Two UK clients have both seen the ‘value’ of engaging the services of Golf Business International to assist with golf property-related issues.
Their initial enquiries were assessed and Mark Smith, of Smith Leisure, was deemed by Golf Business International to be the most-qualified member to deal with them.
The first project was for Brampton Park Golf Club, near Huntingdon, in Cambridgeshire, which was selling its practice ground after Abbey Properties Cambridge obtained planning permission for a residential development of 56 homes.
With the freehold of the club owned by Stonecheck plc, the directors of the company needed a valuation of the remainder of the club for tax computation purposes, and Smith, who has been a business and property advisor to the UK golf sector since 1991, carried out the assessment in accordance with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Valuation Professional Standards – known as the RICS ‘Red Book’.
Smith explained: “For any business selling parts of valuable assets, tax calculations are usually needed. It is important for the seller, in this case the golf club, to be able to rely on an independent valuation of their remaining assets, so they can make the appropriate tax returns to HMRC with confidence.”
Smith has also been instructed by a second client regarding a high-end golf venue in England, wherein he will provide ‘expert witness’ golf valuation advice following a dispute between the landlord and tenant on the interpretation of the tenant’s obligations under the lease.
Smith added: “The matter may well have to go to court for settlement. I have been instructed on behalf of the client’s lawyers to provide opinions on value for the differing lease interpretations to quantify the extent of financial losses. As this is a potential court case, the evidence has to comply with the RICS practice statement ‘Surveyors acting as expert witnesses’, which basically means that my evidence has to be truthful and impartial to assist the court in making informed decisions about golf value implications.
“Fortunately, the need to settle disputes on golf property matters in court is rare. However, when they do proceed this far, thorough preparation beforehand is essential.”
Smith continues to pass on to his clients his in-depth knowledge gained from working on hundreds of different golf property/business assignments in the UK for almost 30 years. He has witnessed first-hand the changing market conditions and emerging trends – seeing the construction ‘boom and bust’ in the industry from the late-1980s through to the mid-1990s, and then witnessing the sector maturing into a very challenging and competitive trading environment.
Smith, a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, is just one skilled practitioner available to clients of Golf Business International. Formed originally as the Golf Consultants Association in 1999, it is unique in its ability to make available a team of highly respected and experienced golf industry professionals to deal with any aspect of the business of golf through from conception to end.
Smith Leisure http://www.smithleisure.com/
Golf Business International www.golfbusinessinternational.com