Chancery Place ‘under offer’
NFU Mutual is tipped as the frontrunner in the race to buy Chancery Place in Manchester city centre, with a purchase price that would represent a 5% yield.
Chancery Place off King Street and Spring Gardens was put on the market for £52.1m earlier this year, representing a net initial yield of 5.5%. The 106,000 sq ft office building at 50 Brown Street is being sold by Alanis Capital, with JLL appointed to market the property.
The building is currently fully let and tenants include Clyde & Co, HSB Engineering and Clearwater Finance. The property brings an income of £3m a year, with a rental value of £28/sq ft.
Anglo Irish Bank provided £28.7m to redevelop the site, which was originally the location for the Scottish Provident building. The plot was bought by a consortium of Irish developers in 2006 for a reported £9.5m, and the building was completed in 2008. Anglo Irish Bank was wound down during the recession.
The sale of St James' House to BA Pension Fund in June for £21m represented a 6.5% yield, while the purchase of One Piccadilly Gardens by Legal & General in July for around £75m gave a 5.75% yield.
NFU Mutual is advised by CBRE. All parties declined or were unavailable to comment.
