NI property firm buys nine office blocks in Scotland for £35m

Wirefox, the Northern Ireland property investment firm, has acquired nine out-of-town office blocks in Scotland in a deal, estimated to be worth £35 million, which will "extend" its rapidly expanding presence in the UK market.

It is the second major acquisition this month on Scottish soil for the Co Down-headquartered company, which is controlled by BJ Eastwood, the grandson of businessman and former boxing promoter Barney Eastwood.

Wirefox also recently purchased Silvan House in Edinburgh, which is the headquarters of Forestry Commission Scotland, for £18 million.

Rockford portfolio

The Northern Ireland firm’s latest acquisition, the Rockford portfolio, which is located near to Glasgow city centre, totals almost 400,000sq ft and is already home to a number of blue-chip companies.

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Steven Flannery, director of investments at Wirefox, said: “Rockford is the latest example of our long-term strategy of recognising value-add investment opportunities, and we look forward to adding significantly to our office portfolio in the future.”

Buying spree

Wirefox, which was established in 2014, has been on a determined buying spree over the last 12 months, acquiring high-profile retail and office properties throughout the UK and Ireland.

Last year it purchased both the Oxford and Gloucester House office complex in the heart of Belfast, which had been priced at £5.75 million, and Longbridge House in the city for an undisclosed sum.

It also acquired the Southergate Centre in Dumfries in Scotland from the US firm Cerberus. The shopping centre, which had previously been part of Nama's Northern Ireland portfolio, had been listed at £6.75 million.