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Langham Estate

Langham Estate
Company typePrivate limited company by shares
IndustryReal estate management
Founded9 December 1993
Headquarters
London
,
UK
Area served
13.8 acres
Key people
Ahsan Ellahi
OwnerSamuel Tak Lee
ParentMount Eden Land Limited (Guernsey)

The Langham Estate is a property estate in Fitzrovia, London, and is owned by the Mount Eden Land Limited (Guernsey). The company controls 14 acres of real estate in central London. A third of its property portfolio was sold in 2024.

Background

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Great Portland Street as seen in the early 1900s

The Langham Estate originates from an entity first established in 1925 to manage a holding of 40 acres of land purchased from the Howard de Walden Estate in central London.[1][2] The properties, acquired for £3m and located in eastern Marylebone,[1][3] then passed through various owners, including Sir John Ellerman's Audley Trust, before being acquired in 1994 by Guernsey-based Mount Eden Land Ltd for £51m.[1][4][5] Under Sir John Ellerman, the holdings covered almost all Great Portland Street, and much of streets alongside it (including Hallam, Bolsover, Margaret and Great Titchfield Streets).[1][6][7] Numerous holdings on Great Portland Street were divested over the years.

The Langham Estate operates in an area noted for its media connections, restaurants, design showrooms and art galleries.[8] The Langham Estate was described in 2017 as being one of London's 16 Great Estates with its footprint of 13.8 acres of central London property.[9][10] Many of the entity's original properties are still held—but now in the form of freehold as their long leases have been sold off.[1]

Samuel Tak Lee of Hong Kong is said to be its owner.[4][11][12] Mr Lee reportedly sought control of Shaftesbury PLC's neighbouring 15-acre estate until his interests in it were sold in June 2020.[13][14][15]

Recent developments

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Great Portland Street is long known for its shops and restaurants

The Fitzrovia real estate market has been undergoing a renewal.[16] The area has witnessed significant increase in rents and rates along with markedly higher occupant turnovers.[17][18] Property values have increased in part due to changes in planning constraints,[19][20] along with the impact of the Cross Rail and Oxford Street projects, which were projected to increase commercial activity in the area.[21][22][23]

The company markets some of its properties under the banners of Noho and/or FitzNovia to describe an area just north of Oxford Street and just west of Regent Street.[24][25] The company website states the company holds a "1.3 million sq feet (29 acre) mixed portfolio of office, showroom, retail, restaurant, bar, residential and storage" properties.[4]

A neighbourhood plan is being developed for Langham Estate's Fitzrovia area. This is being done in consultation with stakeholders, the Langham Estate and other local landlords, businesses and residents.[26][27] The plan focused on improving the local amenity, affordable housing provision, poor broadband data services and air pollution conditions.[28][29][30]

In August 2023, Langham Estate decided to divest itself of a third of its property holdings.[31] These include 27 freehold assets of offices, retail, leisure, educational, medical and residential properties in northern Fitzrovia.[32] These properties were reportedly sold for £350m in January 2024.[33]

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Philip Temple and Colin Thom (2017). "South-East Marylebone: Draft of Volumes 51 and 52" (PDF). Survey of London: South-East Marylebone Volumes 51 and 52. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300221978.
  2. ^ The Howard de Walden Estate is said to have sold 40 acres in East Marylebone in anticipation of high death duty obligations.
  3. ^ The 1925 land acquisition price of £3m is roughly equivalent to £177m in 2018. Source: http://www.in2013dollars.com/1925-GBP-in-2018?amount=3000000 (“Inflation Calculator.” U.S. Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 26 Oct. 2018, https://www.officialdata.org/.)
  4. ^ a b c "Who owns central London?". Who owns England?. 28 October 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  5. ^ HEATHER CONNON (13 December 1993). "Prime portfolio of London property fetches just pounds 51m: Li family buys Langham Estate from Grovewood receivers". The Independent. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  6. ^ "The secretive billionaire". 20 August 2009. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  7. ^ Jenkins, Simon (2012). Landlords to London: The Story of a Capital and Its Growth. Faber & Faber. p. 202. ISBN 978-0-571-29476-3.
  8. ^ "About Fitzrovia London". Fitzrovia Neighbourhood Association. 2 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 July 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  9. ^ Fraser, Isabelle (28 October 2017). "How a handful of historic firms still own swathes of central London". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  10. ^ Kevin Cahill (2002). Who Owns Britain. Canongate Books Ltd. ISBN 9781841953106.
  11. ^ "Revealed Samuel Tak Lee: the secretive tycoon who controls a huge swathe of the West End". Evening Standard. 13 June 2003. p. 19. Archived from the original on 14 July 2017.
  12. ^ Shah, Oliver (16 November 2014). "Hong Kong tycoon sets sights on Chinatown". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  13. ^ "Lee Family Investors" Tender Offer – Shaftesbury PLC – Company Announcement - FT.com". markets.ft.com. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  14. ^ "Time for 'Man of Mystery' Shaftesbury shareholder to put up or shut up". Evening Standard. 29 January 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  15. ^ "Samuel Tak Lee Sells Stake in Shaftesbury for £436M". Mingtiandi. 2 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  16. ^ Nathan Brooker (29 May 2015). "Is London's Fitzrovia ready for the big prime?". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  17. ^ Ramsorrun, Helen. "How Fitzrovia Became a Key Area for Commercial Property Investment". Pearl & Coutts. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  18. ^ "Villandry goes into administration amid reports of £1.5m losses". www.thedrinksbusiness.com. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  19. ^ "Special Policy Areas and Policies Map Revision – Publication Draft (Regulation 19) Revision to Westminster's City Plan: Strategic Policies" (PDF). City of Westminster. November 2015.
  20. ^ "Supporting Information Publication Draft (Regulation 19) Special Policy Areas and Policies Map Revision" (PDF). City of Westminster. November 2015.
  21. ^ "JLL | Residential Research | Crossrail Opportunities 2016". residential.jll.co.uk. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  22. ^ Savills.com (18 April 2018). "Infrastructure Investment and Land Value Uplift". Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  23. ^ "A FUTURE FOR THE OXFORD STREET DISTRICT". www.oxfordstreetdistrict.com. Archived from the original on 23 March 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  24. ^ "Fitzrovia Quarter – The Langham Estate Blog". Fitzrovia Quarter. Archived from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  25. ^ "FitzNovia Twitter Feed". twitter.com. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  26. ^ "Draft Plan | FitzWest". fitzwest.org. Archived from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  27. ^ www.FITZWEST.ORG/wordpress. "FitzWest Plan -- Fitzrovia West Neighbourhood Forum" (PDF).
  28. ^ "FitzWest Plan: Fitzrovia West Neighbourhood Forum" (PDF). fitzwest.org. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  29. ^ "Better Oxford Street Campaign - Pedestrianising Oxford Street is not the answer". Better Oxford Street Campaign. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  30. ^ "Broadband in Fitzrovia | FitzWest". Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  31. ^ Norman, Paul (17 August 2023). "Langham Estate Puts £500 Million Slice of Fitzrovia on Market". CoStar. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  32. ^ "£500M West End Sale Process Is Largest Launched In London This Year". Bisnow. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  33. ^ "Weekly data sheet: Opportunistic buyers win £300 mln chunk of London's West End". PropertyEU News. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
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