OverseasInvestments:Irish property company Ailesbury Investments has acquired a $36.6 million (€26 million) portfolio in Boston.

The company expects to hold the property over a five-year period and has predicted a rate of return in excess of 22 per cent.

The commercial property portfolio includes luxury items, including a €10 million marina in Cape Cod, a €6.5 million, 3,902sq m (42,000sq ft) office/ laboratory on two acres in Boston's Cambridge district and a €9.6 million 15,676sq m (168,735sq ft) fully-leased industrial complex on almost 19 acres in North Andover County.

The purchase was prompted by factors including a dollar exchange rate in serious decline against the euro and uncertainty over the sub-prime mortgage market which has depressed prices, said company director Frank Long.

He expects the company to keep its focus on Boston given its attraction for incoming high-tech investors.