After forging a new partnership with leading Scottish chartered surveyors Shepherd in late 2020, SDL Property Auctions is now preparing for its first dedicated commercial property auction of the year.

The first live-streamed Shepherd Commercial Property Auction of 2021 will be held on Tuesday 30th March and conducted by auctioneer Andrew Parker from SDL Property Auctions’ head office auction studio which will be rebranded to Shepherd for the occasion.

As a result of the partnership, SDL Property Auctions is selling commercial properties in Scotland on behalf of Shepherd via both live-streamed Auction Events and Timed Auctions.

Several lots have already been sold including 15 lock-up garages in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, which produce a combined annual rental income of £12,180 and sold for their *guide price of £80,000.

Two retail properties in Aberdeen have also been sold. 29 Victoria Road, a traditional three-storey mid-terraced granite building with consent for use as a café, sold for £50,000 from a guide price of £45,000+. And 15 Castle Street, Aberdeen, a ground-floor retail unit with food and drink consent sold for £90,000 from a guide price of £85,000+.

The partnership has brought together two property companies which are both market leaders in their respective fields.

A RICS-regulated business, Shepherd is Scotland’s leading chartered surveyor and property agent with 34 regional offices strategically located around the country and 1,250 commercial properties on its books.

SDL Property Auctions is an industry pioneer thanks to its market-leading live-streamed national property auctions, which have been broadcast from its head office auction studio since the start of the first lockdown in March 2020.

SDL Property Auctions’ managing director and auctioneer Andrew Parker said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Shepherd, taking our highly successful live-streamed auctions north of the border for our first uniquely Scottish auctions.

“We are proud to be working closely with Shepherd, a well-respected company which has a good understanding of both the local and national property markets. Adding auctions to their services allows them to offer another service to their clients, providing great choice and flexibility for sellers.”

Andrew added: “Despite the challenges of the pandemic and Brexit, now is still a great time for us to be expanding our reach into Scotland, and for Shepherd to be diversifying into auction sales. Commercial property can be a sound long-term investment and the market remains strong in Scotland, with good returns for investors based both in England and Scotland, especially while interest rates remain low.

“While the pandemic may force some businesses to downsize, there will always be others looking to upsize. For example, demand for warehousing is growing along with the booming online retail industry.”

Steve Barnett, managing partner at Shepherd, said: “By adding timed and live-streamed auctions to our range of services, we now offer our commercial vendors complete flexibility as to how and when they would like to sell their property. The partnership with SDL Property Auctions allows us to reach more potential buyers and drive the best possible prices, while providing speed and certainty within a fixed timeframe.”

The Shepherd partnership further cements SDL Property Auctions’ position as a national leader. During 2020 the auctioneer raised £180 million for sellers and sold more than 1,400 lots; more than any other UK auctioneer.