Nama Northern Ireland

[Shotoflight]

Quite a detailed 'sit rep' of NAMA, currently

'If Nama cannot meet its targets Ireland has bigger problems'

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2011/1209/1224308796670.html

Nama has found it extraordinary that the top 190 debtors do not just have €61 billion of loans at the domestic banks but also account for most of the €30 billion in property loans at the non-Nama banks, including Ulster Bank, Bank of Scotland (Ireland), National Irish Bank and ACCBank.

To generate residential sales, Nama will launch a pilot scheme on its deferred payment plan in January or February of next year.

The aim of the scheme is to ease fears about negative equity among prospective buyers. They can avoid paying up to 20 per cent of the purchase price if, after five years, the property falls in value.

Nama also wants to introduce mortgage real estate investment trusts (Reits) to shift more debt. This would involve Nama pooling mortgages into packages, in which they will sell shares to investors.

These initiatives are in response to a moribund market. There have been just four big- ticket commercial property deals this year, valued between them at about €170 million, and this included the €100 million sale of the Montevetro building to Google.

The residential market is faring no better. There will less than €2 billion of new mortgages advanced this year, compared with almost €40 billion at the peak of the boom, and the number of mortgages is likely to fall to levels last seen 40 years ago.

[Shotoflight]

Battersea Power Station goes into administation

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/constructionandproperty/8951350/Battersea-Power-Station-goes-into-administation.html

Lloyds Banking Group and Ireland's National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) went to the High Court today to secure the appointment of Ernst & Young as administrators to vehicles owning the power station.

Irish group Real Estate Opportunities (REO), which owns a majority stake in the site, said Ernst & Young had been appointed administrator to four subsidiary companies because of £325m of debt owed to the banks and NAMA.

The banks and NAMA will now launch a formal sales process to find a developer for the south west London site, with interest expected to come from Chelsea Football Club, Malaysian property company SP Setia and British developers, such as Berkeley and Development Securities.

More than £500m of debt is outstanding against the Grade-II listed power station and REO has been unable to strike a deal with a new investor to repay the debt.

The £325m of debt owed to Lloyds and NAMA expired on August 31 but REO was given extra time to attract a new investor. However, the banks demanded repayment of the debt last month after reacting angrily to an offer from SP Setia, backed by REO, to buy the debt for £262m.

[PJ1977]

Snoddons in Nama http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-16382801

[okaycuckoo]

Peter Stewart, Nama's NI operations boss resigns from role

http://www.bbc.co.uk...reland-15265018

My head aches!

Once again, limited liability incorporation tries to frustrate tracing of assets.

[Shotoflight]

NAMA threatens developers who won’t submit tax returns with legal action

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/nama-threatens-developers-who-wont-submit-tax-returns-with-legal-action-2991905.html

The more interesting bit:

Meanwhile,NAMA has begun to gear up to sell entire loan books of property with the appointment of a panel of 16 advisers.

The bad bank advertised for financial services firms to join the panel before Christmas and has now selected those it will use to execute the sales.

A Nama spokesman said it was exploring the sale of loan books and wanted to have a competitive process to assure it could get fair value for the assets. Now that it has appointed the panels, the next step is to prepare to sell the loan books in the coming months.

[Shotoflight]

Nama admits only 21% of loans are performing

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/nama-admits-only-21-of-loans-are-performing-16112310.html

Just one in five of Nama's loans is performing, Nama has admitted, with the agency trying to manage €18.8bn (£15.6bn) worth of loans now in arrears.

The agency's latest quarterly report shows that 83% of the non-performing loans are four months in arrears.

Nama is now faced with either restructuring these loans or moving against developers through the courts.

Nama has approved the sale of assets worth around €6.6bn (£5.4bn), although 80% of the sales were linked to assets outside Ireland.

Mr McDonagh said in December that the property company expected to make an operating profit of €600m (£497bn) in 2011 although he admitted that write-downs on property values would lead to a bad debt charge which would lead to net loss.

The agency recorded a net loss of €1.1bn (£0.90bn) in 2010.

[Shotoflight]

Just who is working Nama's property field?

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/just-who-is-working-namas-property-field-16114376.html

[PJ1977]

Had an interesting chat at the weekend who tells me Nama's enforcements have barely got started in NI.

As he tells it the way things are supposed to work is that a business plan is produced and assessed, talks ensue and then if it's clear the business is not viable or the relationship breaks down then the receivers come in. A version of that happened to the Grehans.

That pattern has barely been established here. Many of the enforcements so far have fallen into two categories.

