Business Homes South - Offices Sale - Elstree, Centennial Business Park

Date: 23 Jun 2008

Business Homes South has underlined the resilience of the small business sector, by signing three deals in swift time, at its Centennial Business Park in Elstree.

Regional director, James Weedon, says that two of the now completed buildings have been sold, to Pantrade and Passion Sports, and that a first floor unit is under offer to IT consultancy business 1CL.

All the deals were negotiated before the business park reached completion and Weedon also reports strong interest in another three units.

Centennial, a joint venture between Business Homes and SEGRO, is the only freehold office scheme in the area.

Weedon believes the availability of high-quality office space has given firms the confidence to defy the uncertainty caused by the credit crunch.

"We're experiencing high demand from companies based across Hertfordshire, who feel the time is right to upgrade the quality of their property. It seems companies are prepared to take the medium-to-long view", he said.

Business Homes units are available on either a freehold or leasehold basis, making purchasing premises in the future a very real option for SME's like 1CL.

Michael Schogger, managing director at 1CL, said: "We were attracted to the Elstree business park for a number of reasons, not least the fact that the excellent location and superb road links mean swifter response times for our clients.

"The entire package, which includes tailored telecoms and 24 hour security as standard, has meant that our relocation has been a streamlined process, breeding consumer confidence in the mainstay of our business."

Weedon says many business owners across Business Homes schemes see their offices as long-term investments, and are placing them into the property element of a Self-Invested Personal Pension Scheme (SIPP).

"We have developments at Luton, Stevenage, Elstree, Winnersh, Wokingham, Stokenchurch, Crawley, Bracknell and Southampton, of which close to 60 per cent are now sold, or under offer," he said.