Property market out of flavour...but 4.25 to 1.25 that is an over reaction surely!

Lancaster Gate - dubbed the Lancasters is one of their projects in London. Are property prices falling in London...

From The Sunday Times
February 17, 2008
Super-rich snap up apartments in world's most expensive residential scheme

RECESSION, what recession? The super-rich are snapping up apartments at the world's most expensive residential scheme at Londons One Hyde Park as if they were going out of fashion.

According to data released exclusively to The Sunday Times, half of the 80 apartments at the luxury scheme designed by Richard Rogers have already been contracted to be sold even though the project will not be completed until 2010. Knight Frank, one of the estate agents handling the Knightsbridge development, said sales already totalled more than 500m and the average apartment price had reached 20m.

Wealthy oil barons, Russian oligarchs and hedge-fund managers are shelling out at prices that break down to almost 6,000 per square foot for the chance to own one of the apartments. That figure is up from 4,000 per square foot in late 2006.

The sales reflect Londons status as a global city, with 39% of the buyers hailing from Russia, 25% from the Middle East, 14% from Britain and 11% from continental Europe. The highest price paid for an apartment at the scheme is rumoured to be more than 100m. The interiors are the work of Candy & Candy, the interior design company run by Nick and Christian Candy, two brothers in their early thirties who have become multi-millionaires by creating fantasy homes for people with limitless budgets.

The site will have an underground passage to the nearby Mandarin Oriental hotel, where staff will be on hand to cater to residents needs.

CPC, the Guernsey-based investment company owned by Christian Candy, has an equity stake of more than a third in One Hyde Park. The scheme is also backed by Sheikh Hamad bin Jasim Jaber al-Thani, foreign minister of the Gulf state of Qatar.

Liam Bailey, head of residential research at Knight Frank, said sales of so-called super-prime homes in London worth 10m or above had more than doubled in the three months to the end of January compared with the same period last year.

He said: It is quite extraordinary the way the super-prime market has continued to surge ahead. Sales of homes worth 1m-5m have slowed, but once you get above 5m, and certainly above 10m, they are still powering ahead.

BDEV, RDW & PSN all up nearly 15%...mnr only 5%...should catch up...enjoy the ride :-)

:-)

Whats going on........................

Ok i know that Investors chronicle gave a sell rating, but I also read tht Aberdeen Asset Mgnt went long on 25m shares or 15% using CFDs.

1. KEY INFORMATION

Name of person dealing (Note 1) Aberdeen Asset
Management PLC
Company dealt in Minerva PLC
Class of relevant security to which the dealings being Ord GBP0.25
disclosed relate (Note 2)
Date of dealing 04/09/2008

2. INTERESTS, SHORT POSITIONS AND RIGHTS TO SUBSCRIBE

(a) Interests and short positions (following dealing) in the class of relevant security dealt in (Note 3)

Long Short
Number (%) Number (%)
(1) Relevant securities 25,445,605 15.79
(2) Derivatives (other than options)
(3) Options and agreements to purchase/sell
Total 25,445,605 15.79

So how come the price broke so low, anyone with any ideas???????

It's running out of cash

Looks like Minerva will stumble further as Limitless World has withdrawn its offer for Minerva.

Look at the IMS released today, extremely positive, back up to 50p IMHO.

recent bid that didn't go through was at 160p...look how much these are discounted now!

Now that the uncertainty around our ownership following the ending of discussions with Limitless LLC has been resolved, we are advancing discussions with potential investors regarding a joint venture for the Park Place development in Croydon. Once a partner has been chosen, we will apply for revised planning which we believe will satisfy the prospective anchor tenant.

I would not get excited about a a joint venture in only one development
As far as I can see there is no bid for the entire Company

this will rocket again like yesterday IMHO

still expect this to be at least 20p next week after they mull over the recent news over the weekend

After Minerva hit an all-time low of 9.53p on Wednesday, the property developer bounced back with a near-60pc surge at one point. The company announced that it was in advanced talks with potential partners on one of its key London development projects, Park Place, in Croydon. Other projects, in London's financial district, were on time and on budget, Minerva added. The company, up 1.97 at 11p, was last year trading at 423p and was recently the subject of a 160p-a-share bid proposal from Dubai property group Limitless.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/markets/marketreport/3454930/ICAP-takes-hit-from-revenue-growth-fears.html

Bouncing back from a brutal Merrill Lynch downgrade, London commercial property developer Minerva advanced to 15p before encountering profit-taking to finish 2p better at 11p.

The company said it has received an approach from an investor interested in taking a stake in its Park Place development in Croydon. Other projects at Lancaster Gate, and The Walbrook and St Botolphs in the City of London are on time and on budget.

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/tips-and-tactics/article.html?in_article_id=457129&in_page_id=23&position=moretopstories

Minerva is an old stock of mine I would like to see it get back on track, but Commercial property IMHO is the next to suffer big time as Companies reduce their workforce and look to downsizing

but at this current SP more than doom and gloom has been factored in IMHO, it was as though they were going bust, which is not the case after reading the IMS, so these are now seriously undervalued, anyway a great opportunity for a company to try and snap them up on the cheap for less than a pound a share, with recent bid being 160p!

I certainly don't see this financial crisis as the end of minerva, this has been brutally oversold. Expect more rocket rises as things become clearer.

pls post any news articles on here that you come across

doing well again today, with alot more rises to come from this low SP IMHO

Something not right here 2 days big rise on SP on a maybe an investor will put a few quid into one project. If the Company was being bought I would accept these rises.

Get ready for a sell of and SP to go back down. I would cash in now if I still had stock.

I disagree, if the company was being bought we would be looking at least 200%+ rises, the recent rise was because the IMS was comforting in contrast to the doom & gloom that was pounding the Minerva SP, so therefore providing a great buying opportunity from this low SP

keep this on your stockwatch list

watch this rocket when it breaksthrough 15p