Maidenhead office building sold for £9.6m to Kuwaiti firm

A Kuwait-based property firm has purchased a prime piece of office real estate in Maidenhead.

Soor Capital has bought 22 Market Street from Palace Capital for £9.6m as part of a strategic sell off of assets to reduce bank debt.

The property was brought to the market by Colliers.

Palace Capital will use some of the proceeds of the sale to repay £3.5m of bank debt taking
gross debt to £20.2 million while cash reserves stand at £20.1 million.

The sale means Palace Capital now has a net debt position of £0.1 million.

Steven Owen, Executive Chairman of Palace Capital, said: "The selective sales of properties such as Maidenhead demonstrate the steps we are taking to reduce debt and leverage in line with our strategy of maximising cash returns to shareholders.

"The Company will provide further updates on significant sales and strategic initiatives to facilitate returning cash to shareholders later in the year, the timing of which will depend on the completion of future sales. The Company's share buyback programme continues, following renewal of the authority at the recent Annual General Meeting."

Palace Capital acquired the site in January last year for £10.25 million.

The building is fully let on a 10 year lease, from August 2021 to Techtronic Industries EMEA Ltd, a subsidiary of Hong Kong listed Techtronic Industries which has a market capitalisation of £26 billion, delivering an annual rent of £718,475.

The remainder of the property is let to online electronics retailer Amaford Solutions and Monello hairdressers.

The property was comprehensively refurbished prior to the sale in 2021 and is made up of 21,852 sq ft across three floors.

Two small retail units on the ground floor bring the total net income from the asset to £747,374 per annum.