Czech Post sold 13 properties for a total of CZK 68 million in the first quarter of this year. It had planned to sell real estate worth CZK 2.5bn this year, which included the Main Post Office building in Prague’s Jindřišská Street for more than CZK 1.5bn. However, it has repeatedly failed to find a buyer and will probably keep the building in the centre of the capital.
In total, the post office is currently auctioning off more than three dozen unneeded properties with a total asking price of almost CZK 880 million. The most expensive items are a building on Horní náměstí in Olomouc with a starting price of CZK 130 million, land and buildings in Satalice for CZK 131 million or the post office building on Poštovní náměstí in Kladno with a starting price of CZK 90 million excluding VAT.
According to spokesman Matyáš Vitík, the post office is also selling former post office buildings where the new owner could continue to operate the Partner Post Office. “The sale of the former post office property is underway, currently the city of Brno has established the Partner Post Office on the site of the former branch in Orlí Street and thanks to this it can buy the entire building outright for CZK 215 million,” Vitík said.
The post office reduced the number of its branches by 300 to 2,900 in the middle of last year. It is gradually offering the buildings it used to own for sale, mostly by electronic auction with a starting price at the level of an expert’s report. By selling the assets, the company aims to stabilise its business and reduce costs.
The Post Office has repeatedly offered some buildings and has not been able to sell them. According to the director of Century 21, Tomáš Jelínek, the sale of such properties as the Main Post Office or the Broadway Palace in Prague cannot be based on normal price calculations, which are derived, among other things, from the built-up area, but on the possible future potential use and yield. “The price can then be estimated by the potential yield from the possible project, the cost of its implementation and the purchase value of the property, i.e. the total investment must give an economic return for the investor, which is difficult to solve for such buildings. I dare say that some buildings are expensive for one crown,” said Jelínek. He also said similar offers are not dealt with on advertising portals, but are sold through specialised intermediaries.
Czech Post cut its loss by one billion to CZK 756 million last year. Operating income, including income from the sale of assets, rose 0.9 percent to CZK 19.037 billion.
Source: CTK
