RE Capital achieves record Westminster office rent at refurb
A newly refurbished block near Westminster Abbey has achieved a record office rent for the area of £95 per sq ft.
An unnamed private equity manager will move into the top two floors – the fifth and sixth – of the building at 1 Old Queen Street, SW1, which investor RE Capital revamped during the pandemic.
RE Capital bought the building during the first lockdown for £24m, making it one of the only office investment deals in the third quarter of 2020.
A newly refurbished block near Westminster Abbey has achieved a record office rent for the area of £95 per sq ft.
An unnamed private equity manager will move into the top two floors – the fifth and sixth – of the building at 1 Old Queen Street, SW1, which investor RE Capital revamped during the pandemic.
RE Capital bought the building during the first lockdown for £24m, making it one of the only office investment deals in the third quarter of 2020.
Since then, it has poured £4m into a large-scale refurbishment of the site, including adding a communal roof terrace overlooking Westminster Abbey.
The fourth and third floors have been completed to a conventional Cat-A specification and have been let at rents of £86.50 per sq ft and £85 per sq ft respectively, both on 10-year leases with five-yearly tenant-only breaks. The first floor is also under offer.
Chris Wright, senior asset manager at RE Capital, said: “The immediate and overwhelmingly positive response from the market is evidence of the current desire for best-in-category office buildings in core locations.”
Savills and Katten Muchin Rosenman UK acted for RE Capital. Adams Burnett, Expedite Group and Glinsman Weller represented the tenants.
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Photos from RE Capital
