Twelve premises that have been left empty by banks are languishing for their price in Bilbao
In recent years the bank has been leaving a trail of empty premises in Bilbao that languish waiting for an entrepreneur to opt for them to open a business. In the Biscayan capital there are at least a dozen places without activity that remained closed to the eye and of them, half, are located on the corners of various arteries of the city.
Real estate managers say that the main reason why they are empty is because of their high price. The range of its cost ranges between 600,000 to five million euros depending on the square meters and its location. “The more central it is, the more expensive the price per square meter is,” they specify from the real estate sector.
These premises housed the offices of banking entities for decades and were chosen for their perfect positioning and to reach the largest number of public. Now, everything has taken a turn. “The most appealing for bank branches were street corners to cover more customers and more spaces due to the visibility they have. They were looking for the best places to be seen”, they report from a real estate company in Bilbao.
In total, since 2008 a thousand branch models have been closed in the CAV due to mergers, the low profitability of the business and the digitization that brought new attention to its customers. Bilbao is no exception to these changes in habits and new forms of consumption that have led banking entities to change their attention to the public at street level for online portals.
Faced with this new reality and with the trickle of closures, many premises will remain empty and although some have left space for the implementation of new businesses that was leaving the financial sector in its retreat, the majority would end up with the blinds down. It is only necessary to take a walk around the Biscayan capital to verify it. As an example, in the premises located between General Concha and Fernández del Campo streets where BBK customers were dispatched; That space, located at the confluence of the two streets, has been closed for several years and has accumulated all kinds of advertising posters on its glass façade. “A place of these dimensions closed and in a corner offers a decadent image of the area. Activity is key so that the zone does not end up devaluing. One business calls another”, they point out from the real estate sector.
FIVE MILLION EUROS
Caja Laboral has left several empty premises in recent years in the town, one between Licenciado Poza and General Concha and the other, on the corner of Gardoki with Alameda de Urkijo, which could be occupied again by the Basque entity and for which they have come to ask for him up to five million euros for just over 400 square meters. “It is a totally disproportionate price, taking into account that they have paid one million eight hundred thousand euros for other premises located next door,” clarify real estate sources.
Between Colón de Larreátegui and Ercilla streets there is also another fish market that was occupied by an Italian entity and that has been closed for months. The 300-square-meter premises located between Hurtado Amézaga and Fernández del Campo where BBK was sold for 705,000 euros, according to a buying-selling portal. Another 111 square meter premises located near Plaza San Pedro de Deusto is for sale for almost 400,000 euros. This is just a small example of this trail of spaces that the financial sector has left empty in recent years in the Biscayan capital.
LBusinesses that replace banks take advantage of stores located on corners, with wide facades and that are very attractive for this type of operators in search of a great visual impact and with cheap rents. But, in a context of deflation, these types of brands are not willing to face what banks paid a few years ago. And it is that many entities such as BBVA signed 35-year contracts two or three decades ago for around 20,000 euros per month per store, figures that are now unaffordable.
SUBLET
To unload these high economic amounts that must be paid monthly, there are banking entities that have chosen to sublet spaces. Today there are offices rented by BBVA that have to continue paying the amount agreed upon with the owner, despite the fact that the branch ceased its activity at street level some time ago. In Bilbao, BBVA has subleased the Ayestaran shoe store, the premises located between the confluence of Ercilla and Pozas streets. “The rental agreement contemplated the right to sublease and the entity continues to pay the rent to the owner, around 22,000 euros, while Ayestaran pays BBVA around 10,000 euros a month.”
In general, selling or renting premises in the Biscayan capital is not an easy task due to the high price that owners continue to ask for despite everything. “The more time passes, the more difficult it is to sell them and their price loses. Some places have a hard time getting them out. Everything resulted from what they are willing to lower the price and for one of them to be located in those markets. There are premises from 400 meters, but others are larger, up to 700 meters and with various heights that will be more difficult to rent or sell”, they conclude from the real estate sector.
Post it:
Since 2008, a thousand bank branches have been closed in the Basque Autonomous Community due to mergers, the low profitability of the business, as well as the digitization that has brought new customer service models. The Biscayan capital is no exception to these changes in habits and new forms of consumption that have led banks to change their customer service from the street to online portals.