Middle Eastern interest in Mayfair office stock has helped Evans Randall make a 33% return on its only West End asset.
The private equity group, advised by CBRE, has this week completed the sale of 15 Sackville Street, W1, for £80m – a sub-4% yield.
It was bought by a private Middle Eastern client of Goldenberg Real Estate and Noureen Investment.
The purchase comes 18 months after Evans Randall bought the largely vacant 34,000 sq ft building for £60m from MBK Real Estate with senior debt provided by Aareal Bank.
Evans Randall secured a number of lettings above £100 per sq ft, taking the property to 100% let. Tenants include yacht broker Camper & Nicholsons and hotel group Four Seasons.
Kent Gardner, chief executive of Evans Randall, said: “This sale signifies the culmination of our robust asset management strategy to attract high-calibre occupiers to this prime Mayfair freehold, resulting in substantial investor interest.”
A spokesman for Noureen Investment added: “Our client was seeking to acquire a prime property in the UK that was located in a prime position, with a prestigious line-up of tenants. Our client is proud to now own a piece of Mayfair.”
Middle Eastern money spent on West End commercial properties more than trebled in the first six months of 2014 to £272m, compared with £88m in the same period in 2013, according to Knight Frank.
Middle Eastern money continues to be attracted to soaring office rents in Mayfair and the safe haven for investment the capital offers. Deals this year include the Qatari owners of the Ark in Hammersmith buying the 60,130 sq ft 130 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1, for £67m from LaSalle Investment Management, and Qatar Islamic Bank (UK) paying a private offshore fund just over £20m for the 9,100 sq ft 43 Grosvenor Street, W1, for its UK headquarters.
joanna.bourke@estatesgazette.com
