Landsec has acquired a 92% stake in the shopping centre, Liverpool ONE, for an overall consideration of £490m.

The property investor has purchased 69% of the site from a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and 23% from Grosvenor.

Of the total consideration, a payment of £35m to ADIA is deferred for two years. The income return on Landsec’s initial £455m outlay is expected to be around 7.5%, while the centre’s current rental income is 4% below ERV, so combined with the benefits of Landsec’s operating platform, strong brand relationships and further ERV growth, the group is expecting its rental income to grow in the coming years.

Opened in 2008, Liverpool ONE offers a mix of retail, food and beverage, and leisure brands that attract 22 million people per year. The acquisition is in line with Landsec’s plans to grow its investment in major retail destinations, recycling the proceeds from its £464m of non-core sales earlier in the year.

Landsec CEO, Mark Allan, said: “Liverpool ONE already has a great line-up of brands in a thriving location and we look forward to building on this with our leading operating platform to further add to its exciting growth story.”

CEO of Grosvenor Property UK, James Raynor, added: “Liverpool ONE is a phenomenal destination and we’re incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished with and for the city over the last 25 years.

“Looking ahead, we have ambitious plans to grow and diversify the business and we will reinvest the proceeds from the sale in our core portfolio including our 10-year programme of investment in London and residential debt business, which has supported the delivery of 3,370 homes in just two years.”

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