Welcome
to possibly the only website all about investing in shop
property in England and Wales.
I am Michael Lever, The Rent Review Specialist and, as you
can see from the left-hand column, I'm an established
commercial property surveyor specialising in rent reviews
and business tenancy advice for landlords and retailers in
England and Wales. You can find out more by visiting my
main website, www.michaellever.co.uk
I delight in helping to educate and sharing knowledge and
over the years I have written numerous booklets, pamphlets
and guides about shop property, retailing, rent reviews and
business tenancies; and my newsletter Current Review is
still going strong after more than 25 years.
In July 1984, reprinted February 1988, I wrote a booklet
entitled "Investment in Secondary Shops", in which I said:
"growth in demand for secondary shop investments during
recent years reflects both the increase in funds for direct
property investment and a preference for investment in
retail premises. The creation and management of a balanced
portfolio is available to institutional buyers having a
continuing investment requirement, but investors in
secondary property receive little or no specific advice on
acquisition appraisal, despite the secondary sector being a
dominant constituent in the investment property
market." In June 1988 in my booklet "How to Read an
Auction Catalogue" I said: "an auction catalogue is about
SELLING property. Most auction catalogues are set out in a
similar way and are very appealing to 'armchair' investors:
glossy information at the front, small print at the back.
Buyers are helped to feel 'at home'. In this
secure atmosphere, investors are more easily fooled. Not,
however, by the auctioneers or the vendors, but by the form
of self-deception, caused by the investor’s expectations
not being fulfilled by reality. Auction catalogues excel in
the art of building up expectations. You may believe that
investors who get carried away by ‘auction fever’ only have
themselves to blame if they pay over the odds. But anyone,
with the resources to bid, gets a dose of the virus the
minute they open the catalogue. Auctioneers act for
vendors. Buyers are on their own, all the way!"
It is now 2010, true, there is more information available
and auction catalogues contain more information and, yes,
investors are more clued-up, but much of the information is
superficial and cunningly presented which can lead to
forming the wrong impression and conclusion, and
by-and-large private investors are still left to fend for
themselves.
Shop Investment is designed to be read like a book. To
begin with, please click
Contents
and start with the Introduction.
Whether investing in shop property is new to you, or you
have years of experience, I hope you will find the
information and guidance useful.
I look forward to helping you in some way.
Michael Lever
PS -
Use of this site assumes you have read the
Disclaimer,
so please do.
NB - This site is still in the course of preparation and I
am adding content whenever I have time. I envisage
completing by the end of July 2010. After that, the site
will be updated at regular intervals