UK-based private equity investor Benson Elliot has sold the 51,700 sq ft 55 Princess Street in Manchester for £22.4m, a 5.65% yield, to Ignis UK Property Fund, managed by Standard Life Investments.
Princess Street comprises six floors of office space along with 4,100 sq ft of ground-floor retail space.
The purchase was took place as Orchard Street Investment Management purchased Benson Elliot’s 122,000 sq ft Templeback in Bristol for £58.5m, a 5.34% yield.
The two off-market deals mean Benson Elliot has sold seven assets in the past year, drawing in over £275m in receipts.
Benson Elliot managing partner Marc Mogull said: “We have successfully marketed a number of our mature UK regional assets in BEREP II during the past 12 months, and have also had some unsolicited approaches on our BEREP III portfolio, reflecting the strong appetite among investors for institutional quality properties such as Templeback and Princess Street.
“The returns we have secured from these seven investments support our conviction to be an early mover into the regions, and underscore the success we have had in implementing our value-add programmes.”
Cube Real Estate is asset manager for Benson Elliot. JLL advised Standard Life.
