Investment manager Patrizia Immobilien has made its first foray into the UK market with the purchase of two offices in Birmingham and Bracknell in a joint venture with Oaktree Capital Management.
Investment manager Patrizia Immobilien has made its first foray into the UK market with the purchase of two offices in Birmingham and Bracknell in a joint venture with Oaktree Capital Management.
The deals follow hard on the heels of the completion of Patrizia's acquisition of London-based Tamar Capital Group.
Patrizia, in partnership with funds or accounts managed by Oaktree, has bought the Edmund House office property in Birmingham from clients of Aberdeen Asset Management for £8 mln (€9.5 mln), reflecting a net initial yield of 10%.
Located in Birmingham city centre, the building provides 7,400 m2 of accommodation of which 30% is currently vacant. Tenants include Gresham Trust, Lloyds Bank and Eversheds.
Patrizia and Oaktree, which were advised by CBRE said they plan to refurbish and relaunch the property.
In the second transaction, Patrizia and Oaktree have acquired 3, The Arena, Bracknell from SWIP for £7 mln, reflecting a purchase yield of 14%. The 4,000 m2 office building is located adjacent to Arlington Business Park, and is let for a further 5.5 years to JDA. Patrizia and Oaktree were advised by Jones Lang LaSalle and the vendor by Capita Symonds.
'We have been actively monitoring the UK market for some time,' said James Muir, managing director of Patrizia's UK business. 'At present, UK regional markets present an opportunity, on a selective basis, to acquire attractive assets at an opportune time in the market with the prospect to add value through asset management.'
