OUTLOOK JULY 2007

An e-newsletter covering Industrial, Commercial & Retail Property, in North Oxfordshire, North Gloucestershire, South Northants and South Warwickshire. 

Published by BANKIER SLOAN CHARTERED SURVEYORS.

REGIONAL PROPERTY HELP LINE: 01869 338866

Acquisitions: Sales: Lettings: Lease Renewals: Rent Reviews: Planning: Rating: Management (1)

Please "forward" to any friends or colleagues you think may be interested and hopefully they will reply directly to us saying "YES PLEASE" and we'll add them to our register. Our e-mail address is reception@centre-p.co.uk

Thank you for linking to “Outlook  Bankier Sloan’s monthly e-newsletter. For up to date information please click www.centre-p.co.uk.

ABC Guide to Banbury Industrial Estates – July 2007. Please look at this www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/ABC%20Guide-July%202007(3).pdf . Our guide has been revised, updated and contains a comprehensive list of occupiers of the industrial estates as at 1st July, and possibly of more interest to many who read Outlook detailed maps of the individual estates. This has been produced in a PDF format and is therefore easily printable. This guide is published twice a year and is seen as the definitive guide to the town’s industrial estates.

Shop/Office, Banbury. Our prospective tenant has withdrawn interest (and lost their legal fees!) and we are now keen to find a new tenant for this "small but beautifully formed" shop/office within 100 meters of Banbury Cross. For further detail please e-mail reception@centre-p.co.uk writing the words 'North Bar Shop' in the Subject Box and we will forward details.

Market Value  v  Bank Valuation. Many readers of Outlook will be interested that on behalf of clients we have completed the sale of a property in Thorpe Close, Banbury which we have been promoting for the last couple of months (ground floor 2,400 sq ft, first floor purpose built offices 600 sq ft). The agreed sale price was £337,000. You might assume therefore that this was the 'Market Value'.  With the price agreed the purchasers understandably went to their bank who instructed a firm of surveyors, who valued the property for bank purposes at £300,000. I tell you this not because I have any criticism of those involved in the valuation but that this is the usual sort of discount one sees between a Market Value and a bank valuation. Valuers acting on behalf of a bank are understandably cautious!

Roundabouts. I wonder whether I am the only person to believe that a roundabout is intended to assist the flow of traffic rather than provide a grassed and level location for a local authority to plant flowers, or a local artist to exhibit his or her latest project. I have questioned, on more than one occasion, for example whether the same-what questionable "cock-horses" to be found round the historic monument in the centre of Banbury are not a distraction to drivers rather than an asset to this historic cross. This is by no means however the only such roundabout. Across the region councils plant trees, bushes, sunflowers and in some cases allow animals shaped out of birch to be placed in exactly the line of your vision…however maybe the "thing" to be found on the Banbury Road as you enter Stratford from Banbury is the worst (or best example) of an object that is clearly intended to be admired rather than driven around !  I have wondered for years whether there will not be a legal case one day taken out by a driver who may decide to pursue a sponsoring company of a roundabout on the grounds that without the objects located on part of our "green and pleasant land" he or she would not have had an accident.

From a professional point of view I am also totally sure that the vast majority of the objects placed at such locations would, in normal circumstances, require planning permission. If I made an application on behalf of a client the Highways Authority would correctly argue that we could not construct it as it would be a distraction to drivers.

I would be very happy to receive digital photos of any weird and wonderful objects on  rounabouts, and if I get a reasonable response I look forward to creating a web-page on our site to which of course you will be given a credit.  Photos please to reception@centre-p.co.uk

Property Requirement. We have been retained by a professional practice to acquire premises, having a total area of between 4,000 - 6,000 sq ft with at least half on the ground floor. We also need parking for at least 8 vehicles…but here comes the difficult bit, we want it located in Banbury, south of the Police Station, north of Adderbury, west of the railway line and east of Banbury School (a very small area south of Banbury town centre). Freehold or leasehold. Any developers out there with a scheme needing an end user ? Please telephone 01869 338866 with any ideas.

