Circus site sold for £24.4m

CBRE Global Investors has acquired the Circus leisure block in central Manchester for £24.4m.

The site, at the junction of Portland Street and Oxford Street, contains a number of large leisure units including a 228-bed Premier Inn hotel, two bars, a Boots outlet and a Circus Casino owned by Genting Group.

Private investors, trading as Circus Invest, bought the site two years ago for £20.1m from LaSalle Investment Management.

The deal follows CBRE Global Investors’ £23m acquisition of the Tower 12 office block in Spinningfields last month. The investors said both deals reflected its determination to diversify into assets outside London.

Michael Ness, head of UK for CBRE GI, said: “Manchester has experienced significant investment over the last 10 years and presents strong growth opportunities. These transactions reflect CBRE Global Investors’ active investment management strategy in good quality assets outside London.”