The White Swan Hotel in Halifax has changed hands after FICO Holding UK Ltd sold the property to Durham Asset Management Ltd for an undisclosed sum, in a deal brokered by commercial real estate firm Colliers.

The new owners expect to renovate the building and reopen it as an aparthotel-style operation, catering for longer-term visitors to the town which is well connected to the rest of Yorkshire and houses major local employers, including the Halifax bank headquarters and the local authority offices.

Kashif Akhtar, managing director of Durham Asset Management Limited said: “The White Swan Hotel is a stunning four-storey building in the heart of Halifax which deserves to see lots of activity and life inside it.

"We’re planning to renovate and modernise it internally, while respecting its external heritage, and creating a sense of buzz and activity in the town centre.”

The Grade-II* listed 39-bedroom hotel, in Princess Street, was built in 1858 in a stone masonry design.

It previously catered for conferences and events as well as visitors to the West Yorkshire town, however it has been closed since the beginning of the pandemic and was marketed with a guide price of £1.5million.

The hotel is also ideally located a short walk from the railway station, as well as the Woolshops Shopping Centre, Vue Cinema, and the Victoria Theatre.

For those looking to explore more of West Yorkshire the town is an ideal location to visit the Pennines and Bronte Country.

Robert Smithson, associate director in Colliers’ Hotel Agency said: “It’s great that we can say that there will soon be new life and activity brought to the White Swan. While its operation will change slightly it will still be provide accommodation for visitors to the town.”

The leases of the ground floor beauticians and basement Italian restaurant remain in place following the sale.