Hodge has provided real estate investor Lucent Halo Limited with a £5.1m commercial investment facility to support its acquisition of Hartham Park, a Grade II listed mansion in Wiltshire.
A Georgian manor house built in 1795, the former country house is set in 49.6 acres and has most recently been used as a serviced office and events space, offering 68,000sq ft of accommodation, 70 individual office units and seven private meeting rooms just outside the town of Corsham.
Led by Hodge’s commercial lending team, the purchase of Hartham Park has also protected existing employees managing the property, with all current staff moving over to the new company, following its purchase from administrators.
Gareth Davies, head of business development for commercial lending at Hodge, said: “This purchase was not a straightforward transaction as the property was acquired by Lucent Halo out of a wider business administration, and the deal required considerable input from all areas of the Hodge commercial lending team including business development, due diligence, credit and portfolio, together with our external legal advisers and valuer.
“It’s obvious, however, that Hartham Park is a fantastic property and business and affords Lucent Halo a rare opportunity to create a destination location for serviced offices and events in a Grade II Listed mansion house and beautiful surrounding scenery stretching into the Wiltshire countryside.”
He continued: “This is the second transaction we’ve completed together, having built a strong relationship from our first transaction in 2023, so, it’s been great to work with them again and I very much look forward to the next one.”
Matt Slade of Lucent Halo said the company had been particularly impressed with the flexibility and commitment shown by Hodge in completing the deal within a 10-week timeframe;
He said: “It’s been great working with Gareth and the Hodge team again on the acquisition of such a unique property.
“Purchasing Hartham Park out of a wider business administration did not come without its challenges, but Hodge understood the transaction and supported us throughout taking sensible, commercial views that resulted in a successful outcome all round.
“We’d like to thank the whole Hodge Commercial Lending team and hope to partner with them again in the future.”
