Pictured above: (l-r) Justin Marshall, Nick Woodward and Andrew Meikle

Investment agents at CB Richard Ellis were the most active in the country in 2010, advising on 25 per cent of the total commercial property transactions.

According to figures released this week by Property Data*, investment deals totaled £37.2bn in 2010, with CBRE claiming £8.8bn - £2.3bn more than its nearest rival, Jones Lang LaSalle. 

The firm was top performer in the office and retail categories, advising on 85 and 100 deals respectively, and second only to King Sturge in the industrial sector.

The investment team at the Birmingham office of CBRE also enjoyed a buoyant 2010, transacting more than £200m of deals alone.

Deals included the £100m acquisition of the Kenmore portfolio; acquiring the Swift Valley Park Distribution Unit for HSBC for £12m; and the £10m sale of the Snow Hill Plaza complex in Birmingham city centre. The firm had a further £23m worth of assets under offer by the end of the year.

London outperformed the regional markets by a considerable margin, and remains the number one global investment centre.

However, with assets such as Brindleyplace and One Snowhill changing hands in 2010, Birmingham remains a force to be reckoned with.

Andrew Meikle, a director in CBRE's Birmingham capital markets team, said: "Despite the fact that economic conditions remain challenging, we anticipate that Birmingham and the wider West Midlands will continue to remain high up on investors' shopping lists during 2011.

"The pace of assets going into administration in preparation for sale is also growing. We therefore expect more bank sales this year.

"Demand from institutions is focused on prime, well let stock, on longer lease terms. There is also a resurgence of demand from property companies backed by institutions or syndicated capital seeking a range of higher yielding stock.

"We anticipate that the first half of the year will be challenging, with activity in the second half gathering pace."

* Property Data is a specialist information business, supplying independent market data on the UK property investment and development sectors.