Gatehouse Bank has acquired the UK headquarters of Procter & Gamble, one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, from Prupim for £31.55 million (approx. 34.90 mln.). This is first acquisition by the bank's real estate team, which originated, advised and funded the investment for a syndicate of private clients from the GCC region. The Procter & Gamble headquarters is a 109,290 ft² (10,120 m²) Grade A office and conference facility constructed in 1995 on The Heights, Weybridge, Surrey, one of the most prominent office parks in the south east of England.
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The Procter & Gamble headquarters is a 10,120 m² Grade A office and conference facility.
The property is let in its entirety to Procter & Gamble until June 2020 providing over ten years of term certain income.
Allowing for purchaser's costs, the acquisition reflects a net initial yield of 8.00% and was partially financed by £19.71 mln. of Shariah compliant funding.
Richard Thomas, CEO, Gatehouse Bank, commented: "From the outset, our intention has been to act as a bridge between the Middle East and the West, and this is a perfect example of how we add value in achieving this for our clients. This investment clearly shows the benefits of merging Gatehouse with GSH UK earlier this year, bringing together strong real estate experience with investment, funding and advisory expertise. It is also a clear indication that the UK remains an attractive investment environment for dollar based investors and we are confident that this will be the first in a series of similar investments."
Philip Churchill, Head of Real Estate, Gatehouse Bank, commented: "Our mandate was very clear, to acquire prime real estate on long leases to blue chip, Shariah compliant tenants at a fair price. Gatehouse has built a real estate team to facilitate investors seeking to invest in a range of real estate asset classes in a Shariah compliant manner and we are already at an advanced stage on a number of other potential investments."
Adam Cavanagh, Vice President, Real Estate, Gatehouse Bank, added: "We are delighted to have secured an ideal long term investment for our clients which successfully fulfils their investment criteria against a challenging property market lacking a supply of high quality assets. Looking forward, there are still many investors seeking to invest in a range of real estate asset classes in a Shariah compliant manner and so we anticipate a busy 2010."
The real estate team at Gatehouse Bank Philip Churchill, Adam Cavanagh and Stuart Jarvis were advised by Knight Frank with additional input from law firm Trowers & Hamlins LLP.
Source: Madano
