth. He also warned however that the glimpse of a turnaround did not necessarily mean that property firms were out of the woods and predicted that times could still get worse before they truly start to get better.
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