Bargain buy in the shopping centre

As a long-term investment, a six-man business syndicate - three accountants, two retailers and one banker - bought Rathfarnham Shopping Centre, Dublin 14, 18 months ago. For most of them, the intention was to use it to top up their pensions.

The syndicate paid £10.2 million for the centre, which had become somewhat rundown since it was developed by PV Doyle in 1965. Each of the investors put up £500,000 and borrowed the remainder of the money from Anglo Irish Bank. The initial rent roll of almost £800,000 equated to a yield of 7.9 per cent. The return has since improved, going up close to 10 per cent following the increase in Tesco's rent from £200,000 to £348,000. Happily for the investors, the higher rent was backdated to March, 1998.

John McNally of McNally Handy, who advised the syndicate, says the centre has proven an "excellent buy" and was likely to show a good rental growth over the next few years. The syndicate had little competition when they bought the centre, largely because of the continuing development and enlargement of other shopping centres in the greater Dublin area.

One drawback was that the owners must meet service charges out of the rent roll. Under this unusual arrangement, the owners have to forfeit £110,000 of their annual rent to meet service charges such as insurance, rates, maintenance and security. Responsibility for the service charges rests with the owners until the old leases run out in the year 2005.

In the meantime, the syndicate is to begin work early next year on extending the centre to provide an additional 16,500 sq ft of retail space and extra car-parking. "I have no doubt that this investment will produce a much better return than the conventional pension fund," Mr McNally said.