What: One of the most significant real estate owner in the UK reported its 2020 results

Why it is important:  In spite of having suffered a net profit decrease of -21.9%  in 2020 compared to 2019, recovery is not yet in sight and things might get worse in terms of retail occupancy.

Retail landlords such as The Crown Estate (a significant player  owning top notch properties in the centre of London) are expecting the crisis to get worse, even though the number of empty location has already doubled since the start of the pandemic, and difficulties to retrieve rents (cash collection is at 81%).The Crown Estate saw its net revenue profit decrease by GBP 75.7m in 2020 compared to 2019, to GBP 269.3m (-21.9%).

London has been particularly hit, with Regent Street footfall down -75% compared to the previous year, for instance, leading to a decrease of the London portfolio value from GBP 8.4 bn to 7.7b, with 8.2% unoccupancy rate (from 4.7% pre-pandemic).

The Crown Estate CEO mentioned to Bloomberg that they expected the situation to worsen even further, leading him to start considering sales and conversion projects.

London Retail Situation The Crown Estate announces £269.3 million net revenue profit for 2020-2021