London office space bought by media group Bloomberg.

Bloomberg have acquired new office space in London and plan to build a new base there in the UK.

The media group have purchased the Walbrook Square site from Legal & General and Lord Foster is to design the building.

Bloomberg aim to begin the development of their new offices in 2012 and to have them fully completed by 2015. The company are also working in conjunction with Tishman Speyer to construct a speculative office building at the same location.

“Bloomberg’s London headquarters has always been an integral part of the company. This new project underscores our commitment to London and to expanding our presence in this world-class financial capital,” commented Bloomberg chairman, Peter Grauer.

The company will be expanding from their current offices in Finsbury Square where they house 2,300 employees. The deal is the latest in a string of large office deals for the capital and is being taken as a positive economic sign by some.

“This shows that when it comes to financial and media services, London continues to lead the way in attracting the best in the business,” commented Vince Cable, the business secretary.

Research from Ipsos Mori and Cushman & Wakefield has also revealed that 71 percent of large companies located in London are looking to expand to bigger offices. The data was taken from 300 businesses stated the main reason for taking London office space was close proximity to customers.

The German fund managing firm are marketing the site for £260 million, representing a 5.5% yield. The building was originally developed by Legal & General and Stanhope, and is let to JP Morgan until 2025.

Average rental prices for office space within the development range from around £50 per square foot. The site is near to the Bank of England, and Commerz Real expect to attract interest in the trophey property from sovereign wealth funds.

The property is being marketed for sale within the same week as CB Richard Ellis Loan Servicing (CBRELS) announced the sale of eight property in the £1.15 billion White Tower scheme. They have instructed their strategic investment advisers Knight Frank and CB Richard Ellis to sell all properties apart form the Aviva Tower. Some properties are being marketed individually including Leadenhall Court and Alban Gate, others marketed as a packaged – the Thames Portfolio. It is estimated that they are looking for around £700 million for the properties in total.

There is a high demand for City properties for firms and fund managers to invest in with attractive yields, current news and trends such as above truly reflect this.

The building is currently owned by an offshore investor, but Legal & General have registered their interest in the building with a £52 million offer, offering a 8.2% yield on the property.

26 Red Lion Square is currently leased to Cable and Wireless, which expires in January 2023. They in turn sub-lease most of the 107,000 office space development to The Economist Group. The current rent is £28 per sq ft, with a break in contract in 2013. This earns a net income of 34.9 million per annum. Part of the ground floor and the entire fourth to sixth floors are sub-let by Cable and Wireless to TSL Education.

Threadneedle, the fund managing firm, were rumoured to have put an offer in for 26 Red Lion Square previously yet a deal was never completed. The building was originally developed by Stanhope Kajima Developments. It sits an a convenient location in Camden borough near to Holborn tube station, close to a large array of restaurants, hotels and conference facilities, making an excellent base where businesses can both entertain their clients and have access to an array of amenities.

London is full of similar news, although many of these transactions are focused on the City or Canary Wharf areas. 26 Red Lion Square is based in the Midtown area where leasing deals are often plentiful but sales do seem to perform a little slower. However with the recovery of the market creating excitement and competition, we’re sure this will soon change.