The star lot of the day was a retail unit on Chesterton Road, Cambridge (pictured) which sold for £484,000, for almost 50 per cent over its guide price of £325,000. Needing full refurbishment, the property included two retail spaces, an office, a storage room and a one-bedroom flat on the first floor.
A former Methodist Chapel in Exning, near Newmarket which had a total internal area of 2,209 sq ft and came with planning for change of use into residential made £342,000, over its guide price of £325,000. Another key investment opportunity was School House, the former caretaker’s home at Sudbury Middle School. This needed refurbishment and came with a plot of 0.187 acres and was sold for £246,000, 23 per cent over its £200,000 guide price.
The highest value lot was a 12.96 acre landfill site in Godmanchester which had full planning for reinstatement into a mineral extraction site. This made £600,000 after competitive bidding from a number of parties. Such opportunities are very rare, and accordingly the land generated a significant amount of enquiries pre-auction from a variety of buyers across the country.
Ian Kitson, Associate, Cheffins, comments: “Bricks and mortar lots were certainly the order of the day at our September auction and we saw some competitive bidding for the best redevelopment and commercial opportunities, which is yet more evidence of the desirability of Cambridge and its surrounds for investment. The results also reinforced the desirability for refurbishment opportunities and income-producing properties throughout the region, as ever-increasing numbers of buyers and investors seek alternatives to stocks and shares. A cocktail of a growing population, a severe housing shortage and the arrival of some of the world’s largest corporations in the eastern region has resulted in certain opportunities selling for way over guide prices.
"While post-Brexit ramifications haven’t affected the retail and residential market locally, it appears that the demand for agricultural land has slowed a little and some of these lots didn’t attract the interest which has been seen at previous sales, with prices a little lower than their peak of 2015. Uncertainty around the future for farming subsidies and UK agriculture will undoubtedly have had a knock-on effect on the desirability of arable land parcels, however we expect this to be short-lived as the new agricultural policy begins to take shape and expectations are realigned.”
Strategic and garden land also sold well on the day. A strategic site of just over two acres, close to Wisbech which is part of the draft local plan and has draft allocation for a development of at least ten houses sold for £190,000. Similarly, 0.7 acres of garden land just outside of Warboy village sold for £85,000, off of its guide price of £80,000.
Last year, Cheffins had a record-breaking twelve months with £13m worth of sales throughout the year.
Cheffins next sale is the 7th December 2016, for more information please visit www.cheffins.co.uk
For further media information, please contact Sophie Richardson, PR Manager, Cheffins, t: 01223 271290, www.cheffins.co.uk
Cheffins is Cambridgeshire’s leading firm of surveyors, valuers, property advisers and auctioneers. Established in 1825, the firm has six regional offices in Cambridge: Ely; Haverhill; Newmarket; Saffron Walden and Sutton as well as a presence in London. Cheffins’ professional services include residential sales; residential lettings; fine art auctions; commercial property; agriculture and rural business services; vintage and classic auctions; planning and development; property auctions and tractor and plant machinery.
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