UK real estate private equity fund manager Moorfield and UK commercial developer Highbridge Properties have sold a fully let office building in Newcastle Upon Tyne for £25 mln (€27 mln).
The Zeta building, situated at Cobalt Park, the UK’s largest business park, was acquired by New York Private Equity Group, according to CoStar.
The Grade-A asset was recently let to The Sage Group, the UK’s largest technology company, as part of a deal reputed to be the largest ever letting in the North East office market.
Originally known as Cobalt 23, the property was acquired by Moorfield Real Estate Fund IV (MREF IV) and Highbridge Properties in 2017. A repositioning followed, including improving landscaping and a rebranding as the Zeta building. The property comprises 125,912 ft2 (11,700 m2) of space arranged over ground and four upper floors and is rated Breeam ‘Very Good’.
Charles Ferguson-Davie, chief investment officer of Moorfield said: 'This investment has performed well for our investors with an earlier than anticipated sale. We saw this as an opportunity to reposition the property, taking advantage of the supply and demand imbalance for high quality offices in the area, and the attractions of Cobalt Park, to meet the needs of occupiers.'
Guy Marsden, director of Highbridge Properties added: 'We identified Sage as an occupier for the space and worked with Moorfield to relocate Sage to Cobalt. Cobalt Park is the largest office park in the UK, employing over 14,000 people and benefiting from excellent local infrastructure.'
Moorfield and Highbridge were advised on the transaction by ACRE Capital Real Estate.
