Weekly Planning News From the Central London Boroughs

A weekly round up of the latest planning and property news from the central London boroughs

Camden

EG reports that a Japanese private client of Sumitomo Mitusi Trust Bank has acquired london’s principal divorce court for £154m – a yield of 3.4%. Sol Zakay’s Topland Group has sold the freehold interest in First Avenue House, 42-49 High Holborn, WC1, which compromises 112,274 sq ft of office space and is let in its entirety to the First Secretary of State until September 2038, with fixed rental uplifts of 2.5% pa.

City of London

PW reports that Credit Suisse Asset Management Global Real Estate has brought the 10-storey Monument Building in London for £118m from Skanska.

PW reports that Framestore, an Oscar-winning British visual effects firm, has signed a deal to double its London office footprint, taking 100,000 sq ft at Virdis Real Estate’s 28 Chancery Lane.

PW reports that Said Holdings has acquired the mixed-use Aldermary House at 10-15 Queen Street in the City from Quintain for £48m. The 63,631 sq ft building comprises basement, ground and eight upper floors with 15 office and retail tenants.

EG reports that Goldman Sachs is contemplating a £1bn-plus sale-and-leaseback of its new City headquarters. It is developing the new 840,000 sq ft Fleet Building at 40 Shoe Lane, EC4, where it is due to move staff in 2019. The investment bank has appointed CBRE to advise on the prospective deal.

EG reports that Indonesian investor Sinar Mas Land has placed the WeWork-let Curistor building in Chancery Lane under offer for around £90m. The 65,638 sq ft office block would have an initial net yield of 4.5%.

City of Westminster

PW reports that a subsidiary of Nippon Telegraph & Telephone (NTT) — a Japanese telecoms giant — is on the cusp of selling the 76,000 sq ft 265 Strand to Trinity Grand Investment Management. NTT Urban Development has been quietly marketing the office space and it is thought Trinity Grans will pay around £80m for the building, a yield of under 6%. 265 Strand is currently being let to US law firm Covington & Burling until 2021. The 10-storey building produces an annual income of more than £4.5m.

PW reports that Quadrum has secured unconditional planning consent for a hotel scheme at 54-57 Great Marlborough, Soho. The firm plans to build a 63,400 sq ft, 118-room hotel. The expected GDV of the development, which also includes retail and restaurant space, is £130m.

Kensington & Chelsea

PW reports that Capital & Countries has exchanged contracts with an international investor for the £66m sale of 49 apartments and 31 parking spaces at its Lillie Square joint venture in Earls Court, a week after it wrote down the wider scheme’s value by £100m

Wandsworth

EG reports that Delancy is selling the 70,000 sq ft Shop Stop, the retail parade attached to Clapham Junction station for around £10m – a yield of 4%.