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According
to 2005 Valuation Office data, the stock of Warehouse units
of 100,000 ft2 and over in England and Wales
totalled around 362 million ft2. Of this, approximately
191 million ft2, representing 53%, was built
more than 20 years ago and many of these units do not meet
current occupier requirements.
At
the end of December 2007 there was around 21.7million ft2
either under construction or immediately available in new
completed units of 100,000 ft2 or over, representing
under 6% of total supply.
Average
annual take up over the past 10 years (1998 - 2007) for
units over 100,000 ft2 has been 12.4 million
ft2 p.a. However, total take-up in 2007 was 13.4
million ft2. This strengthening tenant demand
has been fuelled by business growth, companies’ desire
to improve their logistics and supply chain management,
and recent legislation such as the Working Time Directive,
which has forced some tenants to review their location and
size requirements.
Sector
Characteristics
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Average
size take-up over the past 3 years (2005 - 2007) was
301,000 ft2 |
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IPD
weighting to distribution warehouse is 2.9%, implying
high specific risk for most funds |
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Distribution
warehouse sector has historically been less volatile
than other property sectors |
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