Bishops Square office complex sold
A large office complex in central London has been sold in a multi-million pound deal announced to the stock market yesterday.
The Bishops Square offices building has been sold by Bishops Square Holdings Limited, a 25:75 joint venture between Hammerson plc and Oman Investment Fund. The new owners are JP Morgan Asset Management who have agreed to pay £557m for the buildings. The complex was last valued for accounting purposes at £510m in June, 2010. Hammerson had previously bought out the 25% holding in the development belonging to the City of London in 2007.
Bishops Square (pictured) is predominately offices with retail space on the ground floor. Completed in 2005 and designed by Foster & Partners, the development also created a significant, new public space in London. The development has been recognised with several awards, including Best Commercial-led Regeneration Project of the Year (2006) and British Urban Regeneration Award (2008).
Total, Grade A office floor space amounts to 774,000 sq ft with the retail space taking an additional 40,000 sq ft. The offices are solely let as headquarters to international law firm Allen & Overy LLP on a long term lease. Annual rental income for the whole building amounts to £35m / year with average rental prices for the combined retail and office space equating to approximately £43 / sq ft.
Peter Reilly, Head of J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s European Real Estate Group, said: “We remain bullish on investing in high-quality, well-tenanted office properties located throughout Europe.”
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