Two prime office buildings in Cardiff have come under new ownership following a multi-million-pound deal. The Fusion Point One and Two buildings on Dumballs Road have been acquired by an undisclosed overseas investor after being put up for sale by Fidelity UK Real Fund.
Newmark UK acted for the acquirer, with the Cardiff office of Knight Frank acting for Fidelity. The freehold in both properties were marketed separately, but with Fidelity's preference being for them to be sold together to one investor. Fusion One had been marketed with a guide price in excess of £10.8 million and Fusion Two in excess of £6.3 million. The value of the deal has not been disclosed, but is understood to have been below the combined guide prices.
Details of the Properties
Fusion Point One, whose tenants include the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) and American streaming giant Roku UK, provides 63,500 square feet of office space. It generates a current annual rental income of £1.16 million. On letting its vacant space, which accounts for around a fifth of the building, it is expected to achieve a rental income of £1.53 million. The IBO relocated to the refurbished building last year, taking 25,000 square feet of space. It moved from its longstanding office at Cardiff Gate Business Park on the outskirts of the capital.
Fusion Two, which provides 59,578 square feet of office space, is currently occupied by professional advisory firm Deloitte. The building, whose first floor is vacant, currently generates an annual rental income of £881,128. Knight Frank and Fletcher Morgan have been retained as marketing agents, with strong interest in the vacant space in both buildings.
Market Commentary
John Shaffer, capital markets at Newmark UK, said: "Despite the global market uncertainty, we continue to see activity from overseas capital, attracted by the strong returns UK regional offices offer."
Recent Comparable Deal
Last week, the 135,000 square foot Hodge House office scheme in the centre of Cardiff also came under new ownership. Financial services giant Legal & General put its investment in the listed building up for sale last November with a £34.1 million asking price. The sales process, overseen by Knight Frank, attracted strong interest before a deal was concluded with London-based real estate, development and asset management start-up SevenCitiesLdn. The value of that deal has not been disclosed but is understood to have been close to the asking price. The Cardiff office of Savills acted for SevenCitiesLdn, which launched last year with backing from property development and investment group SevenCapital. The acquisition is the first for SevenCitiesLdn, which is looking to drive deal flow for added value commercial property assets.
