Unlocking commercial property opportunities with Together.

In a recent webinar hosted by Michelle Walsh, Together’s experts shared valuable insights into the evolving commercial property landscape and what it means for brokers.

From high-quality office space to semi-commercial flexibility, the session explored market trends, investment strategies, and product enhancements designed to help brokers support their clients with confidence.

Here’s a summary of the key takeaways.

Market trends with Tanya Elmaz

Offices and retail show signs of strength

Tanya Elmaz, Managing Director of Intermediary Sales, opened the session with findings from Together’s latest commercial market report, Cities in Focus. Based on two independent surveys, the report highlights a renewed appetite for office space, but only the best will do.

“Businesses aren’t just settling for any old office… demand is in high-quality office space” says Tanya, highlighting the top five features that businesses and employees are looking for in their best-in-class offices.

• Energy efficiency
• Fast, accessible technology
• Wellness facilities (e.g. gyms, prayer rooms)
• Communal areas
• Transport links and EV charging

82% of the commercial property professionals surveyed said that they thought office space would be a good investment over the next five years, so brokers should be ready to guide clients towards these prime assets.

Retail is also showing cautious signs of recovery, with the sector seeing an increase in sales for the first time in two years. Tanya mentions that “some high streets are making a comeback” and that “much like offices, retail that is standing out is the high quality retail” especially those with a good foot flow or a mix of leisure, hospitality and even residential nearby.

According to our survey:

• 79% of commercial property professionals see retail shops as a good investment over the next five years.
• 83% favour storage warehouses for long-term yield.

Refurbishment and repurposing: A smart strategy for commercial property investors

Tanya also highlights that brokers should be promoting the refurbishment and repurposing of commercial property to their customers, as an alternative to developing from scratch.

“Refurbing commercial assets is much more advantageous financially than building a brand new one.” Tanya suggested, pointing to an abundance of opportunities from tired office blocks to vacant pubs, banks and even churches.

Repurposing commercial assets is also becoming more significant. Tanya expressed that customers should be repurposing the assets that they already own to meet changing business needs, including adding more mixed use such as retail or hospitality.

Repurposing in the office space sector was singled out as great example, with many office buildings being redesigned to cater for a range of different tenants, whether they want long-term leases, co-working, or ad-hoc to short term private office spaces.

Geography and infrastructure

Tanya also reiterates that geography really matters when it comes to investing in commercial properties, and that brokers should be helping their clients to be smart about which cities they’re targeting (and the locations themselves).

Understanding the market and geography, such as the office vacancy rate in a city and how that differs depending on the quality of the asset, can help you decide if there’s an opportunity in that location. For example, if the vacancy rate for Grade B offices is 10% in an area, but the rate for Grade A and Prime is 2%, you can see that there’s a need for more high quality spaces.

The local infrastructure, such as great transport links, is also just as important, according to Tanya. “If your customers can get to your business, guess what? They’ll get to your business” she says.

But this is equally true for employees as making it easier for them to get to work, and enjoyable while they’re there with access to leisure, retail and hospitality, can help businesses attract and retain a better workforce.

Semi-commercial property with Dave Rowlinson

Using semi-commercial to diversify and derisk

Next, Michelle asks Together’s Head of Group Valuations Dave Rowlinson for his thoughts on the growing appetite for semi-commercial properties.

Dave talks about how integrating both residential and commercial elements into one property is great way to add diversification into a portfolio, generate an additional income stream and protect against vacancy.

Some other benefits include:

• Higher rental yields from the commercial element,
• Stamp duty savings as semi-commercial properties are typically exempt from the 3% Stamp Duty surcharge on Buy to Lets.
• Full Repairing and Insuring (FRI) leases that reduce landlord costs.

Dave also flags some of the risks and considerations, including fewer semi-commercial mortgage products on the market with stricter criteria, potentially longer void periods on the commercial element of the property, and more complex management.

But with Together’s support, brokers can help clients navigate these challenges confidently.

Underwriting insights with Emma Goodyear

What brokers should provide to speed up commercial deals

Emma Goodyear, Senior Commercial Underwriter, offered practical guidance on underwriting and credit assessment when dealing with a commercial property.

“It’s not always the numbers. It’s what lies behind those numbers that’s really key,” Emma said, as she discusses the common sense approach that Together’s expert underwriting team take when assessing cases.

But what can you do to work with our underwriters and speed the process up? Here’s some of Emma’s key advice.

• Provide two to three sets of unabbreviated accounts.
• If there’s anomalies in the P&L or balance sheets, come with explanation so we can work out if it’s a one-off or something’s fundamentally changed in the business.
• Include lease details, tenant strength, and valuation context.

Final Thought

These are just some of the topics covered by Michelle, Tanya, Dave and Emma, so, if you’d like to watch the webinar in full, it’s now available at the top of this blog or on the Chalk: your intermediary resource page.

Click on the links to find out more on our Commercial Term, Commercial Bridging and Semi-Commercial products, or visit our Commercial Finance product card for the latest rates and criteria.

And don’t forget, our expert intermediary teams are only a phone call away if you need help with a case or have any questions.