Max Prop Share Discussion Threads

[cambium] 06/8/2009 19:52

Max Property will acquire 86 properties with more than 800 tenants from Ernst & Young, the receivers for the Industrious Group, a fund managed by privately-owned Dunedin Property which collapsed last year.

Mr Leslau raised £211m, net of expenses, through Max's listing in May, designed to target a market that has endured a 45pc correction in values.

The shares, floated at 100p, rose 6 to 122p on Wednesday.

Mr Leslau brought in an experienced management team, including Mike Brown from Mike Slade's Helical Bar and Aubrey Adams, the former boss of estate agency Savills, as chairman.

Max is advised by Mr Leslau's private vehicle Prestbury Investments, which will collect an annual fee of at least £625,000 a quarter.

The Industrious portfolio deal will be backed by a £128.3m five-year facility with the european bank Eurohypo.

The properties are, by value, 46pc in London and the South East, with a rental income of around £22.7m after empty rates and costs.

Max said it believes the fully-let rental value is £32.5m.

Mr Adams said the portfolio had suffered from under investment because of the receivership. "We must focus firstly on stabilising rents and then increasing them in the medium term," he added.

[cambium] 06/8/2009 18:48

Max Property is attempting to make its first acquisition since flotation in May having entered talks to buy a £270m portfolio of industrial properties.

The Aim-listed property company, which became the largest initial public offering in the UK this year after raising £220m, is in negotiations to acquire the 10m sq ft Industrious portfolio of properties out of receivership.

Max Property's investments will be closely scrutinised by the property industry for a reading on the value of distressed real estate.

The company was set up to make opportunistic purchases by two respected property investors: Nick Leslau, the millionaire entrepreneur, and Mike Brown, the former investment head at Helical Bar.

The Industrious portfolio comprises 120 properties. It was valued at more than £530m when it was put into receivership last year, but has subsequently fallen sharply in value.

The debt behind the properties was securitised by Royal Bank of Scotland and analysts expect only the senior bondholders to see returns.

If completed, an Industrious deal would be the first time that a solution has been found for the billions of distressed securitised debt. Many such loans are heading for default owing to breaches of loan-to-value covenants.

The process has been complicated by Ernst & Young, the administrators, which intends to sell some properties through auction next month, which Max needs to pre-empt.

Max Property declined to comment.

Ernst & Young would only say: "There has been interest expressed by a number of parties. We are not in exclusive talks and are proceeding with the auction."

Meanwhile Valad, the Australian property company, has transferred the majority of its UK and European properties into a £1.1bn vehicle half owned by its lender, Bank of Scotland, now part of Lloyds Banking.

With Valad at risk of a breach of covenants, the deal will be seen by the market as a sign that banks are being creative in dealing with problematic loans.

Valad will provide asset management and any profit will pay down debt.

[cambium] 06/8/2009 18:43

Max Property started at Oriel with buy rating.

[meshiey] 31/5/2009 20:45

already effectively paying 25% more than the current market value of each property due to rise in share price - may just wait and pile in later..........

[skyship] 22/5/2009 11:33

Hmmm - 125p versus 100p placing price does seem a bit rich.

It's all a case of whether one prefers to play the bidder (LSP, MAX, SGRO) or the biddee. Personally I prefer the latter. Took a nice turn out of BXTN today; but my favourite current play is TAP @ 21p, providing a 55% NAV discount - everything very well explained on the TAP & CP+ threads.

[olivercromwell] 21/5/2009 15:07

just flagged this on CR's thread. Christ how i wish i had some real dosh now.

reckon this is real goer

[cambium] 21/5/2009 15:04

cheers adreabar

[andrbea] 21/5/2009 11:39

Fri 15 May 2009

LONDON (SHARECAST) - Max Property, a property investment company, is due to start trading on AIM next week after reportedly raising £200m with ease.

The new firm, backed by entrepreneur Nick Leslau and hedge fund Och-Ziff is set to start conditional trading on 21 May.

It had wanted funds of between £150m and £200m, but talk is the fundraising is already fully covered and subject to scaling back. The order book is due to close Friday.

"Difficult conditions in the UK property market present a compelling investment opportunity for those with sector experience and an in-depth understanding of long term supply and demand issues," said Aubrey Adams, ex-boss at property group Savills and due to become chairman at Max.

The management team's Prestbury Investments business will invest £25m and affiliated funds of Och Ziff Capital Management £35m.

Its aims to exploit current weakness of the UK real estate market through opportunist acquisition, active asset management and "judicious use of non-recourse borrowings".

The float, one of the biggest so far this year, is seen as a sign that valuations are fast approaching the bottom of the cycle.

[silly doris] 13/7/2007 12:05

A new thread to share storys about two serial Rampers. ( Uncensored)