I'd like to bring your attention to this article from the Times Online Feb 20th.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/leisure/article1409272.ece

'From The TimesFebruary 20, 2007

Super-flats for 26m will offer rooms with a view

The new owners of the former Thistle hotel at Lancaster Gate in West London have submitted plans to transform the site into 80 super-apartments overlooking Hyde Park with prices of up to 26 million, The Times has learnt.

City bankers are understood to have made informal approaches to buy several of the smaller flats off-plan for between 3 million and 4 million. That would be record pricing per square foot for Bayswater housing in an area close to Tony Blairs multimillion-pound buy-to-let house.

Minerva, the London-based property developer, bought the site last summer for 67.2 million with planning permission in place to convert the interior of the historic Victorian hotel into 124 apartments and add underground parking.

New plans submitted to Westminster Council include a request to reduce the number of apartments to 80, with the largest on the top floors covering about 8,000sq ft (745sq m), property sources said. The plans include a pool under the private front garden, which spans 120m of Bayswater Road, and grandiose reception rooms with 15ft ceilings.

Minerva teamed up with Northacre, the specialist upmarket flatbuilder, to buy the Lancaster Gate site. Sources said that Minerva had expected a price of 1,200 to 1,300 a square foot when it completed the purchase of the site last July after six months of negotiations. The prices for so-called prime homes in the area have shot up about one third since July, according to independent valuations from the agency Knight Frank, to about 1,500 a square foot.

Minerva and Northacre, which has a 5 per cent equity stake in the venture, expect to hold on to a substantial number of the top-priced flats until the site is finished late in 2009. By then property prices there should have doubled.

One Hyde Park, a Candy & Candy-designed scheme for 86 super-flats on the south side of Hyde Park, has achieved the highest price yet for residential property. Contracts have been exchanged off-plan on a batch priced at 4,200 a square foot, valuing the top four penthouses at 84 million each, The Times reported this month.

Stephan Miles-Brown, the head of residential development at Knight Frank, said of the Lancaster Gate scheme: If the market continues at this rate, then 25 per cent annual compound growth is a distinct possibility and 3,000 per square foot easily achievable. Northacre was doing Candy & Candy design before the Candy brothers entered the scene.

A Minerva spokesman said: We are excited about the scheme . . . but details have yet to be finalised. We are excited about a project which we believe will be a success for the development partners and the community.

Doubling up

Minervas development of the old Thistle Hotel on Lancaster Gate dubbed the Lancasters could land the company and its partner Northacre hundreds of millions of pounds in profits.


- The total cost of the site including debt finance is about 200 million

- New plans envisage up to 200,000 sq ft of residential property which if sold at an average of 2,000 per square foot could mean a site with a built value of about 400 million

- Minerva and partner Northgate are expected to start to presell about half of the flats from this autumn to start to cover their costs

- There is the tricky issue of obtaining revised planning permission. Minerva and Northacre are understood to have lodged a request with Westminster council to pay extra to have the option of building some of the affordable housing segment elsewhere

- Minerva will need to buy a site to build those houses. Westminster could demand a levy to build more affordable homes than the ten extra units set aside for a 125 unit scheme. Minerva would gain from having more high value homes on the old Lancaster Gate site'

The shares are on the move up since yesterday, and there is a good change that the high intraday of 46.50p end of February could be broken very soon.

I selected the shares yesterday at 32.50p to go higher this week on the "UPS" thread

There was plenty of live on the shares late on Friday, most likely a follow through tomorrow

link to market plus trades

Very good charting for a BREAKOUT

Slowly moving up as a few buying trades are showing on the ticker

Is now 41 / 45p an Intrady higher than last week 40 / 45p

46p +5.50p

It had an intraday high of 54.50p, with some profit taking at the end of the day.

Has managed a much higher BREAKOUT today on going over 143p, is now 146.50p

120.50p ( 118 / 123p )

Buying is back yesterday and today after the retracement and Indicators are now ready for a move higher

First move up for some time, it was expected yesterday after the high volume
Two MMs have move the price higher on the Level 2

124.50p +3.50p

is now getting into gear after the other day high volume buying and MMs keeping the price down

132.50p +11.50p

Northacre reports good progress at The Lancasters

Northacre reports good progress in both construction and sales at The Lancasters apartments overlooking London's Hyde Park.

Northacre said further sales had been secured at improved values since its last announcement in November and now stand at almost 60% of the total area.

First phase completion remains on course for spring with overall completion of the development in summer.

Northacre also said good progress continues to be made with its new partners, Kokomo Beach PTE Ltd, for the development of The Vicarage - a prime residential scheme.

Northacre talks are being held with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea for an improved design scheme and the firm anticipates a favourable outcome to these discussions and to start construction before the end of the year.

Northacre also said its interior design subsidiary, Intarya, continues to grow its market share both in the UK and abroad.

One trick pony though isnt it?.

you may need glasses I see a >>>>> three trick pony

contruction
selling
decorating

No wasnt meaning that cielo, I was meaning wheres the next project coming from?, I know they have a tie up with a big backer but nothing so far has been announced has it?.

You also have to take into account with this company time from development find to end of construction and revenues ie, a P/E on an annual basis is worthless, you should multiply it by years to end game. For exampkle this present scheme started in 2006 finish late 2011? therefore multiply P/E by 5 and it doesnt then look so cheap. Of course you can use a NAV method of valuation but theitr again it gives a false performance.

Good luck on your investment cielo.

cheers GF.

ready to move higher?

After the recent falls, the first move up today as buyers are starting to nible at this low prices. Big profit is expectd with the results soon. Indicators at oversold and ready to move up

15 minutes delay

Problem is havent sold one Flat in last 18 months . Not one at all last year according to the bulls over the road.

And at least 2 years before any final payment is made.

Money tied up, waste of time.

Results soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Might get the companys financial results sure, loss making but not the sale of the outstanding flats that have been STANDING empty nigh on 20 months.

By the way nice try Master Rsi. hope you dont try to con the folks here like you do over the road.

youl be found out.