intu to look at ‘alternative uses’ for land and buildings

intu, the owner of the Broadmarsh and Victoria shopping malls in Nottingham and a centre in Derby, has said it is considering entering the private rented sector (PRS).

In a trading update issued earlier this week, intu, which is still to start work on its Broadmarsh redevelopment, said it is looking at alternative uses for some of its land.

A statement from the company said: “We have identified 34 sites or buildings across the portfolio with negligible income which are valued at a total of around £65 million. The list, for example, includes a city centre site, which was valued at £3 million at 30 June 2018 and is currently under offer at a sale price of £7 million, showing the substantial potential value within these sites.

“Mixed-use opportunities being evaluated include residential, hotels and other uses. Initial work has highlighted the potential for around 5,000 residential units and nearly 600 hotel rooms, with further opportunities under consideration.”

Initially, PRS residential opportunities to create a total of around 1,700 units have been identified by intu which, if fully ,developed could in aggregate produce a yield of around 5 per cent on total development costs, excluding land, of around £240m.

The statement continued: “In addition to the residential and hotel opportunities listed above, further mixed use opportunities relating to office, flexible working spaces, business lounge and service oriented uses have been identified that could generate attractive incremental returns to our current rental income stream.

All these opportunities, which are under active consideration, would create value directly but moreover would increase the overall attractiveness and catchment of the centres.”