The biggest shopping mall in the Highlands is up for sale, with a price tag of £120million.
Property agent has been instructed to market the Eastgate Shopping Centre in Inverness on behalf of property fund manager F&C REIT, which acquired it as part of a £250million deal including other sites just two years ago.
Offering 410,000 square feet of retail and leisure accommodation as it is, the site also has planning consent for a further 50,000sq ft.
Last year, Highland councillors approved F&C REIT’s multimillion-pound plans to extend the Eastgate 30ft out into Falcon Square, while making the building 23ft higher. The scheme is expected to pave the way for five new restaurants and an eight-screen cinema, seating 1,100 people.
Eastgate is anchored by Marks and Spencer and Debenhams, with New Look, Next and Waterstones among its other tenants.
There were close to £6billon of UK shopping centre deals last year, and property giant Savills has forecast a further £5billion of transactions in 2015.
Law firm Pinsent Masons was involved in retail deals worth more than £500million in 2014 and partner Tom Ferrier expects the sale of the Eastgate and also The Gyle shopping centre in Edinburgh to attract high levels of interest.
He said: “Shopping centres are an attractive proposition for investors and there is a weight of money ready to be invested in property again on the premise that this type of investment offers decent returns.”
“Shopping centres and retail parks present the opportunity to create value, especially high profile centres like Eastgate and The Gyle.
“Simply put, upgrading and refurbishment of the facilities and the addition of new leisure offerings creates more lettings, leading to more rental value and also safeguards the long-term value of the asset.”
He added: “There will be a healthy interest in the Eastgate centre being put on the market and I would expect, as was the case with Livingston, East Kilbride and Overgate (in Dundee), that there will be multiple bidders vying for ownership.
“In addition to ensuring the fabric of a shopping centre is top quality and therefore a strong draw for the consumer, other revenue streams can be strengthened with the addition of ancillary services such as a cinema or popular branded restaurant franchises, and with consent in place, this adds to the attraction of Eastgate as an exciting investing opportunity.”
In the longer term, Ferrier believes there is a chance the owners of “trophy” shopping centres, like Silverburn and Braehead in Glasgow, Union Square in Aberdeen, could be tempted to test the market.