1) They pre-date Nama and were inherited - both Thompson and McAlinden were in this category and they are two of the bigger ones by both value and number of properties.

2) Nama has been bounced into a 'defensive' action because another bank has moved first. You can see this with Seamus McCloy where Ulster moved first meaning Nama had to go next to protect its security.

[Shotoflight]

Nama to offer NI investors loans

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17299267

The Irish government's National Asset Management Agency (Nama) has said it will try to revive Northern Ireland's commercial property market.

It will offer to lend to investors who want to buy property from it.

Nama proposes to offer up to 70% finance to purchasers of commercial property under the control of the agency or receivers appointed by it.

This unusual arrangement is known as "vendor financing".

It is used in circumstances where banks are reluctant to lend for property purchases.

Nama chairman Frank Daly confirmed on Thursday that it will extend its vendor finance policy to Northern Ireland.

"Vendor finance will help bring international capital into both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland markets and add price tension," he said.

"Nama is not a bank and sees vendor finance as an aid to market participation - but applied to the right product and right client, it can be a significant positive for investment and employment in Northern Ireland."

Nama controls loans of about £3.5bn which were made to Northern Ireland developers and investors.

[2buyornot2buy]

Nama goes from bad bank to worse bank. If buyers can't get finance on repossessed property at a knock down price then why should anyone lend to them. This is just NAMA trying to keep some value in their re-possessions rather than letting the market find it's own level.

The quaetion is will NAMA be allowed to keep these loans on its books after its 10 year life span.

[Malthus]

The quaetion is will NAMA be allowed to keep these loans on its books after its 10 year life span.

NAMA Mk2 will take over following the undoubted success of NAMA MK1

[Shotoflight]

I believe we are at 10% at the minute - 90% more to come.

Nama to take on further batch of prime properties

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/nama-to-take-on-further-batch-of-prime-properties-16138136.html

Nama's newest batch of northern spoils includes Windsor House in Belfast, which was bought in 2007 for around £20m by Irish developer Ray Grehan of Glenkeerin Homes and Cavan building firm P Elliott.

Ray Grehan is now bankrupt while receivers have been appointed to the P Elliott businesses.

Also newly on Nama's books are properties at Bridge Street and Blackskull Road in Dromore, Co Down.

There are further units at Tempo Road in Garvary, Co Fermanagh, a residence at Scarva Street in Loughbrickland, Co Down, undeveloped land at Drumnabey Road in Spamount in the same county and land at West Street in Cookstown.

It's understood some of the new additions were part of the portfolio of Sam Thompson, a once-prominent Co Down developer who specialised in one-off luxury houses. He is also bankrupt.

The sale of Rathcairn House, a Sam Thompson property at Blackskull Road in Dromore, has already been agreed.

It's understood the price being paid by the buyers is close to the £595,000 asking price.

Estate agent Michael Rodgers of Rodgers and Browne in Holywood, Co Down, said his firm had been instructed by the receivers.

He said: "Really it represents extremely good value given that the original asking price of the property was around £1.2m.

"It's still a house of unquestionable quality. The value has changed but the quality hasn't."

Estate agent Richard McCulloch of Stanley Best in Magherafelt said the sale of Nama-related houses may force other vendors to adopt "realistic" prices when selling their own homes.

Nama, which was set up to cleanse Irish banks of toxic property loans, has now taken enforcement action over around 150 properties and sites in Northern Ireland, with the loans on those assets having a total value of £3.35m.

Chairman Frank Daly has said it will not engage in "fire sales" of assets in Northern Ireland.

[Shotoflight]

Irish asset agency Nama repossesses County Down castle

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17874890

The Irish government's National Asset Management Agency (Nama) has repossessed a castle in County Down.

Nama has taken control of virtually all land and development loans which were advanced by the Dublin-based banks.

In some cases it has taken 'enforcement action' on these loans by placing the related properties into receivership.

Quintin castle in Portaferry has appeared on the newly updated enforcement list.

The Anglo-Norman castle was originally built in the 12th century by John De Courcy.

At one stage it was virtually a ruin but was restored in the 19th century.

It underwent a further restoration around 2006 when it was bought by the property developer Paul Neill.

Mr Neill had a portfolio of properties in Belfast and County Down. He was also an aviation enthusiast owning a private jet and a helicopter.

In 2011, the former Anglo Irish Bank moved against him taking control of two of his retail parks in Bangor over a £37m debt.

He was declared bankrupt earlier this year.

Meanwhile another Nama-linked developer has been declared bankrupt.

