Citivale seals £50m joint venture with Lumina

The move will enable the pair to acquire industrial properties across the UK.

The collaboration, known as LC Industrial, involves an initial investment target of £50m, focusing on multi-let industrial estates up to £10m each. Acquisitions will be all-cash deals with any gearing post-completion.

Its first deal was the acquisition of a 110,000 sq ft industrial building in South Elmsall, near Wakefield, which was bought for £4.05m.

A second deal, involving a high-profile enterprise park in the north of England, is under offer for circa £10m.

James Armstrong, investment director at Lumina, said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Citivale through our LREC Special Situations Fund II. We will be looking to build up the portfolio fairly swiftly, leveraging Citivale’s specialist knowledge and extensive regional network to identify industrial assets which will outperform.”

James Appleton-Metcalfe, the managing director of Leeds-based Citivale added that the newly-created platform was “looking to capitalise on the strong growth in the UK regional economy by buying secondary assets and repositioning them through comprehensive refurbishment, re-gearing leases and minimising voids.”

He said: “We have a strong pipeline of deals already, including a number of off-market transactions.”

The property fund manager who formed Citivale in 2010, added: “These are exciting times for Citivale. We have just broken through the £100m barrier with our portfolio of property under management, which is a significant milestone. We are looking to be fully invested in LC Industrial by spring next year.”

Lumina Real Estate Capital is a real estate investor and advisory company based in London, investing on behalf of institutions, high net worth individuals and family offices.