Landmark JP Morgan building in IFSC on market for €36.5m

The ongoing competition between investment funds for the best-located office assets in Dublin seems likely to resurface again with the announcement that the JP Morgan headquarters building in the International Financial Services Centre is to be offered for sale later this week.

John Moran of agent JLL is to seek in excess of €36.5 million for the distinctive redbrick building at One George's Dock which will show an equivalent yield of 5.71 per cent after allowing for standard purchasing costs.

At that asking price, the building will have a capital value of €820 per sq ft.

The five-storey over-basement office block has a net internal area of 4,132sq m (44,483sq ft) and 46 parking spaces in a basement car park accessed from George's Dock. It is let to JP Morgan Bank under a 25-year full repairing and insuring lease from December 1966, leaving just over five years unexpired, and upwards-only rent reviews.

The current rental income of €1,804,748 a year represents 80.44 per cent of the full open market rental value.

The building will revert to 100 per cent rental value when the lease expires in 2021.

Established area

Mr Moran described the sale as “a great opportunity for an investor to acquire a high-profile headquarters let to an international investment grade covenant in an established area which continues to develop and improve”.

One George's Dock was developed by Hardwick and British Land in the early 1990s as part of the first phase of the IFSC. It was subsequently the subject of a sale and leaseback deal with Chase Manhattan Bank.

Several office blocks in the first phase of the IFSC have been sold in recent years and subsequently upgraded or extended to cater for overseas companies moving into Dublin.

There are excellent transport links in the area including the Connolly Dart and mainline railway station and the Luas red line interchange.

The Luas Cross City service currently under construction will connect the existing Luas green and red lines, further enhancing accessibility and connectivity with the south side of the city.

The IFSC remains Dublin’s principal financial district which is home to more than 430 international and domestic companies. The area is now well served by a range of facilities including hotels, restaurants, bars and convenience stores, and is better connected to the city centre.