British Land buys in the heart of London

30th Jun 2011 08:15

Property group British Land has spent £57m buying Wardrobe Court in central London.Wardrobe Court is an 18th century square made up mostly of serviced apartments located within minutes of St Paul's Cathedral.British Land will receive an initial return of 4.7% from the current tenants but it is clear the firm believes it can extract more value long term, claiming: "At the end of the lease (in December 2014), we have an opportunity to renew or re-let as serviced apartments at a significantly higher rent, or to upgrade and sell-off profitably as private residential properties."The company's shares were up 0.42% in early trading.BS