€4m for apartments and shops in Dublin

The buoyant investment market has now fully embraced multi-family apartment blocks in a variety of Dublin locations.

Savills has been at the forefront in selling a range of such developments and is today due to launch another similar investment property beside the headquarters of the Law Society of Ireland on the corner of Blackhall Place and Blackhall Street in the north inner city.

Dessie Kilkenny of Savills is seeking offers in excess of €4 million for Oxmantown Green, a development of 25 apartments and two retail units which will give the purchaser a gross return of 9.2 per cent.

The block was built by the Galway-based construction company, O'Mahony Finnerty, and is being sold on the instructions of receiver Kieran Wallace of KPMG. Last summer another city apartment scheme developed by two directors of O'Mahony Finnerty, William Beckett House on Pembroke Row, was sold to an Israeli investor at a gross yield of almost 6.83 per cent. The €6.1 million selling price reflected an average valuation of €255,000 for the 24 one and two-bedroom apartments.

Oxmantown Green is currently producing rents of €383,500 from the 25 apartments and the two retail units extending to over 410sq m (4,423sq ft) which are let to MJR Cycles Ltd and McDermot Creed & Martyn Solicitors. A selling price of €4 million would equate to a valuation of around €145,000 per apartment. The individual homes are located in two blocks around a central open air courtyard at first floor level. The largest home is a three-bedroom penthouse; there are 10 two-bedroom duplex units; nine two-bedroom apartments and five one-bedroom apartments. There is parking for 21 cars in a secure basement area.

Savills say that the location of Oxmantown Green on the edge of the city centre and within easy walking distance of Mary Street and Henry Street and also within close proximity to the Luas service guaranteed that the apartment would always have a strong appeal from tenants. Both Irish and overseas buyers have been acquiring an extensive range of multi-family apartment investments which have come on the market over the past two years. American investor Kennedy Wilson has been by far the largest purchaser.