The West End of London Property Unit Trust (WELPUT), managed by Schroders and advised by Grafton Advisors, has signed a deal to sell the freehold interest in Stratton House, 5 Stratton Street, London W1, to a private European investor. The transaction amounts to £166 mln (EUR 202 mln), reflecting a net initial yield of 4.2%.
The West End of London Property Unit Trust (WELPUT), managed by Schroders and advised by Grafton Advisors, has signed a deal to sell the freehold interest in Stratton House, 5 Stratton Street, London W1, to a private European investor. The transaction amounts to £166 mln (EUR 202 mln), reflecting a net initial yield of 4.2%.
Welput acquired the freehold interest in Stratton House in 2005. The strategy post purchase was to carry out an extensive refurbishment of the building and reposition it from a tired secondary asset to a prime office-based mixed-use building. The work was completed in 2009.
The Grade II landmark building, built in 1929, is opposite Green Park and the Ritz Hotel on Piccadilly, and provides a total of 108,000 sq ft (10,800 m2) of prime mixed-use accommodation. It is currently let to 12 tenants.
Nigel Kempner of Grafton Advisors and head of Fund Management at Quintain Group, said: 'We wanted to take advantage of the strong international investment market for prime West End investments and have sold at an attractive price, following good competition from all over the world, to a private European investor.'
William Hill, head of Property at Schroders, added: 'We expect investor demand for ‘Super-Prime’ West End investments to continue and will be looking to reinvest capital in buildings which can be repositioned towards that market.'
DTZ and Strutt & Parker advised Welput on the sale, and Savills acted on behalf of the purchaser.
