A Birmingham city centre office block has been acquired by a new joint venture.
London-based investors Zetland Capital has teamed up with real estate manager GWP to acquire 10 Livery Street from its owner and tenant, insurance group Direct Line, for an undisclosed sum.
The building, which was acquired by Direct Line for £25.1 million in 2015, has been sold following a rationalisation of the firm's regional property portfolio.
As part of the deal, the seller will remain in the building as a tenant, occupying just the first floor.
The 63,000 sq ft complex, which is also known as Direct Line House, will be extensively refurbished as the joint venture said it was seeking to capitalise on demand for grade A office space in Birmingham city centre.
Ahmed Hamdani, managing partner of London-based Zetland Capital, said: "We are excited to have launched our UK office repositioning program in partnership with GWP.
"We are actively seeking similar opportunities to 10 Livery Street where we can reposition good quality space into best-in-class office accommodation with strong environmental, social and governance credentials."
Guy Wilson, director of GWP, added: "We are delighted with the purchase of 10 Livery Street and look forward to working with Zetland Capital and transforming this building with the team over the course of the next nine months.
"The joint venture is looking for similar repositioning investment opportunities in other UK regional city centres."
Lambert Smith Hampton acted for Zetland Capital and GWP while Cushman and Wakefield represented Direct Line.
