A plethora of real estate companies have posted encouraging rent collection figures for the current quarter (payment day for which is typically on or around 29 September).
Here we have rounded up the announcements.
Urban Logistics REIT
Urban Logistics REIT announced it had collected 99% of rent due for the quarter to December, with the remaining 1% expected to be collected “imminently”. The company has previously announced strong cash collections in the second quarter of the year (March pay day) and third quarter (June pay day) where 100% of rents due were collected.
Landlords in the industrial and logistics sector have seen better collection rates than other property sectors due to the ongoing structural shift in consumer spending to online retailing. Nevertheless, Urban Logistics REIT’s collection levels over the pandemic period are impressive and the company puts it down to its “proactive approach to strong covenants and intentional bias towards the supply of essential products and consumer goods”.
Ediston Property Investment Company
The company said, as at 7 October, 87% of the rent due by 1 October for the fourth quarter had been collected across the portfolio. This compares to 69% paid at the same point in quarter two (March pay day) and 74% in quarter three (June pay day). The group said that if the tenants who paid their rent monthly in October continue to do so for November and December, it will receive 93% of the rent due for quarter four, rising to 95% once rent deferment and repayment plans are factored in.
Ediston also updated on the third quarter rent collection, where 91% of the rent due for the quarter had now been collected. Ediston has a large portfolio of retail parks, where retailers have been less affected than in high street or shopping centre locations due to the out-of-town/edge of town location, store size and generally lower rents.
NewRiver REIT
The company, which owns a mixture of shopping centres, retail parks and pubs, said the rent collection rate for the current quarter (October to December) had improved over previous quarters. Rent that has either been collected or had alternative payments agreed for the quarter is 66%. This was 72% ahead of where it was at the same stage after payment day in the previous quarter.
For the second quarter of the year, the group has now received 69% of rent, with 9% deferred, 7% waived in return for a lease re-gear, 4% waived outright and 11% still outstanding.
For the third quarter, it has received 71% of rent, agreed deferments on 6% and re-geared 7%. It has written off 1% and 15% is still outstanding.
CLS Holdings
The group, which owns offices in the UK, France and Germany, said it had collected 89% of rents due for this quarter, rising to 92% for tenants that it has agreed can pay monthly. This compares to a normal rent collection figure at this time last year (7 October) of 94%.
For the third quarter of 2020, CLS said it had now collected 98% of rents due (2019: 99%), and overall for the first three quarters of 2020, it has received 99% of contractual rents due (2019: 98%).
Secure Income REIT
Secure Income REIT said it has collected 100% of the £12.4m of rent that fell due between 29 September 2020 and today, after allowing for the rent adjustments agreed with Merlin and Travelodge.
The rent adjustments agreed with tenants as a result of the pandemic are as follows:
Rent reduction
● Following the Travelodge CVA, rents have been reduced in 2020 and 2021 after which rents return to the levels originally contracted for the period from 1 January 2022. Travelodge rents of £1.3m in aggregate were received when due on 1 and 7 October. There are no arrears outstanding from Travelodge from any prior period.
Rent deferral
● Rents due in respect of the Merlin leisure assets for the June and September 2020 quarters have been deferred for collection in September 2021 therefore no rents are due from Merlin for the current quarter.
Monthly rents
● Of the £12.4m of rents due for collection between 29 September and 7 October, 92% were quarterly rents and the balance was monthly rents, including the Stonegate rents, which have always been receivable monthly and where the rent concession period granted in exchange for lease extensions ended on 1 October.
Outside these concessions, just 0.1% of the annualised gross rent roll is outstanding in total for any current and prior rent due dates.
SHED : EPIC : NRR : CLI : SIR : Real estate companies report growing rent collection figures