Great Portland Estates snaps up West End building for £51m

(Sharecast News) - Great Portland Estates has further boosted its West End portfolio after agreeing to buy a building from the City of London Corporation for £51m, it was announced on Wednesday. The FTSE 250 property firm has acquired a 155-year leasehold interest in 10 South Crescent, WC1, a 72,605sq ft building off London's Tottenham Court Road.

The price - equivalent to £708 per square foot on current net internal area - reflects a net yield of 6.8%, and a projected running yield of 7.1% once the vacant retail unit is let.

GPE plans to redevelop the building as a "best-in-class, decarbonised HQ office and retail building".

Harry Buxton, investment manager at GPE, said: "10 South Crescent is a valuable addition to our central London portfolio and further demonstrates our ability to find value in our core West End markets.

"Since our 2024 rights issue, we have now acquired six West End repositioning opportunities with an estimated capital commitment of around £440m, and at a combined discount to replacement cost of some 60%."