Grainger sells part of retirement solution portfolio

10th Jan 2014 07:11

Residential property group Grainger has disposed of a portfolio of UK properties and won a management contract over the homes. The properties, which it acquired via its retirement equity release scheme, have been sold for £87.6m to property investor Clifden Holdings.This earned the FTSE 250 company a £9.9m total group pre-tax profit after costs.Chief Executive Andrew Cunningham said it was a significant transaction for the company as it crystallised value from part of its Retirement Solutions portfolio while retaining long-term fee income. Grainger secured a long-term agreement with Clifden to carry out asset and property management of the portfolio for an extra fee income of at least £0.6m per year."The sale, which is aligned to our current strategy, demonstrates the growing appetite among investors for assets in all segments of the residential property sector," said Cunningham. He said the sale proceeds will allow the company to capitalise on "attractive, value-accretive" investment opportunities that it identifies. "The residential market, supported by recent Government initiatives, is currently showing strong dynamics, which we believe offer the potential for specialists, such as Grainger, to generate excellent returns on behalf of our shareholders and partners."OH