Darina Kerr

Practice Areas

Darina Kerr specialises in all aspects of Scottish commercial real estate. She advises on property asset management for public and private sector clients and has extensive experience of leasing, development, sales and purchases, and student accommodation from both provider/institution perspectives.

In recent years, Darina has become increasingly involved in innovative collaborative arrangements, under which organisations partner with each other to maximise the effectiveness of their property portfolios. These projects often involve risk and reward sharing, bespoke occupational arrangements and demonstration of best value beyond purely financial parameters.

Darina acts for a wide range of clients including property companies, private investors, and Universities. She is an active contributor to a wide range of trade journals and mainstream press. Commenting regularly on property industry trends, her views are featured extensively in publications including Huffington Post, Property Week and Estates Gazette.

Professional Memberships

Member, British Council of Shopping Centres

Work Highlights

University of Glasgow on estate asset management, including the planned c.£135m campus redevelopment facilitated by the University's acquisition of Western Infirmary Hospital, the c.£ 35m joint redevelopment of the iconic Kelvin Hall Building in partnership with Glasgow City Council and National Libraries of Scotland, and numerous joint development initiatives with NHS (Greater Glasgow & Clyde Health Board) to create the new Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

University of Aberdeen on estate asset management including major development work to facilitate campus strategy.

Land Securities plc on Scottish retail park work - asset management of out-of-town shopping centres - leases, surrenders, consents, rent reviews, and sales/purchases including recent disposal of a major Scottish Retail Park.

Ziggurat Student Accommodation on the purchase, forward letting and nominations agreements with Edinburgh University for a c.£30m 532-bed development spread across two locations in Edinburgh – Shrubhill, Leith Walk and nearby Murano Place.

Scottish Futures Trust/National Housing Trust on an innovative new NHT scheme which partners housebuilders with Councils to provide affordable mid-market homes.

Numerous banks and insolvency practitioners on distressed assets, including the sale of 10 residential development sites controlled by KPMG, Receivers of John Dickie Homes (In Receivership) to Stewart Milne Group, and the sale of the 290-property Heritors residential Portfolio on behalf of administrators KPMG to a pension fund.

Oxford Hotels & Inns (leisure arm of Khalastchi Family Investors/Flodrive Group) on asset management of c.80 Scottish hotels including sales, purchases, leases and operational issues.

Khalastchi Family and William Pears Group on asset management of diverse Scottish portfolio including retail, office, leisure and industrial assets – purchases, sales, leasing and security work.

Education