While the Covid-19 pandemic continues to put normal life on hold, the enduring appeal of Dublin’s south city centre and the area around Grafton Street in particular, is expected to see strong interest in a mixed-use investment which has come for sale on Exchequer Street.
The property is being offered to the market by joint agents Hooke & MacDonald and Agar Commercial Property Consultants at a guide price of €4 million.
Located directly opposite the landmark premises of Fallon & Byrne restaurant and gourmet shop, 16-18 Exchequer Street comprises two mid-terrace four-storey over-basement period properties extending to a total of 463sq m (4,984sq ft). The properties comprise two ground and basement retail/restaurant units extending to 230.3sq m (2,479sq ft). There are six high-end apartments distributed across the first, second and third floors of the two buildings with two separate self-contained entrances from street level. These studios and one-bedroom apartments range in size from 29sq m to 44sq m (312sq ft-474sq ft) and have recently undergone a substantial refitting which has brought them to a high standard with contemporary furnishings throughout.
The ground floor and basement of number 16 Exchequer Street is let to American Holidays, a travel agents specialising in holidays to America, Canada and the Caribbean. It is currently occupying the property on a 10-year lease from February 2019 with a rent review scheduled for January 2024.
Olesya’s Wine Bar, a well-established and popular venue, occupies the ground floor and basement on a 35-year lease from 1992.
The two ground-floor commercial units are currently producing a combined rental income of €130,000 per annum (€65,000 per annum per unit).
The six apartments overhead are in walk-in condition; and are expected to be much sought-after given the property’s city-centre location.
Joint selling agents Hooke & MacDonald and Agar expect the estimated rental value of the residential element to be in the region of €140,000 per annum. Taking the standard running costs for the apartments into account, the overall potential income from the property is expected to be in the region of €270,000 per annum. The guide price of €4 million equates to a net initial yield of 5.62 per cent once the residential accommodation is fully let.
Conor Steen of Hooke & MacDonald says: “We expect strong demand for this investment due to its superb location, well-established commercial tenants and lack of high-quality apartments available to let in the locality. We believe the property will appeal to both domestic and international investors.”
Ben Pearson of Agar Commercial Property Consultants says he expects theproperty to be of interest to the private investor and pension fund market, given the current shortage of quality, well-let and well-located investments.
