Seneca acquires 55 Princess Street in Manchester 

The North West-based investor has snapped up the 57,000 sq ft office building from Abrdn.

Seneca Property has acquired the freehold of the six-storey 55 Princess Street, which was put up for sale with a £20m guide price last year.

The Manchester asset occupies is located between Albert Square and St Peter’s Square. Tenants at 55 Princess Street include law firm Trowers & Hamlin, which occupies 17,000 sq ft on a lease that expires in 2030. The ground floor retail unit is occupied by Tesco.

Jeff Morton, Seneca Property chief executive, said: “This purchase demonstrates Seneca’s ability to identify potential within high-quality, well-located assets where we believe we can bring significant value through our active management strategy.

“We are actively evaluating other such investment opportunities where we can offer sellers transactional speed and execution certainty.”

Chris Bullough, Seneca Property managing director added that there is still “significant demand” for assets like 55 Princess Street.

“We are looking forward to working with the occupiers to further enhance a top-quality working environment,” he said.

“We also look forward to the completion of the ongoing works to Albert Square and Manchester Town Hall which will provide a stunning backdrop to the property for years to come.”

JLL advised Abrdn. Seneca received legal advice from Hill Dickinson.

Abrdn had bought the building for £21.8m from Benson Elliot in 2015.

The Hodder & Partners-designed 55 Princess Street was built in 2008 by a joint venture between LNC and CTP, and was formerly known as Aurora.

55 Princess Street is the latest sale launched by Abrdn in recent months.

In 2022, the company sold Sunlight House for £42m to Kinrise and Karrev, while Urbana picked up 17 Quay Street.

In Liverpool, Abrdn sold No5 St Paul’s Square to Forma for £35m.