The principal towns of North Somerset are fast becoming a commercial property hotspot, say property consultants Alder King after a flurry of recent transactions in the area and more in the pipeline.
The coastal towns of Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon and Portishead together with Nailsea are all attracting strong interest from occupiers, developers and investors across a variety of sectors, resulting in very positive values for landlords and vendors.
Weston-super-Mare, as the largest of the area’s towns, has seen the most activity, with demand driven by an expanding employment sector and limited stock. Alder King has recently finalised a string of transactions in the town.
These include most notably the investment sale of the BW Estate & Crown Works. This 84,563 sq ft multi-let industrial estate was sold in an off-market, high-yielding transaction to private investors.
Other recent transactions in the town negotiated by Alder King include the letting of the 11,400 sq ft Unit 3 Red Lodge Business Park to Victorian House Sales Ltd, the freehold sale of 200 Worle Parkway to the marketing and media Ascot Group – which already owns and occupies two other buildings on the estate, and the letting of a 1,600 sq ft retail unit at Haywood Village to Haywood Pharmacy.
In Clevedon, Alder King recently let the ground floor offices comprising circa 5,300 sq ft at Building 4 Rivermead Court to an existing nearby occupier.
Meanwhile in Nailsea, Alder King has also finalised the sale of the former Weston College building in the town centre. The property has been acquired by Media Developments and will be redeveloped to provide a mix of residential and commercial units.
Simon Price, head of agency at Alder King, says the current level of market activity in North Somerset is set to continue. “We’ve been very pleased with how well the area’s commercial property market has been performing in recent months given the situation, and with lockdown beginning to ease, the trend looks set to continue with more deals in the pipeline.
“The area is punching well above its weight and with the economy predicted to rebound this year and a good variety of commercial property options available across all sectors, the area can look forward to consolidating its growing reputation as a strong employment location close to Bristol and the M5 corridor.”
