Invesco Real Estate agreed to buy the property from Bruntwood, considering the deal to align with its “high-quality buildings in core locations” strategy.
For its part, Bruntwood viewed the sale as a chance to diversify its office space portfolio and focus on growth in the commercial property of other English cities, including Leeds and Birmingham.
See Bruntwood’s Office Portfolio here
“We are delighted to acquire this building in the heart of Manchester city centre for our dedicated UK fund,” said Toby Simon, director of fund management at Invesco Real Estate. “The property complements our fund profile well by focusing on strong real estate fundamentals.”
The fund’s head of European asset management, Neil Harris, said he and his colleagues are looking forward to working closely with the current occupiers of the Manchester offices, which could hardly be more centrally located.
“This sale is a key part of our growth and diversification plans,” noted Bruntwood’s chief executive Chris Oglesby. “We are actively looking at expanding our customer base in Manchester through significant new investment in the science and technology sectors,” he added.
The purchase of One New York Street adds to Investec Real Estate’s already extensive portfolio of office space properties and to its total assets, which are worth more than £16 billion. The business has offices in Munich, Paris, Prague, Madrid, and Luxembourg and is headquartered in the West End of London.
One of the largest ongoing office developments in Manchester is just a short distance from New York Street. The Co-operative Group will establish a new headquarters on Miller Street towards the northern edge of the city centre within the group’s NOMA scheme.