Hemel Hempstead is a town in the Dacorum district of Hertfordshire, 24 miles north-west of London, with Watford, St Albans and Berkhamsted close by. It has existed since at least the 8th century, received its town charter from Henry VIII in 1539, and grew sharply after being designated a New Town at the end of the Second World War. The population at the 2021 census was 95,961.
We arrange business mortgages for trading companies buying or refinancing the premises they work from in Hemel Hempstead. We are a broker, not a lender, and the finance is secured on your company's own building rather than a home. Our role is to match the deal to the lenders active in owner-occupier lending whose criteria suit it.
What kind of premises do Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire companies buy with an owner-occupier mortgage?
The town has always made things. Its grain market was one of the largest in the country by the 18th century; in the 19th century it was a centre for brickmaking, paper manufacturing and straw-plaiting; and in 1803 the Fourdrinier brothers developed the first automatic papermaking machinery at Frogmore, which grew into the John Dickinson and Co. mills. Brock's made fireworks here until the mid-1970s. Today Dixons Carphone has large premises in the town.
That heritage, and the New Town's planned employment areas, mean the buyers we expect are distribution and logistics firms, trade counters, engineering and print businesses, and service companies wanting offices, plus retailers in the town centre. Our page on owner-occupier mortgages explains how lenders look at a company buying its own building.
Media, recruitment and IT firms across Dacorum
ONS UK Business Counts 2026, local units. Figures are for the Dacorum local authority area.
Show as a table
| Sector | Businesses | Hemel Hempstead share | UK share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional, scientific and technical | 1,570 | 17.1% | 13.9% |
| Construction and building trades | 1,445 | 15.7% | 12.5% |
| Information and communication | 850 | 9.3% | 6.2% |
| Business support services | 835 | 9.1% | 8.1% |
| Retail | 680 | 7.4% | 9.4% |
| Restaurants, cafes and pubs | 445 | 4.8% | 6.2% |
| Health and social care | 435 | 4.7% | 5.6% |
| Transport, logistics and storage | 380 | 4.1% | 4.1% |
| Personal and other services | 360 | 3.9% | 4.1% |
- 2.1xfilm, TV and music production220 businesses
- 1.9xrecruitment200 businesses
- 1.6xinformation services40 businesses
- 1.6xcreative and performing arts155 businesses
A figure of 2.0x means the trade makes up twice the share of local businesses that it does across the UK.
Dacorum's 9,190 business units have a strong office and creative slant. Information and communication firms make up 9.3% of the total, about one and a half times the UK share, and film, TV and music production runs at 2.1 times the national rate. Recruitment agencies are almost twice as common as across the UK, at 1.92 times.
Professional and technical businesses account for 17.1% of firms. These companies often look to buy a self-contained office or small building, and lenders focus on the strength of the accounts and how easily the space could be relet.
How do the A41, the canal and the West Coast Main Line shape business property finance in the Hemel area?
The A41 dual carriageway was built past the town in the 1990s, and Hemel sits a short run from the M1 and M25. Hemel Hempstead station is a mile south of the centre at Boxmoor on the West Coast Main Line, with London Northwestern Railway services to London Euston, Tring and Milton Keynes Central. The Grand Junction Canal reached the town in 1798 and, as part of the Grand Union Canal, still runs through it.
For a warehouse or industrial unit, motorway access is the feature a valuer weighs most, because it governs how easily the building could be re-let. Offices near the station appeal to commuters. The town lies in a chalk valley where the rivers Gade and Bulbourne meet; a 2007 collapse of old chalk workings at Highbarns led to geological studies, so a lender's surveyor may ask about ground conditions on some sites.
Hemel's falling industrial and office stock
Valuation Office Agency, non-domestic rating stock of properties, March 2026. Figures for the Dacorum council area. Average rateable value is the VOA's estimate of annual rent, not a sale price.
- Industrial and warehouse1,020properties on the rating listDown 13.6% since 2016Average rateable value £72,100factories, workshops, warehouses and trade units
- Offices1,140properties on the rating listDown 8.8% since 2016Average rateable value £28,500offices, including converted buildings
- Shops and retail930properties on the rating listDown 1.1% since 2016Average rateable value £31,000shops, showrooms and retail warehouses
- Other commercial1,220properties on the rating listUp 7% since 2016Average rateable value £42,200pubs, hotels, surgeries, nurseries, garages and more
Hemel Hempstead estates from Maylands to Apsley and Frogmore Road
Named estates and parks listed on Google Maps near Hemel Hempstead, October 2026. Listed to show where premises trade locally; we have no connection with the owners or agents.
