INVESTMENT in new offices in Leeds has fallen by 18.5 per cent to £106m in the first half of the year.
The average for the first half of the year over the last five years has been £130m.
A report by leading property advisor Colliers CRE also says that although the current total transactional sum is similar to that seen in the first half of 2007, t
he number of transactions is down by around 40 per cent on 2007 and 60 percent on 2006.
"There were only four major transactions completing in the first half of the year, with the most pertinent being the sale of Broad Gate by Capital a Counties to Highcross for circa £70m, this exchanged unconditionally in June 2008," says the report.
Other major transactions include the sale of GE Capital's 1 Park Lane to Credit Suisse in January 2008 for around £22m.
"This was the only institutional acquisition in the first half of 2008 with the remainder made up by property companies or private buyers," states the report.
Withdrawn
The report estimates that almost £160m worth of office investment stock in Leeds has been available over the past six months and has either not sold or been withdrawn.
John Burger, associate director of Investment Market Place at Colliers CRE in Leeds, said: "For example, Standard Life's Sovereign House, let to Addleshaw Goddard for a further nine years was brought to the market at £25.2m in January 2008 and was later withdrawn after failing to achieve an acceptable price. "Bridgewater Place, the 235,000 sq ft office tower, has also been rumoured to be available over the past year but has still failed to find a credible buyer.
"This is now suggested to be worth around £100m."
The full article contains 300 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
