Prominent Colmore Row investment snapped up

Colliers International’s Birmingham office has completed the sale of 126 Colmore Row for in excess of the £2 million asking price.

The city centre office and restaurant investment has been acquired by a private local property company and is one of the first major deals in the city since the EU referendum result.

Occupying a prime pitch on Colmore Row at its junction with Victoria Square, the circa 10,000 sq ft period building comprises eight self-contained office suites over the first to fifth floors. The building is occupied by three tenants, producing an annual rental income of £103,520. The ground floor is occupied by popular Chinese eatery Chung Ying Central, with Walker Crips Stockbrokers and CS2 Chartered Surveyors occupying two of the office suites.

Commenting on the sale, Nick Hammond, Associate Director at Colliers International, said: “Dating back to the 1900s, this prime period property in the centre of Birmingham’s Colmore Business District offers excellent investment potential, so it was no surprise to see the sale go through despite post-Brexit uncertainty.”

“The building is in a great spot between the 103 Colmore Row redevelopment and the extensive Paradise scheme.  It is another exciting example of the evolution we are seeing in Birmingham and demonstrates investor confidence in the strength of the occupier market for office and F&B space in the city.”

George Jennings, Joint Agent and Director at Bilfinger GVA, added: “The rapidity of this sale so soon after the EU referendum and the healthy sale figure are strong demonstrations that political instability is having little effect on Birmingham’s commercial property market in real terms.

“There is still a limited supply of good quality long-leasehold and freehold properties in the city core and those that come to market are being snapped up quickly by acquisitive investors.

“As seen in the first half of 2016, the level of deals of up to 2,000 sq ft are good, and high quality suites from 500 sq ft to 2,000 sq ft are achieving high £20s per sq ft. This is a true sign that small businesses are continuing to grow and not held back by the constraints of politics and Brexit.”