Liverpool’s Metquarter sells for £21m

THE Metquarter shopping centre in Liverpool has been sold for £21m – a significant discount to its value six years ago.

It has been bought by the London-based Columbus UK Real Estate Fund, part of investment bank Schroders’ real estate investment and asset management business.

It is understood the vendors were looking for around £25m, well below the £90m it changed hands for in 2007 when it was bought by Anglo Irish Bank Private Banking and Alanis Capital.

The 136,000 dq ft centre has been sold by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation which was set up to wind down the failed Anglo Irish and Irish Nationwide banks.

Columbus said the deal represented a triple net initial yield of 8.5% and a capital value of £154/sq ft. A new senior debt facility has been provided by the Royal Bank of Scotland to fund the purchase.

Joe Froud, managing partner of Columbus Capital Management, said: “Liverpool is a strong retail city but the delivery of Liverpool One, coinciding as it did with the recession, created conditions that weakened The Metquarter.

“Now that Liverpool One is established and fully let we are confident that our repositioning strategy, together with significant financing to deliver it, will re-establish the Metquarter as the city’s premium retail destination.”

Occupiers include Hugo Boss, LK Bennett, Jo Malone and Kurt Geiger. Savills acted for the vendors.