Topland joins forces with English Rose on London project

UK privately owned investor Topland has partnered with English Rose Estates to buy a residential-office scheme on London's Strand.

The companies have bought the long leasehold interest in the upper parts of 406-408 Strand for £11.62 mln (€14 mln) from Legal & General Property (LGP).

The Strand scheme has planning consent to convert the upper sections of the building from offices into 13 luxury residential apartments which Topland expects will have a gross development value in excess of £25 mln.

'Joint Venture equity partnerships are an established core business line for Topland,' commented Topland manager Edward Matthews. 'This is our fifth residential joint venture this year and we have a strong pipeline of future equity deals, with the best in class UK developers.'

In April in an equity joint venture with Urban Exposure Topland acquired a prime 3.4-acre site Dawn Hill, on the Wentworth Estate, Surrey, by the famous golf course, with plans to build a 25,000 sq ft mansion, with a development value of over £30 mln.

To date Topland has deployed £300 mln by means of a wide variety of funding structures including joint ventures, bridging loans, senior development loans and mezzanine finance with a focus on prime residential development.

This is the third funding deal that Topland has completed with English Rose Estates. Previously it provided an acquisition and development loan, to convert a former Coventry hotel to student housing and Topland has also provided a £10 mln acquisition and development financing to English Rose Estates on another office to resi scheme in Marylebone.