Listed property loan stock company Acucap Properties said on Monday it planned to acquire a R565 million office portfolio that included the Microsoft head office in Bryanston, Johannesburg.

The proposed acquisition would boost the office component of Acucap's property portfolio to 24% from 18%.

"We are always on the lookout for quality offices and this transaction has given us that play in a single chunky transaction," said Acucap MD Paul Theodosiou.

"One of the things we like about this portfolio is that it fits with our philosophy of owning a smaller number of individually large assets that we are able to manage more intensively," Theodosiou said.

Excluding the smallest property, the average value of the properties in the portfolio is R80 million.

Other high-profile office properties in the portfolio include phase 2 of the Tiger Brands head office in Bryanston and Kagiso House in Illovo.

There are eight properties in the Johannesburg office portfolio.

"These properties are quality enhancing, they have market related rentals and they provide contractual rental growth," said Theodosiou.

He said the transaction would reduce Acucap's retail exposure in its Johannesburg portfolio from 74% to 69%.

Theodosiou said the properties in the portfolio were primarily on long lease, and were all let.

The transaction, with Intaprop Investments, would be settled by the issue of new Acucap linked units. Theodosiou said this had been a requirement of Intaprop, which wanted to switch from fixed property to listed property investments. Unitholders in Acucap have been advised to exercise caution when dealing in Acucap linked units.