United Hampshire US Reit collects 77% of base rents from retail tenants in May

UNITED Hampshire US Real Estate Investment Trust (United Hampshire US Reit) has collected around 77 per cent of base rents from retail tenants in May and 82 per cent in April.

The manager said that United Hampshire US Reit has seen an "acceleration" in store reopenings as local governments begin to gradually relax lockdown guidelines in all 50 US states.

Retail tenants comprising 87 per cent of total base rental income were open for business in May. About half of retail tenants previously closed in April have reopened for business last month, including stores which are operational or providing limited service.

Six retail tenants comprising 84,366 square feet of the Reit's portfolio which previously requested for rental relief have also withdrawn their requests.

As part of rental relief discussions, the manager is also in talks with certain retail tenants on potential lease extensions which will be accretive to the overall weighted average lease expiry of the Reit.

As at April 30, the Reit's aggregate leverage stands at 36.4 per cent, with an interest coverage ratio of 6.2 times.

A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU

Tuesday, 12 pm

Property Insights

Get an exclusive analysis of real estate and property news in Singapore and beyond.

Sign Up

Robert Schmitt, chief executive of the manager, said the Reit's portfolio assets are located in suburban areas, away from core Covid-19 zones.

"We believe that given the suburban location and necessity base of our property profile, we are well-positioned to weather the current Covid-19 crisis," he said.

Units of United Hampshire US Reit were trading 0.5 US cent or 0.8 per cent higher at 61 cents as at 1.39pm on Tuesday.