Ewart, the Belfast-based property company, has leased its William Street South property to Argos Distributors. The deal will give Ewart a steady rental stream over the 25 year and 4 month lease.

Argos expects to open its new 55,000 sq ft consumer goods' superstore before next Christmas. The store will be comparable to the 76 other Argos stores operating in cities such as Glasgow and Manchester, said Argos director, Mr Roy Megilley. Argos, he added, has been looking for a suitable site in Belfast for some time. It represents a £1 million investment by Argos.

The Ross's Court property is valued at £1.9 million sterling in Ewart's last balance sheet. Ewart is to spend £1 million on preparing the building for Argos. The initial rental will be £350,000 per annum rising to £400,000 in the fifth year. This puts the yield at over 13 per cent.

The property had "produced nothing, had bad debts and high servicing costs", said Ewart's managing director, Mr Barry Gilligan. It was never fully occupied and Ewart gained vacant possession last August following a buy-out of the remaining tenancies for £300,000. Asked about the bid from Dunloe, the Dublin-based property company, he said: "We are awaiting the offer document from Dunloe which we expected to be out this week". Ewart has already rebuffed the approach.