Capco is adding another £52 million of buildings to its Covent Garden estate, the property developer said on Monday, fresh after exiting its huge Earl’s Court development site.
The FTSE 250 landlord is focusing on its £2.6 billion Covent Garden empire after last week completing a £425 million sale of the west London business.
It has agreed to buy an office and restaurant block on Henrietta Street for £34 million.
It has also bought a property on Maiden Lane for £17.8 million. Those purchases will provide an extra £1.8 million of annual rental income.
The firm warned the West End is not immune from difficult High Street conditions. However, Capco said: “Trading performance on the estate remains encouraging with footfall growth.”
Capco sold its Earl’s Court site, where 7500 new homes were planned, to property developer Delancey and Dutch pensions manager APG. The deal excluded Capco’s stake in the Lillie Square residential development.
At Earl’s Court Capco had suffered from weaker demand for luxury homes. That was on top of conflicts with local Labour-run council Hammersmith & Fulham over housing strategy.
The new owners have returned some of the land, where existing housing estates are, back to the council. They will work up revised plans for the wider site.
