Aberdeen picks up West End office from St James’s Place

Aberdeen Investments has bought a prime West End office from St James’s Place for a little over £48m. The deal for the freehold of 27 Mortimer Street, W1, sees Aberdeen pick up a six-storey, 33,635 sq ft mixed-use property with five floors of grade-A offices above retail space on the lower-ground and ground floors, the latter let to a dental practice and training academy. Orchard Street Investment Management completed a refurbishment and extension on behalf of St James’s Place in 2022, including a new fifth floor with a roof terrace. The passing rents are now reversionary with new and refurbished schemes locally achieving £100-£150 per sq ft on the best space. James McLean, fund manager at Aberdeen Investments, said: “Aberdeen are delighted with the acquisition of Mortimer Street. Acquiring an office asset in London’s West End was a clear objective of the fund team. It should provide stable income with the potential to drive rental growth through asset management of the vacant first floor.” CBRE advised St James’s Place, while Savills advised Aberdeen Investments.