Birmingham based Nurton Developments has disposed of its freehold interest in Cornerblock on Cornwall Street, Birmingham, to real estate investment company Aprirose for £5.58m, representing a yield of 4.9%.
Cornerblock is 95 per cent let, following a £14m refurbishment in 2017. The newly launched office building is located in the heart of the Colmore business district. The office is comprised of open plan office plates, on-site car parking, as well as bike facilities.
Simon Robinson from BNP Paribas who acted on behalf of Nurton Developments said: “it’s quite an unusual deal, yet in the current market it presents a good opportunity for Aprirose. There is the potential for continued rising rental returns as a new high was reached in the city at the end of last year of £33 psf driven by 55 Colmore Row.”
Nurton purchased the freehold for Cornerblock for £3.5m when it fell vacant and felt now was the right time to sell with the 110,000 sq ft building nearly 100 per cent let.
Rupert Young, development director at Nurton added: “The Cornerblock freehold has been a good performer for us without having to outlay significant capital too early.
“Clearly the interest HS2 is creating in Birmingham, as well as the revival of Colmore Row and the Central Business District as a new destination has made the freehold sale a good proposition.”
Rupert added: “Our business has always been about creating maximum growth from assets. As the business moves forward, we felt now was the time to extract our value from the building to put towards future planned projects in the region and across the UK. We have a large interest in strategic land at present and plan to continue to invest where the market dictates.”
The Cornerblock freehold sale by Nurton follows closely behind the disposal of two assets from the property company’s industrial portfolio in the West Midlands, which reached above the asking price, totaling £4 million.
Manish Gudka, CEO, Aprirose added: “There has been an increase of inward investment into Birmingham along with the regeneration of the city centre, underpinned by the prospect of HS2 boosting Birmingham’s status as England’s second city. This combined with the strength of the occupier market makes Birmingham an attractive location for investment in well-located high-quality office stock, such as Cornerblock.”
