Property firm pumps £12m into transformation of disused office buildings

Property investment company Empire Property Holdings is pumping upwards of £12m into disused office space in Yorkshire and converting it into residential apartments for the lettings market.

Funding for the schemes is coming via mini-bonds, also known as loan note offers, which allow others to invest in the business model.

To date, Empire Property Holdings has launched two mini-bonds. The first, launched early in 2016 attracted just short of £6m in 10 months from private investors.

A second, launched last December, has brought in £10m to date.

The mini-bonds allow investors to be involved in property, without actually having to buy any themselves and benefit from returns on investment – up to 27% over two years and 60% over four years respectively.

Thanks to the success of the mini-bonds to date, the company has recently completed schemes in Wakefield and Pontefract and work has just started on a third development in Halifax.

In Wakefield, Empire has converted the former 6,500 sq ft office of mid Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce into 29 one-bedroom residential apartments.

In Pontefract, a town centre office building, King Charles House, has been converted into 62 apartments. Over in Halifax, Empire is converting the former offices of Covea insurance into 65 one and two-bedroom apartments.

Founder and managing director of Empire, Paul Rothwell, said: “There is a huge demand for low cost rental properties and we are fulfilling that demand.

“Converting these office buildings into residential accommodation is relatively swift, compared to a new build project of a similar size, and the development cost is less than if we were to build from scratch.

“What’s more, we are turning derelict eyesores into great accommodation and bringing people into the town centres.”