FRENCH investors have acquired more than £100m of commercial property assets in Aberdeen over the past 18 months.
Purchases include office buildings, hotels, and industrial units in the city since the start of 2025.
The investments are largely driven by open-ended property investment funds known as SCPIs.
These buyers have been investing in Aberdeen since the end of the pandemic.
Recent deals include the sale of Helmerich & Payne’s Aberdeen headquarters, Alderan’s £28.5m purchase of the site on Moss Road, and the Travelodge Aberdeen Central on Bridge Street.
Purchases in the past 18 months also include the 3T Survivex facility in Dyce.
French investors accounted for £450m of investment in the Scottish commercial property market since 2024.
Douglas Binnie, capital markets partner at Knight Frank, said: “French investors have been very active in Scotland, and particularly Aberdeen.
“On the relatively rare occasions where they haven’t been successful in acquiring an asset in the city, they have usually been among the underbidders.
“SCPIs have been involved in a number of deals in Aberdeen – particularly for the some of the city’s larger assets that have traded hands in recent years.
“These buyers tend to favour cleaner properties, with minimal asset management requirements, which can provide a return of at least 7%, which is achievable in Aberdeen on assets that meet their preferred criteria.”
Matt Park, partner at Knight Frank Aberdeen, added: “A big part of the attraction is the value on offer in Aberdeen, with yields higher than the UK average and even other parts of Scotland.
“Buyer and seller expectations are comparatively aligned in the Granite City, which is making deals quicker to reach, and buyers are able to secure quality assets on double-digit returns in some cases.
“At the same time, after a few subdued years the occupier market has started to show signs of stability.
“Aberdeen had its best quarter for take-up since 2019 in the second quarter of this year, and a higher oil price and potentially more supportive policy from government should help give confidence to the energy sector which still accounts for the vast majority of activity in the city.”
