Deals worth £90m highlight strength of London market

At the end of last week, TIAA Henderson Real Estate acquired a portfolio of eight central London-based freehold pubs, all let to Spirit Pub Company, from Cerberus Capital Management for £54m.

The portfolio included Shakespeare’s Head on Great Marlborough Street, Friend at Hand in Bloomsbury, the Roebuck in Chiswick, the Rutland Arms in Hammersmith, the Ship in Mortlake, Museum Tavern on Great Russell Street, the Goat on Kensington High Street and the Two Chairmen near St James’s Park.

It is thought that the 16 investments opportunities, the majority of which are based in London, were part of the 63-strong portfolio of pubs leased to Spirit and Orchid (now part of M&B) that Cerberus acquired earlier this summer in a deal valued at just under £200m.

Golfrate deal​

On the same day, Golfrate, the London-based property management company, acquired an 11-strong package of pubs, the majority of which are owned by Punch Taverns, in a deal funded by a new £20m loan.

The company, which owns c180 freehold and long leasehold pubs across the capital, secured the two-year loan from Aeriance Investments to buy nine pubs from Punch and a further two from private investors. Golfrate said that the pub portfolio offered “value-add, redevelopment opportunities”.

Spirit freehold sale​

Finally, Spirit is thought to have completed the sale of the freehold of its Prince of Wales pub in London’s Fulham, near Earls Court to property company Capital & Counties Properties PLC (Capco), in a deal valued at c£15m.

It is thought that Spirit will continue to the run the pub, which is currently operated under its Taylor Walker format, for an agreed period.

Earlier this year, the Mike Tye-led group completed the disposal of a freehold pub, the Black Lion, on Bayswater Road in central London, to 123 Bayswater Road Limited, for £27m.