A Taiwanese life insurer is in pole position to buy LondonMetric’s trophy City development One Carter Lane, EC4.
Fubon Life is leading a pack of bidders for the 125,000 sq ft office block as the REIT nears the end of the leasing campaign for the refurbishment scheme.
The ground and first floors remain vacant but LondonMetric is in advanced talks with tenants to lease the space.
It has entertained numerous approaches for the long leasehold interest in the building over the past 18 months following a strong run of lettings to tenants including SEB and MFS at rents of more than £60 per sq ft in the summer of 2013.
Peter Ferrari’s Ashby Capital was in advanced talks to buy the building following the lettings. However, LondonMetric ruled out a sale at the time as it focused on leasing the remaining space.
Other investors have since made approaches but a deal is not now expected until the leasing campaign is complete.
LondonMetric appointed JLL and Strutt & Parker in May to advise on the building.
The group’s June 2014 results presentation valued the building at 4.8% based on the rent roll achieved so far of £4.9m for 72% of the total office space.
The final disposal price will depend on the level of rent achieved for the last remaining floors but it is expected to be in the region of £130m.
London & Stamford – which merged with Metric Property to form LondonMetric – originally bought the long leasehold interest in One Carter Lane and Two Old Change Court in April 2011 from UBS’s Triton Property Fund for £75m, reflecting a net initial yield of 7.33%.
The company has since identified the building as non-core.
In July 2013 it sold its other big City office block, One Fleet Place, EC4 for £112.5m to a Far Eastern multinational corporation advised by James Andrews International.
Savills is advising Fubon Life.
