AEW UK Investment Management LLP and Ares Management, L.P. (NYSE: ARES) have announced the sale of AEW’s portfolio of 12 office properties located in the South East of the U.K. to a fund managed by Ares Management, L.P.
The portfolio’s properties, which comprise a total floor area of 482,642 square feet, are situated in strong commercial centres in the South East including business parks in Maidenhead, Theale and Wokingham as well as central Reading office space on Blagrave Street. More than 60% of the portfolio has recently been refurbished.
“Having identified this opportunity in the South East office market back in 2014, we are pleased to have successfully implemented our value-add strategy on behalf of our clients and to have delivered positive returns despite the underlying political and economic uncertainty with Brexit,” said Nick Winsley, Portfolio Manager, AEW UK South East Office Fund.
“This portfolio of high-quality office assets are a good fit for our long-standing value-add investment strategy,” said Wilson Lamont, Partner in the Ares Real Estate Group. “These properties have benefitted from a significant recent refurbishment programme and still stand to benefit from a number of initiatives to improve income across the portfolio.”
Tudor Toone represented AEW UK Investment Management on the transaction, and CBRE represented Ares.
