Earlsfort Terrace office block on market for €16m

One of the original office buildings on Dublin's Earlsfort Terrace, opposite the National Concert Hall, goes on the market today with a guide price of €16 million.

Adrian Trueick of Knight Frank is handling the sale of One Earlsfort Terrace which is let to one of Ireland's leading law firms, Eversheds, at a rental income of €630,000 per annum.

The lease has around 11 years to run and includes a minimum guaranteed rental uplift at each five-year review.

The 15-year-old building is located on a high profile corner at the junction of Earlsfort Terrace and Hatch Street and extends to 2,020sq m (21,750sq ft) over six levels. The basement has 129 car-parking spaces.

The entrance to the building is by way of an impressive full height glazed atrium which is shared with the adjoining building. Internally, the offices provide adaptable and flexible work space with standard finishes including suspended ceilings with recessed lighting, carpeted floors and fully fitted common areas. The tenant has installed cassette air conditioning.

Investors will be interested to know that city planners granted planning permission in 2011 for two additional floors which would have provided an additional gross floor area of 1,517sq m (16,328sq ft).

The current rent of around €278 per sq m (€25.85 per sq ft) is well below open market values. A rent review in 2016 will see the rent increasing to €750,000 per annum (€338 per sq m/€31.45 per sq ft) or the then market rent. With Grade A rents in this area of the city now hitting €592 to €645 per sq m (€55 to €60 per sq ft) the minimal level set in the agreement is likely to be exceeded. There is a further rent review in 2021 with a minimum increase to €850,000, a figure that equates to €387 per sq m or €36 per sq ft.

The building forms part of the Earlsfort Centre where the other tenants include the Medicine Board, the OPW, the Conrad Hotel and solicitors Arthur Cox. That firm is due to move next year to a new 11,148sq m (120,000sq ft) block being developed on the opposite corner of Hatch Street.

The area around Earlsfort Terrace is among the most popular in the south inner city because of its close proximity to St Stephen's Green as well as Grafton Street and Dawson Street.

Adrian Trueick said that with a combination of a prime city centre location and secure long term income, the investment was likely to appeal to both domestic and overseas investors. With Eversheds likely to require further expansion space in the next few years, the sale opportunity may also appeal to investors/developers.