Residential Land, Prime Central London’s largest private landlord has acquired a portfolio of 15 freehold houses in Balvaird Place and Lindsay Square, London SW1.

Built in the early 1990s by Regalian, the houses have been bought from Malaysia-based investors at a yield of 4.5%. Residential Land will keep the houses as a rental investment and aim to increase the yield as tenancies are renewed over the next year. The acquisition is unusual since most residential portfolios in the capital consist of flats.

The deal continues Residential Land’s focus on central London.

Earlier this year Residential Land acquired an adjoining mews house at 7-8 Bathurst Street, strengthening the company’s holdings around Hyde Park. Residential Land has become one of the most active residential investors in central London. Its total assets extend to more than 250,000 sq ft (23,226 sq m).

Residential Land has a large selection of properties to rent in London. As one of Central London’s largest private landlords, we are residential property experts specialising in the acquisition, sale, rental and management of our portfolio of over 1,200 flats in London.  Based in the heart of Mayfair, the Residential Land team invest at an institutional level acquiring increasing numbers of properties in our specific areas of operation.

Residential Land, the investment vehicle of entrepreneur Bruce Ritchie, has made its first foray into serviced flats sector with the purchase of Grand Plaza in Bayswater, central London.

Grand Plaza. London flats for rent

Ritchie bought the 205-flat block from a joint venture between Singapore-based serviced residence operator Ascott Group and Bahraini developer Crown Dilmun.
The price is undisclosed, although Ritchie said it is Residential’s largest single-asset purchase.
The property at 42 Princes Square has been valued with vacant possession. However, Ritchie said Residential Land would run it as a fully serviced, short-stay business for the time being, with the aim of generating annual gross.
  ‘We’ve got our work cut out, but we’re confident we can do it.’ Ritchie’s optimism is based on the high number of enquiries for Residential Land’s large number of conventional flats in Bayswater and the strength of the private rental market in central London.
’We’re turning people away on a daily basis,’ he said. ‘There is a lot of marriage value between what we’re turning away and what we can put in that building.’
Ritchie indicated that in the long term, the 115,000 sq ft ‘trophy asset’ could be converted from short-stay serviced units to conventional flats.
’We’re certainly looking at it and whether it would be worthwhile for Westminster [City Council] to give that consent,’ he said.
Residential Land agreed the Grand Plaza purchase in July and completed it last week. Grand Plaza follows Residential Land’s purchase of Roland House in Kensington from Ascott and Crown Dilmun nearly two years ago.

For flats to rent in London visit http://www.residentialland.com