£335m – the value of overseas investors to Birmingham’s office market

OVERSEAS investors were behind half of the office deals in Birmingham city centre last year, spending £335m in the city.

Two of the biggest deals of the year – the £131m purchase of RBS’s Brindleyplace headquarters by Verwaltungsgesellschaft für Versorgungswerke (VGV) and the £36.7m purchase of Deutsche Bank’s home at One Brindleyplace by GLL Real Estate – were both executed by German funds.

UK institutions invested £218m, about one-third of the city’s total, with £108m coming from investment vehicles for ultra high net worth individuals (UHNWIs), analysis by Knight Frank has found.

Colmore Plaza was sold to Ashby Capital, an investment fund for private investors, in August in a deal worth £140m .

UHNWIs accounts for about 16% of the investment into Birmingham city centre’s offices amd although this is behind the 25% global average identified in the property agency’s Wealth Report.

Ashley Hudson, investment partner and head of Knight Frank’s Birmingham office, believes private investors have become a permanent fixture in the city’s commercial property investment scene.

He said: “As an asset class, property has become increasingly attractive to individuals with deep pockets. It is a tangible asset, with an underlying value as well as providing income. It offers reduced volatility relative to assets subject to daily market pricing and protection from inflation.

“In Birmingham, office lots of sub-£30m are the most attractive to private buyers.”

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