Tallest UK skyscraper outside London to be approved April 3, 2025 Plans to build the tallest skyscraper in the UK outside of London have been recommended for approval. Developer Salboy, which was co-founded by Betfred billionaire Fred Done, is behind the proposals which would see a 76-storey building constructed in Manchester city centre. The £360m project, known as Viadux 2, has been earmarked for land between [...]
Vauxhall: £400m plans revealed for closed factory after 1,100 jobs lost April 3, 2025 The site of Vauxhall’s van manufacturing plant in Luton, which has just closed with the loss of 1,100 jobs, has been bought by a global property company pledging to invest £400m. Australian giant Goodman has acquired the site in Kimpton Road, which Vauxhall owner Stellantis slated for closure in November last year. The group said it [...]
London’s commercial property sector is suffocating March 31, 2025 A combination of environmental regulations and falling office attendance means commercial property is struggling and the Spring Statement was a missed opportunity to turn it around, says Dan Drogman The UK’s commercial property sector is being strangled from all angles, and this year’s Spring Statement was a missed opportunity to relieve that pressure. Let’s start [...]
Birmingham landmark on sale in cut-price deal as value slashed in half March 11, 2025 A landmark office building in Birmingham city centre has been put up for sale for half what it was bought for in 2019. The Lewis Building and its adjoining neighbour Priory Court in Bull Street were acquired by Gulf Islamic Investments for £140m. The investor, which has offices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, bought the [...]
‘Prohibitive building costs’ stunting UK growth projects – Deloitte February 4, 2025 “Prohibitive costs” involved in construction projects in major UK cities led to a sharp decline in the number of new developments breaking ground in 2024, according to a new report from Deloitte. Deloitte’s latest Regional Crane Surveys, which covers the central areas of Belfast, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester, has revealed the number of new starts [...]
Major lifeline for Wembley Park developer after huge losses January 23, 2025 The developer behind London’s Wembley Park transformation has secured a huge funding boost just months after losses of more than £700m were revealed. Quintain has completed the refinancing of London Designer Outlet and build-to-rent development Ferrum at the site with a £233.6m loan from Bank of America. The deal comes after City AM reported in [...]
Savills: End of work from home drives recovery in office property market January 16, 2025 International property services company Savills has predicted a strong commercial property market this year driven by cheaper financing, the sustainability agenda and workers’ return to the office. The FTSE 250-listed firm told the market this morning that while it expected challenging conditions to continue, “most markets are in recovery”. However, the firm added that geopolitical uncertainty, [...]
FTSE 100 giant Auto Trader gears up for £87m HQ move January 13, 2025 FTSE 100 giant Auto Trader has confirmed plans to relocate its headquarters from a building named after a Manchester legend to a new base worth £87m. The company is to leave its home at 1 Tony Wilson Place in First Street and move to Bruntwood SciTech’s 3 Circle Square in 2026. Auto Trader has been [...]
London commercial property starts year strong with huge Baker Street let January 9, 2025 A British-based property company has fully let a Baker Street office space at a significant premium to the estimated value in an excellent start to the commercial market in 2025. Derwent London has pre-let 204,300 sq ft of office space to five tenants at its 25 Baker Street W1 development, which will complete later in [...]
London’s flexible office workers shift to four days a week December 16, 2024 Workers in London’s flexible office space have increased the number of days at their desk, despite sentiment that Londoners were unlikely to return to pre-covid working patterns. Three quarters of workers in flexible offices now use the working space at least four days a week, according to fresh data from Knight Frank. This comes amid [...]