Lodders celebrates five-year tie-up with Cornerstone

Warwickshire law firm Lodders has celebrated a five-year partnership with Irish investment company Cornerstone Property by acting for it on two major property deals in Birmingham.

The off-plan specialist, which is headed by entrepreneur Ray Bolger, continues to be one of the biggest players in the city - involved in the acquisition and development of UK and central European residential and commercial property for sale to the investor market.

Stratford-upon-Avon-based Lodders is representing the company in its acquisition of more than 70 residential apartments at Kings Court Plaza, opposite the National Indoor Arena.

Lodders consultant John Waldron, who advised Cornerstone, said: "The Kings Court Plaza apartments are a mix of one and two bedroom properties.

"Cornerstone is selling them on to new owners and will then find the tenants."

The deal comes hot on the heels of Mr Bolger's investment in the Arcadian redevelopment project in the Chinese quarter of Birmingham Cornerstone Property bought all 68 private residential apartments off-plan in May 2006 for £12.9 million from Birmingham-based developer Gallan Residential, the company headed by Jackie Gallagher.

Mr Waldron set up the legal structure on behalf of Cornerstone for the Arcadian development. Cornerstone signed a contract with Stay City, a European serviced apartment operator, which secured a five to six per cent yield for new owners over 10 years. As a result virtually all of the Arcadian apartments had been sold just one month later - with Lodders taking charge of the legal work.

Mr Bolger believes that Birmingham, as the 'sub-capital of the UK', will continue to play a part in the overall plan for his investors.

Ashford Construction handed over the Arcadian development to Gallan over eight weeks early. It involved transforming a former multi-screen cinema, built on a low level multi-storey car park.

Andrew Glenn, business development manager for Ashford, said: "In effect, we have constructed Birmingham's largest tree house on top of a steel frame, on top of a multi-storey car park."