Two Edinburgh office buildings have changed hands in separate deals for a combined nearly £40m, as investor interest in 'core-plus' assets in the city picks up.
7 Castle Street, located on the corner of Princes Street and Castle Street, and Caledonian Exchange in Edinburgh’s Exchange district, have been acquired by FSX Holdings and Catella APAM, respectively.
Commercial property consultancy Knight Frank acted on behalf of the vendors on both deals, with purchasing advice provided by GLJ Property on 7 Castle Street and EYCO on Caledonian Exchange.
Arranged over six storeys, 7 Castle Street provides 40,249 sq ft of retail and office accommodation on a corner site between Princes Street and Castle Street. Vodafone, CBRE and SSE are among its current occupiers.
Situated on Canning Street, Caledonian Exchange consists of 59,710 sq ft of Grade A office space. Its occupiers include Lindsays and Young Scot.
Knight Frank said the two transactions take core-plus offices deals in Edinburgh to £100m over the last 12 months, following the sales of Orchard Brae House, Edinburgh Quay 1 and Exchange Tower.
Alasdair Steele, head of Scotland commercial at Knight Frank, said: “The deals for 7 Castle Street and Caledonian Exchange show that investor demand for offices in Edinburgh remains strong, despite a challenging macro-economic and lending backdrop.
“At a time when the ‘flight to quality’ has been a major trend across the UK, the deals demonstrate the resilience and the depth of investor interest in the city, with prime stock relatively limited and the occupier market remaining strong.”
Separately, Vita Group has exchanged contracts with City Property Glasgow to purchase 20 India Street in Glasgow, subject to planning.
Extending to 1.28 acres, it was previously home to Nye Bevan House - used by Strathclyde Regional Council and then by Glasgow City Council - which was demolished in 2015, with the site cleared to make way for new development.
Mark Oakes, Vita Group's chief commercial officer said: “A fantastic location in the heart of Glasgow, 20 India Street has the potential to be an exciting, thriving new community which adds to the fabric of the city, we look forward to bringing forward plans for this site in the summer.”
Joanne McDowall, asset manager for City Property said: “We’re delighted to complete this deal with Vita Group and look forward to seeing Vita’s plans for development and the future regeneration of a significant site within Glasgow city centre.”
Don't miss the latest headlines with our twice-daily newsletter - sign up here for free.
