Bernard McNamara’s former HQ for €3.5m

Nama is to sell the former headquarters of property developer Bernard McNamara at 1-3 Ormond Quay in Dublin 1.

Robert Murphy of Murphy Mulhall is seeking in excess of €3.5 million for Grattan Bridge House, an attractive four-storey over-basement office complex and an adjoining house overlooking the Liffey. Murphy Mulhall were appointed selling agents by receivers Duff & Phelps.

Mr McNamara was one of the biggest players in the Republic’s property market during the bubble era, running up debts of around €2.7 billion.

He secured bankruptcy in the UK in 2012 and was recently appointed to handle the redevelopment of the Canada House office project on St Stephen’s Green. He will also have an advisory role in the refurbishment of the K Club.

Murphy Mulhall will sell the Ormond Quay offices in three lots or in its entirety.

10-year lease

Lot 1, which is 1-3 Ormond Quay, extends to 1,610sq m (17,329sq ft) and is let in its entirety to OpenJaw Technologies on a 10-year lease from April 2013, at a rent of €180,400 per annum.

The building has a high quality fit out and three internal lifts. There are eight car spaces on site and two mobile phone masts, which are let on a licence agreement at a rent of €44,000 per annum.

With the office space let at around €107 per sq m (€10 per sq ft), new owners can expect a significant increase in the rent roll after the next review.

Lot 2 relates to 4 Ormond Quay, a four-storey over-basement Georgian building, which was previously interlinked to No 1-3 when Michael McNamara & Sons was based there. The building is now vacant, but, with the demand for office space in the city increasing all the time, a letting should be possible in the immediate future.

Warehouse in back

The third lot going for sale is a small warehouse on White Lime Court at the rear, which can be accessed separately. The warehouse is used as a car park by OpenJaw Technologies, which pays a rent of €8,000 per annum.

The property portfolio is adjacent to the former Ormond Hotel, which was owned at one stage by Mr McNamara and subsequently sold in 2006 for around €2 million – €15 million less than its purchase price during the property boom.

Robert Murphy said the Ormond Quay properties were “a nice lot size” for investors and developers. They show a yield of 6.35 per cent, he said, which will increase significantly when Number 4 is let.