RivingtonHark completes Romford shopping centre buy

Asset manager RivingtonHark has completed its acquisition of the 790,000 sq ft Liberty Shopping Centre in Romford, east London, on behalf of funds that it manages, for circa £80m. The 13-acre freehold property has a capital value of around £105-£110 per sq ft. The mall was previously managed by Global Mutual. RivingtonHark highlighted “significant potential” to improve and rejuvenate the town centre, with the scheme attracting more than 17m people annually. This will involve better connectivity to residential areas, improvements to public areas and the opportunity to expand the town centre’s existing mixed-use offer. The asset manager said the acquisition underscored its strategy of focusing on urban assets where the “underlying fundamentals are sound but where there is an opportunity to improve and enhance across a range of metrics”, including environmental and social sustainability credentials. RivingtonHark was advised by Time Retail Partners and Montagu Evans, which will take on the property management. CBRE represented the vendors. Check out lettings comparables for the Romford retail market >> To send feedback, e-mail pui-guan.man@eg.co.uk or tweet @PuiGuanM or @EGPropertyNews