Peter McDaid ran Derry-based McDaid Developments (Ireland).

It was placed into administration in June 2010 owing Bank of Ireland £42m. Those debts later became the responsibility of Nama.

The administrator of the firm estimated that the sale of the firm's assets will only raise about £8m.

[CCJ]

Wonder if they got Neill's rather nice holiday home in Crookhaven, West Cork. Often watched his heli pilot waiting for the boys outside the pub!

[Shotoflight]

You don't say

Comptroller says Nama overpaid for bank loans

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0525/1224316662601.html

The latest report from the State’s budgetary watchdog said that even after writing down loans by 57 per cent on their original value, the price paid by the agency represents “State aid” of more than a fifth of this to the banks, or a subsidy of €6 billion.

Nama faces “considerable challenges” in repaying the €32 billion it borrowed to buy the loans due to a weaker-than-expected economy, further declines in property values and risks to the collection of rental income from properties.

It must repay a quarter of its debts or €7.5 billion by the end of 2013 and the remainder of the €32 billion borrowed by 2020.

The comptroller said Nama had lost 5 per cent on its loans to the end of 2010 but property values had fallen further since then, by an average of 16.7 per cent in the residential property market in 2011.

Nama has taken an unaudited charge of €810 million for 2011 to cover further falls in the market but this will not be signed off by the comptroller until the summer.

The auditor said in its report that Nama was taking in less rental income than was expected when the loans were valued in 2009.

Of six borrowers sampled, rental income for 2011 was 26 per cent lower than projected when the loans were acquired and only €8 million out of €10.5 million projected had been realised.

The report said property management costs were not factored in on loan valuations which were conducted “in line with industry norms for immediate sales”.

Rental income is now being paid into accounts that it controls after Nama found the banks had not collected rent on certain properties.

The auditor said Nama must investigate rent collection to ensure the amount and timing of projections were “realistic” and income collection was “maximised” and that cash retained was “authorised and transparently accounted for”.

On a sample of property sales, disposals in Britain exceeded the market value at acquisition by 2.5 per cent while there was a 5 per cent shortfall on Irish disposals.

The cost of selling properties reduced proceeds by 3.7 per cent in Britain and 6.7 per cent in Ireland, mostly due to higher taxes in the Republic. Only 11 per cent of properties sold up to the end of last year were in Ireland.

The latest quarterly accounts published by Nama showed that the proportion of performing loans on its books fell again, to 20 per cent at December 2011 from 21 per cent three months earlier.

A Nama spokesman said this was due to loans being sold or refinanced by other lenders and that it expected performing loans to increase as debtors agree revised business plans with the agency.

The comptroller said Nama expected to lend €3.5 billion to develop and finish projects over its life, of which €2.6 billion would be loaned to debtors from 2012 to 2015.

Fine Gael TD Eoghan Murphy said that Nama “risks becoming a significant financial liability to the State further down the line when it doesn’t have the money to meet its later repayments”.

Edited May 25, 2012 by Shotoflight

[bookaboo]

Logic dictates that there should be a Nama2 set up for Nama, they can buy all the bad loans from Nama1.

Hey Pesto Nama is profitable and everything becomes OK.

[PJ1977]

NAMA sells 2 sites for 10% of previous price

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-18346864

90% peak-to-trough we knew about; what's more interesting to me is that going by the Drumahoe deal a site with pp can now be got for 40% less than its 2003 price.

[Belfast Boy]

90% peak-to-trough we knew about; what's more interesting to me is that going by the Drumahoe deal a site with pp can now be got for 40% less than its 2003 price.

Does anyone travel from Belfast through Fivemiletown to Enniskillen at the weekends? There is a site on the left handside as you leave Fivemiletown heading for Enniskilllen. I cannot remember the exact words. It says something like - site for sale not much more than agricultural land.

Edited June 7, 2012 by Belfast Boy

[Shotoflight]

Nama paying developers in debt 'to get best value'

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/nama-paying-developers-in-debt-to-get-best-value-16172714.html

The Nama spokesman said salaries, where payable, had to be agreed with Nama, adding: "Getting debtors to co-operate is a much more effective way of doing things."

But he said payment was not made to developers or companies against which the agency has taken enforcement action.

Enforcement action has been taken against Co Down-based property firm Mar Properties.

Mar's 2009 accounts revealed a loss of £22m and said its future as a going concern depended on the support of banks, shareholders and the acceptance of a business plan submitted to Nama.

The companies of Sam Thompson, who built luxury houses in Co Down, and Peter Dolan, who owned commercial property in Northern Ireland and abroad, have both faced enforcement action as business plans could not be reached.

