Fire-hit Birmingham student block Londonderry House to be auctioned for £850,000+
A 175-bedroom student accommodation block in Birmingham city centre, left empty since 2021 after failing fire safety checks, is to go under the hammer with a guide price of £850,000-plus.
Londonderry House, an eight-storey building at 2 Newton Street built on top of a car park near Aston University and Birmingham City University, will be sold in Bond Wolfe’s livestreamed auction on Thursday 22 October.
The block was vacated after the fire authority issued a non-compliance notice, according to Bond Wolfe marketing director Craig Upton.
It offers 175 bedrooms across cluster flats and studios — 167 ensuite rooms and eight studios in total — spread over floors nine to 16, with a ground-floor reception, laundry and covered parking accessed from Dale End.
Planning permission was granted in 2022 to add three further storeys and 60 extra units, along with new external cladding, but that consent has since lapsed.
The property is held on a lease with around 72 years remaining, subject to a peppercorn ground rent, and the original 2002 lease included provision for negotiating a longer 154-year lease with Birmingham City Council — arrangements that were never completed.
The auction starts at 8.30am on 22 October, with remote bidding available by proxy, phone or online.
