Former Nationwide HQ to make up to €15m

Commercial Property Editor

The former headquarters of the Irish Nationwide Building Society are to be offered for sale in the coming weeks on the instructions of liquidators.

The eight-storey building at Grand Parade, Dublin 6, is expected to be of interest both to Irish and overseas property companies because of a range of development opportunities in the overall grounds which extend to 1.7 acres.

Liquidators Kieran Wallace and Eamonn Richardson of KPMG are to appoint a commercial property agent in the coming week to handle the sale of the 3,716sq m (40,000sq ft) block, one of a large number of assets held by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation which are to be sold before the end of the year.

Luas line
DTZ Sherry FitzGerald has already found buyers for all but six of the 50 branch offices of Irish Nationwide in Dublin and the provinces over the past year. The sales have netted more than €20 million to date.

One of the highest prices was the €1.1 million paid for the prominent branch at the corner of Dublin’s O’Connell Street and Eden Quay.

The head office overlooking the Grand Canal at Grand Parade was purchased by the society in 1991 for £4 million (about €5.1 million) just as the property market began to recover from after a lengthy slowdown.

The building had previously served as the headquarters of the then Irish-owned tobacco company PJ Carroll , whose cigarette brands were among the best selling in Ireland in the 20th century.

The grounds of the Grand Parade building originally exceeded two acres but were reduced to 1.7 acres when part of the area was used to accommodate the Luas line.

The Nationwide HQ is likely to be valued at between €12 million and €15 million. The building itself is unlikely be worth more than €6 million or €7 million because of its dated fit-out.

Extensive grounds
Most interest is expected to centre on the extensive grounds which have a mixed residential and office zoning and are ideal for an apartment development or a hotel.

Some developers might well opt for an office scheme because of the close proximity to the city centre and the Luas service. One commercial agent said the grounds “are more like a Dublin 2 location than a Dublin 6 development opportunity.”

The property is directly opposite the McConnell House office block formerly owned by developer Bernard McNamara and offered for sale earlier this year by receivers appointed by Ulster Bank.

There was little or no interest in the sale and the building was bought at €2.5 million by the bank’s asset wing, West Register. It has since secured planning permission for a substantially larger block on the site.

The building adjoins the Hilton hotel, owned by another developer Jerry O’Reilly whose loans are being managed by Nama.