TWO IRISH investment funds have availed of the strong commercial property market in London to sell a high profile retail building in Oxford Street for £76 million (€87 million). The investment was sold by private clients of Anglo Irish Bank and Dublin-based asset managers, Wealth and Property Solutions Ltd (WAPS) at a net yield of 4.27 per cent.
The multi-let building at Sedley Place on Oxford Street anchored by a large Boots store was acquired from London Corporation in 2005 for £69 million (€79 million) inclusive of stamp duty, VAT and fees. The latest owner is Scottish Widows.
WAPS, which held a 20 per cent stake in the investment, managed to increase the overall rent roll from £3.43 million (€3.93 million) to £3.81 million (€4.38 million) through a review of the Boots lease on four retail floors and also by letting vacant space in an adjoining food mall. Boots, which contributes around 83 per cent of the overall rental income, also has its head office on the top floor of the five storey building.
Kieran Gaughan, managing director of WAPS, said by holding the building through the depths of the financial crisis in 2008/2009 they managed to deliver rental growth from a number of rent reviews, letting vacant space and enhancing the investment value.
The sale of the Oxford Street block is the second significant property disposal by WAPS in the past 12 months. Earlier this year it sold a large department store in Berlin occupied by Zara for €43 million.
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