BPE Solicitors acts on the sale of Dumbleton Hall Hotel to US-based buyer
The Commercial Property team at Cheltenham-based BPE Solicitors advised Post Office Fellowship of Remembrance (POFR), the owners of Grade II* listed 19th Century manor house Dumbleton Hall, in the sale to a US-based buyer for an undisclosed amount.
POFR was established in 1959 thanks to donations from Post Office employees to purchase properties for their families’ use as a living memorial to their fellow workers who had died in the two World Wars.
Senior Associate, Matthew Jones with assistance from trainee Emily Rowan-Maxwell, led the team at BPE in advising Simon Kelly and Tom Daffurn, the management team of POFR, on the sale of the property while Head of Employment, Nick Rowe, was called upon to share his expertise on the employment matters. The team oversaw all elements of the sale, including compiling extensive due diligence information and negotiating exclusivity, and various supplemental agreements to accommodate commercial changes to the underlying asset purchase agreement.
Colliers were the selling agents for POFR and JLL were the buying agents for the US-based buyer.
Commenting on the sale, Matt said: “It was brilliant working for POFR and helping them achieve the successful sale of such an impressive property. We formed a close working relationship and I wish them every success in the future”.
Simon Kelly said: “We were really pleased with how Matt and the team at BPE carried out this transaction for us. We faced various commercial set-backs but Matt worked collaboratively with the buyer’s solicitor without ever compromising our commercial position and provided us with clear and considered advice to help us achieve completion. We could always rely on him to be on top of the transaction throughout and we’re very happy with the result.”
Peter Brunt, Hotels Director at Colliers commented “I have recommended BPE to both vendor clients and to purchasers for about 10 years now. In this specialised field it is vital to have solicitors that truly understand the issues affecting hotels and inns and the team at BPE absolutely have that expertise. They also have the commercial approach so necessary in getting the deal done and not getting stuck in minutia that can plague transactions if the lawyers do not cut through to the real meat of the deal”.
To discuss how we can support you in selling your hotel or pub or for more information on BPE’s exclusive pre-sale guide and questionnaire, contact Matthew Jones or a member of the BPE Commercial Property team on 01242 224433.
These notes have been prepared for the purpose of articles only. They should not be regarded as a substitute for taking legal advice.