Less than two months after closing, the south London estate, which includes the Birch Selsdon Hotel, has been listed for sale.
Savills has been selected to market the 198-acre Selsdon Park Estate in South Croydon on behalf of administrators Moorfields Advisory Ltd.
Opened in Croydon last spring under managing director Ayo Akinsete, the 181-room Birch Selsdon introduced two restaurants overseen by chef Lee Westcott.
Unfortunately, the hotel was forced to close and go into administration after just six months, due to “cash constraints”, as Moorfields put it.
With a total investment of £15.3m over two years, the property boasted a range of amenities including three bars, six meeting and event rooms, co-working space, gym, outdoor recreation area and tennis court.
Before the change, the property was called De Vere Selsdon Estate. In 2022, it was bought as part of a joint venture between Birch Hospitality and real estate investment company Aprirose.
Birch Hospitality and Aprirose’s partnership also included the 55-acre Birch Cheshunt Hotel in Hertfordshire, which opened in 2020. Sadly, both the Birch Cheshunt and its sister site in Selsdon closed and went into administration in the same week last November. .
Savills is tasked with advising on Birch Selsdon’s long-term lease and part ownership interest in the property. There is no suggested price for disposal.
Phoenix Chow, Associate Director of Hotel Capital Markets at Savills, said: “Selsdon Park Estate presents a unique opportunity to acquire a prominent former lifestyle hotel. The hotel has undergone significant improvements over the past two years and continues to have a number of value-adding initiatives in place to deliver top performance and net income (NOI) for improvement.
“We expect strong market interest in this opportunity, which appeals to many different sources of capital and accommodates different business plans and asset preferences.”
In December, Savills listed Theobalds Park Estate, where the Birch Cheshunt Hotel is located, on the market.
