Auction House London Posts Record Commercial Results Amid Softer Market Trends.

An £18.25m portfolio sale completed in five days, alongside the highest-value single lot ever sold across the Auction House franchise, has positioned Auction House London as a serious force in the commercial property auction market.Auction House London closed May with two commercial results that bucked the trend entirely, despite wider commercial auction volumes falling 25.5% year-on-year in April, according to Essential Information Group data. One was a portfolio sale totalling £18.25m completed in under a week. The other was a single lot that set a record for the highest price ever achieved at auction across the entire Auction House Group.

The Portfolio: 19 Shops and Uppers on Powis Street, SE18

Jordan Phillips, Associate Director at Auction House London, was initially instructed on two properties from a portfolio of 19 retail units with residential upper units on Powis Street in Woolwich, SE18. The portfolio was occupied by a range of high-street tenants, including Vodafone, EE, Santander, and Popeyes, and was owned by a longstanding client of the firm. On the Friday before the auction, Phillips received an enquiry from a single buyer seeking to acquire all six properties being marketed at auction, including four listed with another auctioneer. Rather than limiting his involvement to the two lots he had been instructed on, Phillips went back to his client and brokered a deal covering all six properties. By Monday afternoon, contracts had been exchanged on all six properties for £4,700,000. Phillips then returned to the same buyer with a further seven properties from the portfolio. Those exchanged by Wednesday lunchtime for £9,905,000. The remainder of the portfolio, bar one property, followed by Friday morning for £3,500,000. Three transactions. One buyer. Five days. £18,250,000 in total. 18 of the 19 properties on Powis Street, representing approximately 30 per cent of that high street, changed hands in a single week. Jordan Phillips, Associate Director at Auction House London, commented: “This deal started with a two-property instruction. What made the difference was knowing the client, knowing the portfolio, and being willing to go beyond the brief. The speed at which the auction allows these deals to complete is unlike anything else in the market. A transaction of this scale, done in a week, simply would not have been possible through any other method of sale.”

The Record: Penguin House, Lismarrine Industrial Park, Elstree

At its May Livestream auction on 27th May, Auction House London set a new record for the highest-value lot ever sold across the Auction House franchise. Penguin House, a mixed-use commercial property at Lismarrine Industrial Park in Elstree, comprising two retail units, a warehouse and office space, sold for £5,375,000 against a guide price of £5,000,000+. The property currently generates an annual income of £111,877 with the potential to grow that figure substantially, making it an attractive proposition for investors seeking both immediate yield and longer-term value-add opportunity. The sale was conducted by Andrew Binstock, auctioneer and co-founder at Auction House London, who extracted £375,000 above the guide price in the room. Andrew Binstock commented: “Penguin House attracted serious buyers because it offered something increasingly rare in the current market: a substantial commercial asset with a solid income base and a genuine upside story. The level of competitive bidding in the room reflected that. This result demonstrates what the auction process delivers when the asset is right and the marketing reaches the right audience.”

A Statement Week for Commercial Auction

Taken together, the two deals represent £23,625,000 worth of commercial property transacted in a single week, at a time when the wider market is contracting. EIG data shows the total amount raised through commercial property auction nationally fell from £63m in April 2025 to £48.3m in April 2026, a decline of 23.3%. Jamie Royston, co-founder and partner at Auction House London, said: “These two results in the same week are not a coincidence. They reflect what we have been building in the commercial space for several years. We are not a residential auctioneer with a commercial offering bolted on. Commercial property is a core part of what we do, and the results speak for themselves. If you have a commercial asset to sell, we would welcome the conversation.”

About Auction House London

Auction House London is one of the UK’s leading property auction houses, running ten livestream auctions per year across residential and commercial property. The firm operates from its Hampstead headquarters and is known for combining the speed and certainty of the auction process with a relationship-led approach to client service. Auction House London’s next Bespoke Auction takes place on 10th June and its next two-day Livestream event is scheduled for 24th and 25th June. Commercial entries are now open, and the team welcomes enquiries from sellers seeking a commercial sale.

Press enquiries: Auction House London Tel: 020 7625 9007 Email: info@auctionhouselondon.co.uk Web: auctionhouselondon.co.uk