New real estate lending has dropped by more than a fifth in the first half of this year, as values fall and interest rates rise. The £18.2bn originated, the second-weakest since before Brexit, is still pretty good, though, considering the investment market is down 40%.
Banks are retrenching further from real estate debt markets, and larger debt funds with flexible balance sheet solutions “won’t get out of bed for anything less than £100m”, says Cohort Capital. “This has opened up a space in the property finance market,” it adds, as it loans £73m to the Qatari owners of the NoMad Hotel, WC2.
Meanwhile, WeWork’s interim boss David Tolley clearly nailed the audition, and has been named its permanent chief executive.
The government has dropped its pursuit of five former Carillion non-executive directors, just hours before a High Court “test case” was due to begin.
Art-Invest has submitted plans for the refurbishment of Sackville House in London’s West End.
Moda has launched a consultation for its 37-storey BTR tower in Birmingham’s Ladywell district.
And Whitbread is planning another £300m share buyback, which could rise further if its sale of 250 pub-restaurants goes ahead.
But those of you hoping for some juicy tax cuts in the chancellor’s Autumn Statement will be disappointed, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned. Despite a £52bn stealth tax rise – thanks fiscal drag! – national debt is still near 100% of national income.
Meanwhile, the prime minister’s net zero U-turn seems to have had an impact on business, with the number of large companies saying sustainability is a high priority falling to its lowest level since early 2020.
But it’s OK, because Hull will save us all by becoming the first city to give residents the “right to grow” on its unused land.
Besides, Tritax Big Box has shown that the real estate sector is still committed to net zero, signing a new £500m sustainability-linked revolving credit facility.
And the Office Politics podcast takes a look at the PM’s U-turns and Labour’s offer with its recap of the party conferences, with Mark Prisk joined by special guest, BPF boss Melanie Leech.
In other news, house prices in London’s most expensive postcodes fell by 3.1% last month as rents rose.
The latest serialised chapter of Jane Martinson’s book on the Barclay twins looks at the toxic debt that finally brought the empire to its knees.
And finally, a judge has said a West End property investor did harass his business partners, after sending one of them a bag of manure and a shovel. Simon Lyons also accused colleagues of “wanking all morning” and being “as useful as a pair of stale knickers”. Charming. Perhaps milord should take a leaf out of the playbook of the judge on one of Donald Trump’s many court cases. He has issued a partial gagging order on the former president, after Trump called him a “thug”.
