Ajay Rana

Ajay is a highly experienced property solicitor who specialises in commercial real estate. His experience includes acquisitions and disposals, development, lettings and portfolio management, real estate finance, corporate real estate and infrastructure.

Ajay qualified as a solicitor in 2011 and has a varied client base which includes institutional investors, private equity funds, residential developers, central and local government, retailers, high-net-worth individuals, traditional and alternative lenders, charities, and healthcare and student accommodation providers.

Ajay is an expert in the healthcare sector, working with care home operators, developers, REITs, debt funds and private equity houses. He has acted on the acquisition and development of sites, portfolio acquisitions and disposals, sale and leasebacks with REITs, general portfolio management and refinancing. He has also acted on retirement and senior living projects.

• Verified by Lawhive

Areas of expertise

• Commercial real estate
• Acquisitions
• Disposals
• Property development
• Lettings
• Portfolio management
• Real estate finance
• Corporate real estate
• Healthcare
• Student accommodation
• Senior living
• Private rented sector
• Charities
• Infrastructure

Awards

Acquisitions and Disposals:

• Acted on the sale of 5/7 Chancery Lane for £76m to a Singaporean high-net-worth.
• Worked on the corporate acquisition of Hammersmith Shopping Centre for £150m by Schroders.
• Acted for M&G Real Estate on the £70m acquisition of 46 UK industrial estates.
• Acted for Home From Home Care on the sale and leaseback of its care home portfolio for £20m with Alpha Real Estate.
• Acted for Topland Henley Healthcare on the sale of a care home portfolio of 26 sites for £65m to Civitas Housing.
• Acted for social housing organisations such as Town and Country Housing Group and Amicus Horizon Housing on the acquisition, financing and disposal of social housing portfolios.

Development:

• Acted for nationwide care home operator Country Court Care Homes on the £40m development acquisition of four purpose-built care homes from LNT Care Developments and utilising funding from Cheyne Capital.
• Acted on both the HS1 and Crossrail projects, dealing with the CPO process and diverting utilities.
• Acted for Telford Homes on the £100m corporate acquisition and forward funding of The Perfume Factory, London, with Realstar.
• Acted for Telford Homes on the corporate buyout of Redrow from the corporate vehicle owning Brentford Market for £100m for future forward funding.
• Acted for student accommodation provider Uninn Investment Fund, which is backed by Chinese high-net-worth investment, on acquisitions, development, financing and lettings.

Lettings:

• Acted for a US insurer taking a lease of space in 22 Bishopsgate for a rent of circa £2.5m.
• Acted for Department of Culture, Media and Sport on its lease renewal at Tottenham Court Road for an annual rent of £720k.
• Acted for Wagamama on a pre-let at Westfield Derby, conditional on planning, works and licensing.
• Acted for Country Court Care Homes taking an operating lease of a care home in Saffron Walden at a rent of £400k p.a. with an option to take a further long lease for an £8m premium. The operating lease contained EBITDARM, CAPEX and other financial and management obligations and restrictions on change of control.
• Acted for the RSPCA and the John Marshall Charity on lettings and general portfolio management.

Real Estate Finance:

• Acted for Wells Fargo Bank on a £400m re-finance of 14 nationwide multi-let retail sites.
• Acted for Country Court Care Homes on the refinance of its portfolio for £166m with Cheyne Capital following an aborted sale and leaseback with Octopus Healthcare. The refinance also comprised a corporate restructure.
• Acted for Shore Capital on the provision of investment and/or debt to start-up and expanding businesses. Transactions ranged from construction of care homes/senior living to start-up gastro pubs, gyms and crematorium.
• Acted for EFG Private Bank as part of its legal panel on commercial and residential property lending and development finance.
• Acted for Cake Box on its IPO.