Property investor Helical has expanded its office portfolio with the acquisition of an asset in the northwest of England for £16.5m (€18.5m).

The London-listed company said it bought Fourways House, Hilton Street, in Manchester from a private seller. The purchase price reflects a net initial yield of 5.3%. 

Helical said it will undertake a rolling refurbishment programme as space becomes vacant as well as updating the common areas to help in repositioning the building. The building is currently let to 26 tenants.

Following this transaction Helical will own five Manchester office assets providing around 450,000sqft.

Will Parry, an asset management executive at Helical, said: “This transaction is further evidence of our belief that Manchester offers attractive opportunities for our skill set outside of London and we are excited about Fourways House.”

Last month, Helical completed the sale of its remaining non-core assets to focus on London and Manchester.

“It is a typical Helical building, meaning that it will provide plenty of opportunities to improve it visually, and create office space targeted at the tech and creative industries, Parry said.

”On an operational basis, it will also lend itself to providing flexible leases, thus enabling us to work alongside our tenants to provide a long-term home for their growing businesses.”