UK: Union Hanover Securities has acquired 100 apartments from house builder Barratt London at its Great West Quarter (GWQ) scheme in Brentford.
The purchase will result in the first extended-stay Urban Villa hotel opening in November.
The apartments were acquired on a 999-year lease and are in the landmark 25-storey tower on the 12.5 acre GWQ mixed-use scheme, which includes 800 homes, retail, restaurants, offices and a Novotel Hotel.
Hospitality director and Urban Villa co-founder Andrew Fowler said: “GWQ is in an excellent location on the West End – Heathrow corridor, also known as the Golden Mile, which is adjacent to a number of major corporate headquarters such as Glaxo, Sky, JC Decaux, Worley Parsons, EMC and Sega. The area is currently under supplied in quality accommodation, particularly in terms of extended stay and corporate housing. And supply doesn’t appear to be going to increase any time in the near future.”
Managing director of Union Hanover and Urban Villa co-founder Eric Jafari said: “The Tower at GWQ was an obvious acquisition for us. It fits well with our growth strategy for the Urban Villa brand in London. GWQ will be the first of six UK Urban Villa all-suite hotels that we will deliver in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, London and Portsmouth over the next two years. October of this year also sees the launch of our first London HOAX Hotel/Hostel at Waterloo, so this will be a busy but exciting time for us.”
JLL Hotels & Hospitality team advised Barratt London on the transaction.
Click here to read a feature on the potential synergies between the serviced apartment and housebuilding sectors.
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