Mayfair Capital’s charities fund reaches €645m portfolio value

UK real estate investment manager Mayfair Capital has announced that its flagship fund, The Property Income Trust for Charities (PITCH), has increased its investment portfolio to £460 mln (€645 mln) after completing two acquisitions for £28.7 mln.

In the largest transaction, PITCH has acquired a large distribution warehouse on Papyrus Road in Peterborough from Malvern Enterprises for £15.7 mln, representing a yield to PITCH of 5.7%.

The asset is let to Royal Mail Group until June 2031 at an annual rent of £902,000, equating to £4.35/sq ft. Local occupiers include Amazon, Ikea, Audi and BMW.

Allsop and North Rae Sanders acted for PITCH and Phillips Roth for the seller.

In a separate transaction, PITCH bought a multi-let industrial investment from Salmon Harvester for £13 mln. The investment is located in Hook, Hampshire, and comprises eight modern industrial units, let to six different tenants at a total yearly rent of £824,255, equating to an average of £9.07/sq ft.

The estate has one remaining vacant unit of 8,000 sq ft, which PITCH is seeking to let through joint agents Reddin Clancy and LSH. Cyril Leonard and LSH advised PITCH and HSM advised Salmon Harvester.

PITCH said it has also entered into a £24.8 mln debt facility with Aviva Commercial Finance. The facility is fixed against the 10-year gilt at an all-in rate, including margin, of 3.10%. As at 30 September 2015 the loan-to-value ratio on the portfolio increases to 18.25% (based on gross asset value), with the weighted cost of borrowings now at 3.71%.

Simon Martindale, fund manager of PITCH, said: 'The logistics sector remains one of our favoured market segments. Both of these acquisitions are in line with our investment strategy for PITCH, providing secure, long-term income growth and an attractive yield.' He added: 'The debt facility comes at an opportune time for PITCH with long-term borrowing rates at record lows.'

Launched in January 2005, PITCH has outperformed the AREF/IPD UK All-Balanced Property Funds Index (ABPFI) and continues to attract new equity from charities - raising £75 mln of new subscriptions in the 12 months to end-September 2015.