Allsop’s €60 million auction to include 278 lots

Allsop is to hold its biggest commercial property auction yet early next month with 278 lots going under the hammer at a combined reserve value of €60 million.

The two-day auction, which takes place September 8th-9th, includes a strong collection of retail investments with well-known high-street names such as Dealz, Boylesports, Ladbrokes, O'Briens and Shoe Zone as sitting tenants.

One of the most sought-after properties at the auction is likely to be a combined lot that includes a large Georgian building at 10 Harcourt Street and two adjoining warehouses to the rear, on Montague Lane.

The lot has a reserve range of €2.9 million-€3.1 million. The Harcourt Street property is arranged over a basement and three upper floors to provide a combination of retail, office and residential accommodation.

Extending to 385sq m (4,144sq ft), it is subject to three tenancies - including O’Brien’s Sandwich Bars – and produces an income of €82,000 per annum with two office units vacant.

The adjoining properties at 10/11 Montague Lane comprise two warehouses, which are subdivided into six units and extend to a total of 1,016sq m (10,936sq ft).

Two of the six units are subject to tenancies and provide an annual rent of €34,250. Full vacant possession of the entire property is attainable by January 2016.

A lot that comprises Traders public house and off-licence in Walkinstown, Dublin 12, together with a take-away and a retail unit let to Pat Toolan Bookmaker, is also likely to stir interest.

Traders, which has been part of the Fitzgerald Group since 1987, extends to about 1,098.57sq m (11,825sq ft).

Combined rent from the takeaway and retail unit is €40,400 with additional rental income of €15,200 per annum coming from a roof-top telecommunications mast. The reserve range is between €900,000 and €1 million.

A high-specification headquarters and logistics facility at Baldonnell Business Park, in Dublin, is also going under the hammer.

It includes a high-bay warehouse and a four-storey office block to the front.

The warehouse accommodation has 10m eaves, four dock levellers and two automated grade-level roller shutters.

The property, which has a reserve range of €2.25 million-€2.5 million, extends to a total of 5,560 sq m (59,847 sq ft), is situated on a 1-hectare (2.47 acres) site.

Well-established tenant mix

The Newtown Centre, a shopping centre situated in a densely populated residential area opposite

Castleroy College

, in Co Limerick, has a well-established tenant mix.

The property comprises eight retail units, six office units and a restaurant. Four of the 15 units are vacant; the 11 tenancies yield a rent of about €250,000 a year.

The lot extends to 2,1452sq m (23,051 sq ft) and has a reserve range of between €2.1 million-€2.3 million.

Another auction highlight includes a substantial high-street retail and office building, which occupies a busy trading position on Pearse Street, one of Mullingar’s main shopping streets.

The property, the retail part of which is let to discount retailer Dealz on a 10-year lease at a rent of €172,500, extends to about 1,533sq m (16,178sq ft).

The building also includes ancillary storage accommodation and an independent office suite that is currently vacant.

It is expected to be of particular interest to investors seeking to secure blue-chip income at yield levels not typically available in city centres.

It has a reserve range of between €1.4 million-€1.6 million and a net interest yield of 11.79 per cent, with a rent increase due in 2017.

Strong demand

Richard O’Neill, head of commercial auctions at Allsop, said demand is continuing to improve, particularly competitive bidding for dry investments and well-located owner-occupier units, especially in the greater Dublin area.

“We are also noting an increasing number of UK-based investors seeking secure investments and to take advantage of the sterling-versus-euro exchange rate.

“We expect that we will see an increase in this trend into the autumn auctions.”