Taylor Wessing has acted for an Isle of Man special purpose vehicle owned by two of Israel’s largest pension funds, Harel Insurance and Clal Insurance, on the sale of Apollo House and Lunar House to Kempster Investments, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore-listed investor Ho Bee.

The property, located on Wellesley Road, Croydon, was sold for £99 million and comprises two office buildings of 20 storeys and 22 storeys, providing total 441,797 square feet of accommodation. The property is currently let in its entirety to the British Government in two separate leases until June 2023 and houses the UK Passport Office.

The Taylor Wessing team was led by Real Estate partner Keith Barnett, who also acted for the sellers when they bought the offices from Green Property in 2010. The deal was exchanged in a two week timetable.

About Taylor Wessing’s Real Estate team

Real Estate is a top-performing asset class in the worldwide investment market. As a result, sophisticated investors are looking increasingly globally for investment opportunities.

Whether you are investing, developing or refurbishing, the raft of legal issues you face grows ever more complex and will differ depending on the jurisdiction. Are you familiar with the nuances of the local planning regime or the potential liabilities in complex construction projects? Do you appreciate the potential impact of sustainable developments on property values and retrofit?

Our Real Estate team will anticipate the potential risks that you may face, enabling you to benefit from today’s global real estate opportunities. At Taylor Wessing, we are interested in the whole life cycle of your property, from purchase (including structuring), through to development, letting, finance and ultimate disposal.

Our legal advice is guided by an understanding of the commercial and technical aspects of each transaction or project.

We offer our international clients both all-round advice that is rare in European and other legal markets, as well as integrated real estate advice across borders. With real estate specialists in our corporate, tax, banking and finance teams, we are able to provide you with comprehensive and seamless advice that meets all your commercial needs.

Recent awards

   * Real estate team of the year – Lawyer Awards 2015

   * Property team of the year – The British Legal Awards 2015