Property developer British Land launched a broadside at retail tenants looking to cut their bills on Wednesday, as it said the pain on the High Street cost it £14 million in rent.
The FTSE 100 firm said the value of its portfolio fell 4.8% to £12.3 billion in the year to March.
The rent dent was caused by a number of tenants using a company voluntary arrangement, allowing them to seek rent cuts or close shops. Homebase was one of the brands to do this and Debenhams is in talks over the possibility.
Some retailers “are pushing it further than feels fair,” boss Chris Grigg said. Retailers are grappling with higher business rates and competition from online rivals.
His comments came a day after rival Landsec said it had seen income falls in its shopping centres, retail parks and some central London stores.
British Land’s net asset value fell 6.4% to 905p a share.
Grigg was more bullish about the firm’s London offices business, and cheered a number of leasing deals: it has agreed 1.1 million square foot of lettings, including to Peel Hunt and Facebook in the capital.
He said: “We expect the London market to remain active, as occupier demand for the highest-quality space continues to be firm and supply is relatively constrained.”
