Yorkshire's industrial property market set for strong 2017, according to Knight Frank

The industrial property market in Yorkshire is expected to remain strong throughout 2017, according to property consultancy Knight Frank.

Rebecca Schofield, partner with Knight Frank commented: “The key themes to take from the industrial sector in the region at the beginning of 2017 are that we are seeing speculative development of small-to-medium sized units making a much needed return to the market and we are starting to see continued rental growth and confidence within the market, which augurs well for the future.

“Throughout the industrial market, construction costs have acted as a brake on smaller speculative development over recent years. Occupier demand remains strong amid the shortage of units and we have seen grant and local authority support assist with delivering much-needed stock to the market.

She added: “Overall, the industrial occupational market in Yorkshire has continued to perform well.”

In South Yorkshire, there is only one unit left at both Doncaster’s Bullrush Grove and Sheffield’s Vantage Park sites, with the remainder fully let. At R-Evolution Gateway 36, J37 M1, there has been an increase in interest and take up.

Rebecca explained: “The Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) is also continuing to flourish. We have let units at the AMP to Eriks and to SBD Apparel at £7.25 per sq ft respectively.

“The AMP is focusing on advanced manufacturing and the R&D sector and the success of the park is attracting other like-minded occupiers.

“Harworth are on site with phase 2 R-Evolution @ the AMP totalling 52,000 sq ft across six units which are due for complation March 2017 and we are witnessing good levels of interest,Verdion have speculatively built two units at its iPort development, Doncaster – both are now let and they are currently on site with a further 195,000 sq ft

“Other key development sites in South Yorkshire to keep an eye on include Sheffield’s Smithy Wood Business Park, which has 29 acres which can accommodate occupiers’ specific requirements on a design and build basis available for sale or to let, with prices dependent upon specification.”

“And at Doncaster Distribution Park, J4 M18, the site is able to cater for larger distribution requirements of 100,000 – 1,000,000 sq ft for sale or to let and land sales are also a consideration,” she added.

As for West Yorkshire, Iain McPhail, partner in the Leeds office, said: “Current market conditions have led to renewed speculative development in West Yorkshire.

“For example, on the back of the recent success of Connex 45, Wilton Developments are speculatively developing their next scheme in the Leeds City Region Enterprise Zone branded Kinetic 45, comprising a single 60,000 sq ft unit and a 23,000 sq ft semi-detached unit consisting of 11,000 sq ft and 12,000 sq ft.

“Demand for the ‘big box’ market on the whole continues to derive from the third party logistics, internet retailer and parcel carrier sectors, whilst there is a mix of distribution and manufacturing requirements for the mid-size range of available units.

“Following the recent letting of Wakefield Eurohub, there remains only a handful of properties above 100,000 sq ft in the region. Knight Frank are marketing two such properties, located off Junction 31 of the M62: Gilcar 31 which is a 111,600 sq ft modern warehouse with a large yard and Normanton 108 which is a 108,000 sq ft warehouse which is currently undergoing major refurbishment works.

“Notably there remain no existing ‘grade A’ warehouses in West Yorkshire currently available above 200,000 sq ft,” said Mr McPhail.

Finally, in West Yorkshire, the development sites within the Leeds City Region Enterprise Zone in the Aire Valley are well-placed to accommodate demand, such as Muse Developments’ Logic Leeds, which is a 110-acre industrial and manufacturing scheme located just off Junction 45 of the M1 which can accommodate requirements from 30,000 sq ft to over 500,000 sq ft and has recently attracted occupiers such as Amazon and John Lewis.

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