Saudi investor seeks exit from £40m Manchester portfolio

AIMS Investment is selling four buildings comprising 163 rental apartments five years after buying the schemes from Beech Holdings.

Saudi Arabia-based AIMS has appointed CBRE to find a buyer for the quartet of Manchester residential schemes, which it acquired for £39m in 2019.

AIMS took a majority stake in Beech Holdings in 2020 following the completion of the deal.

The properties up for grabs are Basil House on Portland Street, Salisbury House on Granby Row, 341 Great Western Street in Rusholme, and 51 King Street, which has Patagonia in occupation on the ground floor.

Each asset is held by a special purpose vehicle controlled by AIMS directors Saleh Abdullah Alsubeaei and Wasim Choudhury, according to Companies House and Land Registry.

CBRE is seeking bids in excess of £40.5m for the portfolio, which equates to an average of £248,466 per apartment.

The apartments have a current occupancy level of 99%.

The residential and the commercial space offer a combined potential income of close to £3m a year, according to CBRE.

Giovanni Pilla, associate director in CBRE’s residential capital markets team in Manchester, said: “The portfolio has been strategically built up over several years and presents an excellent opportunity for investors.

“All the assets are in prime locations with access to a deep rental pool, being within walking distance to Manchester’s universities and key employment hubs.”