Both individuals have also been declared bankrupt.

[PJ1977]

Nama paying developers in debt 'to get best value'

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/nama-paying-developers-in-debt-to-get-best-value-16172714.html

The Nama spokesman said salaries, where payable, had to be agreed with Nama, adding: "Getting debtors to co-operate is a much more effective way of doing things."

But he said payment was not made to developers or companies against which the agency has taken enforcement action.

Enforcement action has been taken against Co Down-based property firm Mar Properties.

Mar's 2009 accounts revealed a loss of £22m and said its future as a going concern depended on the support of banks, shareholders and the acceptance of a business plan submitted to Nama.

The companies of Sam Thompson, who built luxury houses in Co Down, and Peter Dolan, who owned commercial property in Northern Ireland and abroad, have both faced enforcement action as business plans could not be reached.

Both individuals have also been declared bankrupt.

I smell a major balls up here by the Tele - MAR may be balance sheet insolvent but there has been no enforcement action that I know of. They were writing to Cheshire West council in March saying they were trying to get Nama to fund a redevelopment of Winsford Cross.

[Shotoflight]

Nama role 'very important' in Northern Ireland

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-18502755

Mr Wilson said he was "pleased with the finance being made available" by the agency for the development and purchase of sites in Northern Ireland.

He said it "should help stimulate some much needed activity in the local property and construction markets".

Senior officials, including members of Nama's Northern Ireland Advisory Committee, were also at the meeting.

"The work of Nama, given the scale of the assets held in Northern Ireland, is going to be very important for years to come," said Mr Wilson.

[Shotoflight]

Ex-Nama employee's transaction is investigated

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19140567

A transaction made by a former employee of the Irish government's National Asset Management Agency who bought a property from the agency's portfolio is reportedly being investigated.

The Sunday Times reported that Nama has requested its internal auditors, Deloitte, to investigate.

The newspaper said the auditors are to assess if the full statutory and disclosure requirements were met.

Nama said the employee was not involved in approving the transaction.

It also said an initial review and independent valuations showed the property's price was in line with the then market value.

Nama said all employees were required to make full disclosures of their assets, liabilities and interests under legislation governing the body.

[Shotoflight]

BT seem to have a Nama story on the front page of the hard copy. Sometimes this doesn't appear online till the day after. In the meantime thay have this opinion piece, possibly pertinent to the hardcopy story.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/viewpoint/nama-must-be-open-over-assets-16202797.html

Confidence in the property market is brittle. The very existence of Nama shows how even experts got their fingers severely burned when the boom ended on both sides of the border. Anything which would undermine the current jittery market should be avoided. There are some indications that first-time buyers are being enticed by low house prices, but they could easily withdraw if they thought that prices had not yet bottomed out.

Given the size of Nama's portfolio and its potential affect on the market, there is merit in the call for the bank to be more transparent in its reporting of holdings and deals on this size of the border. It might also usefully consider the plea to make some of its properties available for social housing.

There is a dire need for such accommodation and disposing of properties to housing associations would fulfil a socially responsible role as well as avoiding distortion of the residential property market.

From comments section - before it is shut down.

This piece misses the point. NAMA already IS a distortion of the residential property market in NI. It's sole purpose is to remove, then drip feed properties onto the market, for the benefit of the bankrupt gamblers it has bought them from, maintaining artificially high house prices. Currently buying a house in NI is a very risky proposition and the shadowy dealings of NAMA and the banks also holding back on reposessions and failing to mark down property assets at current value, means any potential housebuyer is buying into a rigged market. And it's not rigged for the benefit of the man in the street. Never is.

[PJ1977]

The Bel tel story was bank holiday filler. They claimed to have conducted extensive research into the portfolio when all they've done is cut n paste the enforcement list from the Nama website.

[Guest_Belfast Fubar_*]

The Bel tel story was bank holiday filler. They claimed to have conducted extensive research into the portfolio when all they've done is cut n paste the enforcement list from the Nama website.

Still trying to make a story out of nothing:

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/transparency-urged-as-extent-of-namas-property-portfolio-emerges-16202909.html

Headline is Transparency urged as extent of Nama's property portfolio emerges, but I don't see much actual data in the article. Too early maybe.

I like this bit though- "It is understood there has been strong interest in the Cambric Court apartments in Dromore. Originally priced at just under £105,000 prices have been slashed to £85,000"

And the bloody rest!!! £85K for a flat in Dromore? Divide by 2.