Signature Capital, the Irish-German real estate investment company, has bought the Bus Stop newsagents shop at 6 Grafton Street in Dublin 2 for almost €3.5 million.
The investment will show an initial yield of 6.5 per cent.
Although the selling price once again reflects the significant fall in capital values that has taken place on Grafton Street as well as at most other retail destinations since the property crash, the sale comes just as the Lisney rental indices has shown that the retail sector has recorded its first rental increase since March, 2008.
Lena Clarke of Lisney says the study shows that overall retail rents have increased by 5.2 per cent over the first three months of this year and by 1 per cent on an annualised basis.
Most of this growth has emanated from the prime streets with rents on Henry Street showing the biggest increase.
Abated rent
Meanwhile, M&M Enterprises who operate the newsagents on a 35-year lease from 1985, pays a temporary abated rent of €240,000 rather than the contracted rent of €300,000.
The upper floors of the building are sub-let to an internet cafe and a tanning salon. Bannon was the joint selling agent for the premises.
Cologne centre
Signature Capital's decision to buy the Grafton Street investment comes just after it agreed to sell the Neumarkt Galerie shopping centre in Cologne to the German bank savings fund manager Deka for €295 million having bought the 37,000sq m centre out of insolvency for €137 million in 2011.
Signature Capital did not have a spokesman available for comment.
