Kennedy Wilson acquires Telegraph's London HQ for €260m

Kennedy Wilson Europe Real Estate (KWE) has completed the acquisition of the London headquarters of Telegraph Media Group on Buckingham Palace Road in London for £204 mln (€260 mln).

The transaction was carried out through the share purchase of the corporate vehicle that owns 111 Buckingham Palace Road, Victoria SW1.

The underlying real estate is valued at £207.5 mln, reflecting a gross yield of 5.1% which is expected to rise to about 7% following execution of asset management plans, London-listed KWE said in a statement. The acquisition will be funded from the company’s cash resources.

The vendor was Kish Holdings, an entity managed and controlled by Ireland's Green Property Ventures (Green Property).

The 227,165 sq ft (21,100 m2) office building is located in the West End core sub market of Victoria, immediately over the mainline railway station and the Victoria Plaza shopping centre, fronting onto Buckingham Palace Road.

The building is fully occupied with a weighted average unexpired lease term of 5.7 years to first break (6.7 years to expiry) and average passing rents of around £47 psf. It is the London headquarters of Telegraph Media Group (accounting for 54% of rental income), private equity group Advent International, TV and internet content group Scripps Network and serviced offices operator Regus.

The building was fully refurbished in 2003 and offers floor plates ranging between 41,800 sq ft and 67,500 sq ft. The property also benefits from an unimplemented planning consent to redevelop the reception area.

JLL advised KWE and CBRE acted for the vendor.