Investor-developer The Cardiff Property has warned it will be “some time” before it sees a recovery in the Thames Valley office market.
The group, which has a £30m portfolio in Heathrow, Surrey and Berkshire, delivered the downbeat assessment as it announced that its net asset value per share fell to £10.88 in the six months to 31 March, a fall of 6.8% from the same period last year.
The interim report also saw revenue fall to £474,000, almost half that in the six months to 31 March 2009, profit before tax fall 4.6% to £722,000, and earnings per share drop 7.5% to 32p.
Chairman Richard Wollenberg said while agents had reported a “small increase” in the number of enquiries, “rental levels have not seen any recovery and, in many cases, are still around 40% lower than those achieved two years ago”.
He said: “It is encouraging to see signs of office rental recovery in the City of London and the activity and confidence that this generates.
“This should, eventually, reflect in an improving office letting market for Heathrow and the West of London.
“However, in view of the substantial amount of office space currently available within this area, I remain of the view that it will be some time before any recovery takes place.”
patrick.clift@estatesgazette.com