Property Requirement, Deddington. We have been retained by a client to acquire a lock-up shop in Deddington. Minimum 350 sq ft, maximum 800 sq ft. I would like to think we know of everything but just in case…I thought we would mention this in Outlook.

Workshop/Office, Moreton-in-Marsh. Located adjacent to what we believe will be the largest permanent art gallery in the Cotswold, we have instructions to offer on lease a ground floor workshop of 500 sq ft with a first floor of 800 sq ft (workshop or office) at a rent of only £7,000 per annum www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/Moreton-in-Marsh(workshops)1.pdf  and a separate beautiful re-refurbished 1,400 sq ft office at £12,000 per annum.http://www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/Moreton-in-Marsh%20-%20Fosseway%20Business%20Park%20-%20Office.pdf.  Internal viewing of this is highly recommended as the outside really does not do it justice !!

Investment sale.  We are pleased to report that the investment on Overthorpe Road Industrial Estate we promoted in our last Outlook has now been exchanged and completed (on the same day!). With a passing rent of £28,000 per annum we had considerable interest in this investment at a price in excess of £350,000.

Available Properties. http://www.centre-p.co.uk/availableproperties.htm. As reported in our last Outlook we are continuing to get a large number of hits on our web-site. As you would expect if you type in "Bankier Sloan" you inevitably are given a large number of links, but I am pleased to report that we are still very close, or often at the top of a list of over 43,000 potential web-sites if you insert the words "Industrial Premises Banbury". We believe our site is the most frequently visited by those seeking industrial properties within the region…and for those who wish to test this theory then please try it...type in 'Industrial Premises Banbury' ...and Google would appear to support our belief !

Free Spray Booth. Thank you to the five people who responded seeking the give-away spray booth. Two inspected the booth within seventy two hours and both were surprised at how big it was, turning it down on those grounds. One party visited and said 'yes please', and they would arrange within a fortnight to take it away on a low-loader, however before that could be arranged yet another party viewed and not only decided they liked the booth, but they also wanted the factory unit…so I am happy to report that we have let this 1,500 sq ft workshop on Thorpe Way on a new lease, at a rent of £11,000 per annum.

Thorpe Place. At the end of last week we received instructions to market another 1,500 sq ft unit on Thorpe Way Industrial Estate, Banbury. This has the benefit of a further 500 sq ft of offices with 600 sq ft of storage space on the first floor. This unit is available on a three or six year lease (with a three year rent review) at an initial rent of £13,000 per annum. Viewing is recommended. Details will be available on the web-site in the next 48 hours, if you want them sooner please e-mail reception@centre-p.co.uk, writing 'Thorpe Place' in the Subject Box.

A few other properties I would encourage you to view include a modern 1,600 sq ft unit (with 400 sq ft of first floor offices) on Thorpe Mead, http://www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/Thorpe%20Mead.pdf ; a basic but excellent 2,500 sq ft unit on Thorpe Close, Banbury, http://www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/Thorpe%20Close-2,500%20sq%20ft%20Industrial%20Unit.pdf; and a 5,500 sq ft warehouse at Fenny Compton at a rent of only £20,000 per annum, http://www.centre-p.co.uk/pdfs/Fenny%20Compton.pdf. We also have a variety of shops, offices and industrial units, and all are available to be viewed in detail at www.centre-p.co.uk

BANKIER SLOAN

Edited by Ian B Sloan FRICS – 28th June 2007

The longest established Chartered Surveyors in the region dealing exclusively with Industrial, Commercial & Retail Property.

North Oxfordshire, North Gloucestershire, South Northants and South Warwickshire.

Deddington 01869 338866   -  Brackley 01280 700756

Moreton-in-Marsh 01608 652888  -   Coventry 02476 545556