Real Estate Investors, which owns a portfolio of property in the Midlands, collected 95% of rent in 2020, including agreed deferred payments.
For the first quarter of this year it has collected close to 90%, including deferred payments.
Portfolio update
The group said occupancy on its 53-asset strong portfolio was 91.6% at 31 December 2020 (Dec 2019: 96.3%). The reduction, it said, was entirely due to known lease expiries in its office portfolio. Space is under offer to the NHS, Co-op and the Department for Work and Pensions.
In 2020, the group completed 34 new lettings or lease renewals, which improved its weighted average unexpired lease term (WAULT) to 4.8 years (Dec 2019 : 3.8 years).
Paul Bassi, chief executive, said:
“The diversity of our portfolio and intensive asset management, has resulted in resilient levels of rent collection, and has allowed us to combat much of the impact of COVID-19, which has devastated many other businesses.”
“With a growing occupier demand resulting in new/pipeline lettings for our void space, combined with portfolio lease renewals, we believe that we will move forward with a stable and secure property business, to make opportunistic sales and acquisitions that support a continued progressive dividend policy.”
RLE : Real Estate Investors receives 95% of rent for 2020