KFIM offers up Manchester CBD repositioning opportunity

Knight Frank Investment Management is seeking bids in excess of £8.5m for Norfolk House, a 54,000 sq ft office in need of an overhaul. 

KFIM has appointed JLL to find a buyer for the largely vacant building, located off Norfolk Street in Manchester’s central business district. 

Options for the future of the building include a refurbishment to create modern workspace or a comprehensive redevelopment to provide a new-build office, hotel, or residential scheme. 

Norfolk House is located close to several other older office buildings currently undergoing or primed for redevelopment. 

These include Bruntwood’s Pall Mall and two M&G schemes – 50 Fountain Street and 58 Mosley Street. 

Norfolk House is home to three tenants across its four floors. They occupy a combined 15,500 sq ft.  

Avison Young is among the tenants to leave the building in recent years, vacating 16,000 sq ft to move to Aviva’s 11 York Street nearby. 

Norfolk House last traded in 2019 when DWS, formerly Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management, sold it to KFIM for £19.1m, in a deal reflecting a net initial yield of 6.02%. 

A sale at the £8.5m guide price would reflect a reversionary yield of 23.6% with a capital value of £157/sq ft.