- Strathallan Business CentreFernville Ln, Midland Rd, Hemel Hempstead HP2 4LS
- Chancerygate Business CentreHemel Hempstead HP3 9PH
- Frogmore Road Industrial EstateHemel Hempstead HP3 9RT
- Apsley Industrial EstateApsley, Hemel Hempstead HP3 9XH
- Mark Road Hemel Hempstead Industrial EstateHemel Hempstead HP2 7BN
- Hemel Hempstead Industrial EstateHemel Hempstead
- The Heron Business ParkHemel Hempstead HP2 7FW
- Maylands Business CentreHemel Hempstead HP2 7ES
- Heron Business ParkHemel Hempstead HP2 7DU
- Brickfields Industrial EstateHemel Hempstead HP2 7QA
- MAYLANDS INDUSTRIAL ESTATEHemel Hempstead
- Bourne End Industrial EstateHemel Hempstead HP1 2RL
Dacorum's rating list shrank by 4.4% to 4,310 entries. Industrial units fell 13.6% to 1,020, and offices fell 8.8% to 1,140. Those industrial units are valuable, with an average rateable value of £72,100, reflecting the big buildings at Maylands. With supply contracting, a firm buying a unit faces competition, and the valuer will have fewer but higher-value comparables to work from.
What deposit and tax does a commercial property loan in Hemel Hempstead, UK involve?
Lenders typically advance 70 to 75% of the price or valuation for an owner-occupier, up to 80% for strong cases. Indicative rates are 6.0 to 7.5% a year over terms of 5 to 25 years, with arrangement fees of 1 to 2%, subject to status, accounts and valuation. Stamp Duty Land Tax applies to the purchase; HMRC's non-residential rates are 0% up to £150,000, 2% from £150,001 to £250,000 and 5% above (gov.uk; rates as at October 2026; check the current rates before you buy).
Illustrative example. A distribution company buys a freehold warehouse close to the A41 for £900,000. A 75% loan is £675,000, so the deposit is £225,000. SDLT on £900,000 is £34,500, taking the cash required to about £259,500 before fees. See our costs of buying premises page for the other items to budget for.
Planning and legal checks when refinancing premises in Hemel Hempstead, England
Dacorum Council is the planning authority, and it rebuilt the town's bus interchange next to the Marlowes Shopping Centre on Bridge Street, completed in September 2014. A lender's solicitor will check the planning history and that the current use is lawful. Security is a first legal charge registered at HM Land Registry.
Commercial lending to a limited company is unregulated and falls outside the FCA's regulated mortgage perimeter. Where a deal would be regulated, for example lending to a sole trader or individual, or a property where the borrower or a close family member will live in part of it, we refer it to an appropriately authorised firm. For the wider county, see commercial mortgages in Hertfordshire.
Owner-occupier finance in Hemel Hempstead's districts
Town centre and the Marlowes Shopping Centre
The New Town centre is anchored by the Marlowes Shopping Centre, with the bus interchange beside it on Bridge Street and the Water Gardens created from the old watercress beds. Retailers, food businesses and service firms buying a shop or office here want a fixed base in the busiest part of town.
Old Town
The original settlement lies in the valley below the New Town, which was built up the valley sides and onto the plateau above. Its older buildings suit independent shops, restaurants and professional offices, where the survey and any listed status matter to the lender.
Boxmoor
Boxmoor holds the railway station on the West Coast Main Line and sits beside the River Bulbourne and the Grand Union Canal. Offices and mixed-use buildings near the station suit firms whose staff commute, and a pub here commemorates Cranstone's 1867 steam coach.
Frogmore
Frogmore is where the Fourdrinier brothers built the first automatic papermaking machine in 1803, the start of the John Dickinson mills. Former industrial sites along the canal suit print, packaging and engineering firms that need workshop and storage space.
Woodhall Farm
Built on the site of the old Brock's fireworks factory, Woodhall Farm is now a residential neighbourhood with local shops. Convenience retailers, takeaways and service businesses buy parade units here, sometimes with a flat above.
