Topland has acquired two UK office assets – 145 Morrison Street in Edinburgh and Citygate II in Newcastle – from the listed REIT EPIC managed by The Ediston Property Investment Company plc, for a total of c.£31.4 million.
Citygate II is a prime Grade A office building in the heart of Newcastle CBD and adjacent to the city’s two most prominent developments Strawberry Place and The Helix, Innovation Quarter. The building comprises high quality office accommodation totalling c.63,000 sq ft arranged over ground and five upper floors. The building is 100% let to three tenants producing £1,592,000 per annum reflecting an average rent of £25.30 per sq ft. The building was acquired for £19.375 million, reflecting a net initial yield of 7.80%.
145 Morrison Street, Edinburgh is a prime Grade A office building strategically located in Edinburgh’s Exchange/financial services district. The building provides c.26,900 sq ft of Grade A office accommodation over ground and four upper floors. The building is entirely let to Capita until 26th July 2030 at a total passing rent of £740,000 per annum, reflecting a rental rate of £27.50 psf. The building was acquired for £12.06m, reflecting a net initial yield of 5.80.
Sol Zakay, Chairman & CEO of Topland, comments: “These are quality assets, very well located in dynamic office markets. They provide a strong WAULT, a strong tenant base and also offer optionality in terms of investment strategy.
These latest acquisitions come off the back of a very busy year for Topland. On the equity side we have deployed over £240m in 2021 – our investment strategy continues to be deal-led with single and multi-let investments across the retail, industrial and office sectors. We have also been deploying capital through joint ventures in both London and the regions, again across a range of sectors and including development opportunities. We remain acquisitive and will be looking to continue with our investment drive into 2022.”
Richard Merryweather, joint head of UK investment at Savills, says: “ We are delighted to have advised Topland on this transaction. Both buildings are positioned in prime locations and are perfectly placed to capitalise on investment into the wider area with significant rental growth potential.”
Savills acted for Topland on the acquisition, while Allsop acted on behalf of the seller.
