23 July 2018
HELICAL PLC
('Helical'/ 'the Company')
HELICAL GROWS MANCHESTER EXPOSURE WITH £16.5M PURCHASE OF FOURWAYS HOUSE
Helical plc announces the off market freehold acquisition of Fourways House, Hilton Street, Manchester for £16.5m from a private individual. The purchase price reflects a net initial yield of 5.3%.
Located in Manchester's increasingly sought after Northern Quarter on Hilton Street, to the rear of 35 Dale Street, another Helical asset, and adjacent to the Piccadilly Basin regeneration zone, the brick built Grade 2 listed former packing warehouse provides 59,000 sq ft of NIA over basement, ground and five upper floors.
The fully income producing building is let to 26 tenants largely from the tech, creative and fashion industries, providing plenty of opportunities to work with occupiers as their businesses evolve through offering short form and flexible leases. The building has already benefitted from refurbishment to provide exposed brickwork, steel columns, timber floors and exposed ceilings. As with a number of Helical's other successful office assets, such as The Loom and The Shepherds Building in London, Helical will undertake a rolling refurbishment programme as space becomes vacant as well as updating the common areas to help in repositioning the building.
The purchase of the asset is consistent with Helical's strategy to be an office-led investment and development company focussed purely on London and Manchester. Following this transaction Helical will own five Manchester office assets providing circa 450,000 sq ft.
Will Parry, Asset Management Executive at Helical, commented: "This transaction is further evidence of our belief that Manchester offers attractive opportunities for our skill set outside of London and we are excited about Fourways House. It is a typical Helical building, meaning that it will provide plenty of opportunities to improve it visually, and create office space targeted at the tech and creative industries. On an operational basis it will also lend itself to providing flexible leases, thus enabling us to work alongside our tenants to provide a long term home for their growing businesses."
Helical was advised by CBRE.
For further information please contact:
Helical
Gerald Kaye/Tim Murphy
Tel: 020 7629 0113
www.helical.co.uk
@helicalplc
FTI Consulting
Dido Laurimore/Tom Gough/Richard Gotla
Tel: 020 3727 1000
