Three German banks have joined the list of top lenders to UK commercial property compiled by property adviser Savills, boosting the already strong German presence in the list to 60% of the total. With the addition of Aareal Bank, Bayerische Landesbank and Deutsche Bank, 13 of the list of 21 top lenders with an appetite to lend from £30 mln (EUR 33 mln) are German, Savills announced on Tuesday.

Three German banks have joined the list of top lenders to UK commercial property compiled by property adviser Savills, boosting the already strong German presence in the list to 60% of the total. With the addition of Aareal Bank, Bayerische Landesbank and Deutsche Bank, 13 of the list of 21 top lenders with an appetite to lend from £30 mln (EUR 33 mln) are German, Savills announced on Tuesday.

The firm said it had increased its definition of bigger ticket lending from £20 mln (in October 2009) to £30 mln in recognition of an increased appetite for lending across the market. However, a scarcity of good-quality lending opportunities is holding lenders back from realising their ambitions, Savills said. Over the past 12 months, fewer commercial investment properties have come to the market, and in many cases the better-quality investments have been purchased by cash buyers, often from overseas. This has resulted in fewer opportunities for lenders.

Many other lenders, including lenders no longer appearing on Savills' bigger ticket list, continue to be active in the smaller lot sizes above £10 mln. The list of top 21 lenders (in alphabetical order) is as follows:

Aareal Bank
Aviva
Bank of London and Middle East
Barclays Bank
Bayerische Landesbank
Canada Life
Deka Bank
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Pfandbriefbank
Deutsche Postbank
D G Hyp
Eurohypo
Helaba
ING Real Estate Finance
Landesbank Baden-Wurttemberg
Landesbank Berlin
Lloyds Banking Group
Nord LB/Deutsche Hypo
Royal Bank of Scotland
Santander
Westdeutsche Immobilienbank