NewRiver Retail buys shopping centre portfolio for £19m

Shopping centre investor NewRiver Retail is buying a retail portfolio including a mall in north-west England for £19m.

NewRiver said it has completed contracts to buy the Sands Portfolio, which includes the £14m Arndale shopping centre in Morecambe and five UK high street assets, resulting in a net initial yield of just under 9.75%.

NewRiver has completed the acquisition of the portfolio, which comprises 141,000 sq ft and benefits from a high occupancy of 95%, using existing cash resources.

Individually, the assets were last traded between 2005 and 2007 for a combined total of £40m and the sale to NewRiver at £19m is as a result of a distressed debt situation.