BAM sells Fore Business Park to IM Properties for £21m
CONSTRUCTION and property firm BAM has sold its Fore Business Park, near J4 of the M42 motorway in Solihull, to Coleshill’s IM Properties for £21m.
Fore Business Park features 66,000 sq ft of existing office space in two buildings – Fore 1 and Fore 2 – which were speculatively developed in 2009 and are currently at 85% occupancy.
The site includes six acres of development land, with planning secured for two further office buildings totalling an additional 90,000 sq ft.
Martin Hill, development director for BAM Properties, said: “It speaks volumes about the strength of the M42 market that IM Properties has chosen to take the whole of the Forebusiness park development.
“They inherit some remaining letting potential in phase 1 and a superb consented site. It’s both an excellent investment for them and it’s proven to bear out the speculative development approach BAM adopts.”
John Hammond, investment director at IM Properties, said: “Fore Business Park offered us two high quality buildings with existing income streams from four very good tenants, with the majority of leases extending over ten years.
“The M42 market has witnessed a dramatic turnaround in recent months, exhibiting a strong demand that has left little stock for tenants to consider, particularly in good quality buildings that are landlord controlled.
“The market is currently starved of buildings along the M42 corridor that offer larger floorplates, so we will be looking to remodel the existing planning consent in order to ensure that we are delivering a desirable, cost-effective solution for commercial occupiers.
“Whether we develop speculatively or wait for a pre-let will be dictated by the market.”
The acquisition of Fore Business Park aligns with IM Properties’ strategy to acquire good quality, income producing investment stock whilst increasing its exposure to development.
IM Properties already has a presence in Solihull, having completed the acquisition of the Mell Square shopping centre last year and through its ownership of Solihull Business Park, which will soon be home to the first John Lewis Customer Fulfilment Centre.
In the past few months BAM has successfully attracted a series of tenancies to Fore, including Goodrich, Arcellor Mittal, E-tech and BAM’s own Midlands’ construction business.
Savills acted on behalf of IM Properties in the completion of the acquisition, with BAM represented by CBRE.
