Rock sell-off rolls ahead

The sale of trophy assets in Paul Kemsley's £500 million Rock property empire is underway with the former Burberry headquarters and Selhurst Park expected to attract bumper bids.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) was called in as administrators of Rock Investment Holdings and Rock Joint Ventures in June after the collapse of the commercial property market.

It marked a significant fall from grace for Kemsley, a former vice-chairman of Tottenham Hotspur FC and founder of Rock Group.

The Grade II-listed Burberry building on Haymarket was put on the market for £20 million and has already attracted interest.

Barry Gilbertson, real estate partner at PwC, said he also anticipated keen interest in Selhurst Park, the home of Crystal Palace FC. He added that the market was suited to trophy assets such as the Burberry building because of demand from overseas investors and a shortage of supply.

"We anticipate a foreign buyer as there is a large amount of interest from abroad because of the weakness of the pound," said Gilbertson.