Former Portmeirion warehouse sold after falling vacant

PROPERTY investor Palace Capital has sold a 40,000 sq ft warehouse in Stoke-on-Trent that has been vacant for a year.

The listed business agreed a price of £1.086m for the Victoria Road property, which was slightly above book value. It had acquired the building in 2013 as part of the Sequel Portfolio it bought from Quintain Estates & Development.

The warehouse had been occupied for 35 years by pottery maker Portmeirion before it became vacant last September. Palace Capital had already secured £250,000 by way of a settlement of a schedule of dilapidations and has now sold the property to a private group.

Neil Sinclair, chief executive of Palace Capital, said: “This sale is the result of our active management and the continuation of the recycling of our capital where properties are either vacant or have no realistic prospect of growth.

“In addition, the company will no longer be responsible for empty rates and as it was not charged the proceeds received can be directed towards acquiring properties that fulfil our investment criteria.”