A specialist Channel Islands real estate investment company has added to its portfolio of landmark buildings with the purchase of a prestige Guernsey office block.
Carey House — a 26,814 sq ft complex at Admiral Park — has been acquired by the Channel Islands Property Fund (CIPF) from Bailiwick Investments for £16.75m. The purchase is being jointly financed through bank funding and a new share issue.
Originally known as Commerce House, the St Peter Port building was rebranded as Carey House after a £4m upgrade in 2007. Its only tenant is offshore law firm Carey Olsen, which also has offices in neighbouring Jersey as well as the British Virgin Islands, Cape Town and the Cayman Islands.
Developed by Channel Islands-based Comprop, work started on its Admiral Park scheme in the early 1990s. Since then it has become Guernsey’s prime business location. It also houses two major retail units, one let to Waitrose.
“The Channel Islands Property Fund is building up an enviable portfolio of iconic and landmark buildings across Guernsey and Jersey, which includes Regency Court and Glategny Court, in Guernsey, and offices in Seaton Place and on the Esplanade in Jersey,” explained Simon Melling, Chief Finance Officer and Head of Corporate Finance at Ravenscroft, the stockbroking and investment manager which acted for both parties.
“Given that Bailiwick Investments has been involved in some significant acquisitions in recent months including the Jacksons Group, ASG Group and Guernsey Recycling Group, it now wants to focus on growing those trading businesses,” he added.
“Carey House, therefore, presented an excellent opportunity for the Channel Islands Property Fund which has a focus on investing in high specification commercial buildings in order to deliver a good return to the investors.”
Commenting on CIPF’s latest asset its chairman, Shelagh Mason, said: “The building is now a modern, contemporary office and is a fantastic addition to our portfolio, adding yet another key asset to the portfolio.”
The Channel Islands Property Fund is a closed-ended investment company incorporated in Guernsey and listed on the Channel Islands Securities Exchange. With its Carey House purchase it now has control of seven assets on the Dependency’s two biggest islands.
No related posts found for this post.
