Bridges and developer HUB have together acquired 150 Minories for £39m – the partnership’s largest acquisition to date. The existing commercial building in Aldgate will be re-purposed into a sustainably built residential scheme, adding to HUB and Bridges’ growing portfolio of repositioned assets across the UK.

The deal is the twelfth for the pair and is the latest project as part of the ‘office to residential’ re-purposing strategy developed by HubCap, owned by HUB, alongside Bridges’ property funds platform. It follows on from the recent acquisition of 45 Beech Street for £30m, next to the Barbican estate, another workplace conversion project. HubCap currently has five projects under development between London and Edinburgh with a combined GDV of £330m. Bridges and Hub have worked on numerous ‘living’ sector deals together over the last decade with a combined development value of over £1bn.

150 Minories was chosen due to its prime position in the middle of a vibrant, evolving neighbourhood. There is an opportunity for the site to change use and positively contribute to this exciting location between the City and the bustling East End.

The scheme will add to HUB and Bridges’ successful track record of delivering well-designed, sustainable and community-led living schemes. Like the scheme at 45 Beech Street, this conversion will involve retaining the frame of the building and reinforcing its foundations, an approach which saves 30% embodied carbon compared to an equivalent new build.

Simon Ringer, Head of Bridges’ Property Funds, said:

“This acquisition continues our focus on needs-driven real estate sectors where there is growing occupational and investment demand. Over the last decade, we’ve developed thousands of highly sustainable lower-cost homes in areas where there is a clear shortage of quality housing. But as we think about the transition to Net Zero, it’s also important that we think about how we can reduce the embodied carbon involved in housebuilding. Clearly over the last few years there have been significant changes in the way we live and work, which has left a number of buildings in fantastic locations that are ripe for repurposing and refurbishment. So we’re delighted to complete this new investment in the Minories, which, like our Beech Street investment, will help to turn unwanted office space into beautifully-designed, sustainably-built homes.”

Miles Keeley, Principal at HubCap, said:

“There is a chronic need for more good quality, sustainable housing in the City of London, so that people can continue living and working there. 150 Minories will deliver up to 300 new homes to help meet this need. This part of Aldgate is poised for major revitalisation, and we look forward to playing our part through this transformative development. The back-to-back acquisitions of Minories and Beech Street highlight the scale of our ambitions to be a market leader in the re-purposing space, an area of the market that desperately needs to mature due to changes in the way occupiers use buildings, as well as the pressing need to save embodied carbon.”

“HubCap’s strategy is to identify sites suitable for conversion that will help to reanimate pockets of cities in need of an injection of life. Introducing a better mix of uses in city centres, especially more housing, is crucial for resurrecting local economies.”