BIG money has changed hands for prime retail property in the heart of York.

Surveyors' practice DTZ Debenham Tie Leung today announced two separate major deals involving millions of pounds.

One of them was the sale by Marks & Spencer of a neighbouring building housing two popular shops in Parliament Street for £1.615 million.

The other was the sale of the property let to Boots The Chemist on the corner of King's Square and Goodramgate.

Acting for the vendor, Lincoln Assurance Ltd, DTZ sold the three-storey building to Irish Investor company Gratton Asset Management for £1.83 million.

Boots, which has more than 12 years to run on its lease is paying £140,000 in rent so that the deal, after costs, yielded the new owners 7.23 per cent.

The Parliament Street property is let to Klick Photopoint and Monsoon Holdings which runs Accessorize. M & S has received a total of £109,827 per year from them both.

The buyer was Newcastle-based Northern Retail Consortium Limited which netted an initial yield of 6.43 per cent on the deal.

The sale of the shops, acquired by M & S just in case it ever needed to expand, is part of the store's policy to concentrate less on being a landlord and more on its own retail success.

Acting for Northern Retail Consortium were agents Brackenridge Hanson and Tate as well as Lamb & Edge.

Jonathan Wade, investment manager with DTZ said: "It is clearly a good time to sell because a lot of property companies and family trusts are now interested in buying at today's competitive interest rates.

"It means that they are looking for well secured, well-let investments and the prices they are prepared to pay are accordingly high

Updated: 11:28 Tuesday, January 22, 2002