Million pound Kidderminster investment opportunity heads up Bond Wolfe Auctions’ commercial lots

Published by

Nicky Godding

A high yielding freehold town centre mixed use investment in Kidderminster, is being put up for auction later this month.

Carlton House has eight retail units and 15 apartments, comprising a mix of studio, one bedroom and two bedroom accommodation. It is currently 91% occupied, producing rental income of £149,280 per annum, with potential full rental value of £170,000. The apartments have recently been refurbished.

Carlton House occupies a prominent position within the heart of Kidderminster town centre with frontages to Oxford Street, Marlborough Street and Worcester Street. It has a guide price of £1.35 million+.

The building is being auctioned by Bond Wolfe which is reporting a continuing surge in interest in commercial lots in the build up to the sale.

Ian Tudor, Bond Wolfe Auctions’ managing director, said: “Not only are we witnessing an increase in the number of commercial lots coming to the auction market, with more vendors committed to move certain assets on and an increasing numbers of enthusiastic buyers entering the market, we are starting to witness some sales well in excess of expectations.

“We are already receiving healthy interest in the lots on offer in our forthcoming October auction, and providing advice to potential vendors for our December sale.”

The surge has come after Bond Wolfe Auctions announced the intention to start commercial-only auctions in the Spring of 2021 as the main auctions were regularly attracting 200 plus lots, resulting in online, livestreamed auctions of over ten hours.

Similar strong interest to Carlton House is expected in Victoria House in West Bromwich, guide price £665,000+, and Strand House in Bromsgrove, guide price £495,000+.

Demand for pub sites providing residential development opportunities continues to be extremely strong.

Ian said: “During these uncertain times, post lockdown, never has the certainty of a sale by auction been more attractive. Once the hammer falls, the contract is binding, contracts are exchanged immediately and prices cannot be renegotiated.

“This is proving particularly popular with vendors of commercial property who require the comfort of a guaranteed sale in order to plan and shape future business decisions, and this is leading to an increased number of commercial lots on offer by auction.

“In addition, the recent changes in planning use classes are boosting buyers’ confidence as they now have various options available to them, for example to convert retail premises into cafes and restaurants without the need for planning permission, which in a post-Covid world, provides good long term alternative options.”

In 2020, year to date, Bond Wolfe Auctions has sold 685 lots raising £72.5 million.

Bond Wolfe Auctions’ next online auction on Wednesday 28 October is livestreamed via the website at www.bondwolfeauctions.com with remote bidding by proxy, telephone and internet only.

Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe. After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts. She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.