More and more Irish investors are finding the United Kingdom market the ideal place to get r capital appreciation on their investments. One Irish company making inroads in the UK serviced apartment market is Premier Apartments, part of the Prem Group, which is a specialist in this area.
Working with Irish and UK property developers, it is leasing whole blocks of apartments to let to the serviced-apartment market.
This month, it is finalising a deal with the largest franchising organisation in the world, the Cendant Corporation, to become a franchise partner in the European short-term letting market. Existing brands of Cendant include Avis, Ramada, Century 21, and RCI, which employs 700 people in Cork at its call centre.
Although a relatively new concept, serviced apartments are proving an increasingly popular option for short and long-stay accommodation with the corporate sector, as an alternative to hotels.
Premier Apartments is to take over the leasing and maintenance of properties from investors, and arrange lettings on the short-term market. Landlords are guaranteed a fixed monthly rent paid by standing order. Returns on investment are in the region of five to six per cent.
The franchise with Cendant, using the Howard Johnson Extended Stay brand, will put Premier Apartments at the fingertips of thousands of travel agents worldwide. Bookings for apartments will be easily made through a computerised global distribution system (GDS), used by agents. Cendant owns one of the biggest GDSs, Galileo, used by almost every Irish travel agency.
Jim Murphy, managing director of the Prem Group said "We take a lease on the apartment and so guarantee the investor a constant return on their investment, thereby minimising the risk as well as the logistical burden of managing that property."
One of the Irish developers Premier Apartments has been working with is the Niall J Mellon Group, which encompasses construction, property development, hotels and financial services.
The relationship with Premier grew out of the management of the Quality Charleville Hotel in Rathmines, Mr Mellon said. "When Premier was looking to expand into UK cities last year, it overlapped with some developments we had coming on stream."
Properties in other UK cities under negotiation or being targeted by Premier include London, Leeds, Newcastle, and Glasgow. Next year, it will target Europe.
Prem Group MD Jim Murphy says "More and more, people are opting for our apartments in preference to a traditional hotel stay. We provide a sense of space, privacy and independence."
Business comes from sources as diverse as theatre groups, film crews, companies and project teams, he added.
The Prem Group started life in 1989 when Aer Lingus pilots Peter Reddan and Gerry McNulty established Stephen's Hall, an all-suite four-star hotel with the financial assistance of a Business Expansion Scheme (BES).
The structure of the company changed in 1996 when Reddan, McNulty and Jim Murphy, along with property developer Paddy Kelly, purchased the shares held under the BES.
They took over the running of the Clarion Stephen's Hall Hotel and have expanded into the hotel industry through a marketing association with Choice Hotels, the second largest hotel group in Ireland.
The company manages the Comfort Inn, Talbot Street, Quality Hotel and Suites, Naas Road and the Quality Charleville Hotel, Rathmines. The company also expanded into the serviced office business and has 135,000 sq ft of office space in Dublin and Belfast trading as Premier Business Centres.
