Showpiece Bristol city centre office scheme 66 Queen Square has been sold for nearly £33m – before building work is even finished.
Swedish construction group Skanska exchanged contracts this week to sell the 61,500 sq ft building to Aviva Investors Property Trust.
Skanska immediately said it was looking to re-invest some of the money back into the Bristol office market.
Accountancy firm KPMG is to move into 52,000 sq ft on four floors of the five-storey building in October, when construction work is due to finish. The remaining floor is to be occupied by Handelsbanken leaving only the 3,275 sq ft penthouse and a self-contained 3,000 sq ft unit at 72 Queen Square on the market.
The highly-sustainable development features new Grade A office space within a refurbished Grade II listed Georgian terrace building. A shortage of prime office space in Bristol city centre is coinciding with some large property requirements by occupiers which are combing to push up rents to new highs – £28.50 per sq ft in the case of 66 Queen Square – and attracting a flurry of investors into the market. 
Skanska UK managing director development Andreas Lindelöf said: “This is a fantastic result for us. We started this speculative development in 2013, confident that the timing was right for the Bristol office market, and we have been proven correct.
“We are excited about reinvesting the proceeds of the sale into our target markets of Bristol and London, and continuing to develop market-leading, sustainable office buildings.”
The Bristol offices of property agents Alder King and JLL advised Skanska on the £32.7m sale of the investment with Knight Frank advising Aviva Investors.
Estate agents JLL and Alder King advised Skanska on the sale, who also recently announced an off-market deal to buy the leasehold for 51 Moorgate in London.
Skanska was advised on the sale by real estate experts from Bristol-headquartered law firm Burges Salmon.
The Burges Salmon team advised on all legal aspects of the transaction.
Mr Lindelöf added: “Burges Salmon has assisted us with the letting and sale of 66 Queen Square and our thanks go to the firm for its help in achieving this milestone.”
Burges Salmon real estate partner Ross Polkinghorne added: “We are delighted to have helped our long-standing client Skanska secure the sale of this exciting new building in the centre of Bristol.
“Our team has worked with Skanska throughout the project and it is particularly rewarding to see the deal come to fruition for all parties.”
