News from 10/05/2007
Munich: Construction of "Skyline Tower" to begin in spring 2008
In Munich's Parkstadt Schwabing district, construction of the office high-rise project "Skyline Tower" has been planned for a long time and will finally begin in spring 2008. Bayerische Bau und Immobilien Gruppe will build an architectural ensemble comprising a 23-story high-rise as well as four 5- and 7-story campus buildings. On an area encompassing 13,000 sqm, a surface area of around 44,000 sqm is to be constructed. The "Skyline Tower" was designed by Helmut Jahn, Chicago. Investment amounts to around €200mn, scheduled construction time is 24 months. According to company reports, preliminary activities to rent the ensemble have already begun.
Hamburg: Investment turnover of €3.4bn in commercial properties
According to surveys from Colliers Grossmann & Berger, turnover of investments in Hamburg's market for commercial properties amounted to around €3.4bn in the first quarter of 2007. For all of 2007, the brokerage firm expects a turnover in investments totaling to ca. €4bn—around €0.5bn less than in 2006. According to Colliers Grossmann & Berger, international investors bypass the banks' reluctance to grant loans by acquiring project developments to be paid only at completion. Due to rising purchase price multipliers and dropping returns, 2008 is expected to become another good year for investments.
Commerz Real: Office buildings in Vienna acquired for €97mn
Investing around €97mn, Commerz Real AG, the newly founded subsidiary of Commerzbank, acquired six office buildings in the Viennese "TownTown" development project for its open-end mutual fund HausInvest Europa. According to reports from the company, the sales contract comprising a rentable surface area of around 41,000 sqm was signed in the previous week. Seller is the municipal project development company Immobiliendevelopment Wiener Stadtwerke BMG und Soravia AG (IWS). Commerz Real will take over the buildings after completion in 2008/2009 at an occupancy rate of 75%.
WestFonds: Investors approve sale of 39 properties from funds
During the next weeks, the fund initiator WestFonds is going to sell 39 properties coming from 23 of its funds. In collaboration with Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), the portfolio will be prepared for selling in an international property tendering process, reports WestFonds. In this year's August, the company advised its investors to agree to the sale of 46 buildings coming from 29 funds. According to WestFonds, the targeted approval was "missed by a narrow margin" amounting to seven units. Of the hotel, office, and retail units that are now for sale, 37 are located in Germany, two in Holland. With the sale, WestFonds aims at earning revenues in the billions.
Berlin: Hotel for trade fairs and conventions planned on Hammarskjöldplatz
On Berlin's Hammarskjöldplatz, a four-star hotel for trade fairs and conventions encompassing a minimum of 350 rooms is to be constructed. Besides that, a surface area of 2,500 sqm for conventions and a basement garage are planned. OFB Projektentwicklung GmbH and Bischoff & Compagnons Property Networks GmbH will develop the hotel together. The first move to realize the plans was made by signing a deed of real estate with Liegenschaftsfonds Berlin. The Spanish hotel group Barceló will acquire and operate the hotel.
Berlin: Residential market on the upswing, say GSW and JLL
According to a new study on Berlin's residential market conducted by the Berlin residential company GSW and the property advisor Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), the trend in lease prices is significantly facing upwards. In eight of Berlin's districts, average lease price in newly concluded rental agreements are rising, in four districts currently by up to €0.50/sqm/month. Supply of new apartments is unable to keep pace with the increasing demand: "Considering the city's size, single-story apartments are constructed in almost ridiculously small numbers, and this won't change really soon," says Andrew Gordon, JLL's head of Valuation Advisory Germany.
GWB/Deutsche Land: Partnership formed to acquire property
GWB Immobilien AG and Deutsche Land plc., London, signed an agreement concerning a strategic collaboration to acquire and revitalize German retail properties, after which the properties are to be sold at a profit. The companies founded a subsidiary, 50.05% of which are held by GWB, the remaining 49.95% being owned by Deutsche Land plc. Deutsche Land provides a subordinated partner's loan amounting to €25mn. Together with outside capital, investments with a volume of €150mn are possible, reported GWB.
IBUS: Dutch fund company acquires 34 retail units
The Dutch fund company IBUS acquired two retail portfolios comprising 34 buildings altogether for a total volume of ca. €60mn. The units are situated in 30 prime locations in Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The properties were taken over in two sale-and-lease transactions with the main tenant, the drugstore company Kloppenburg. Up to now, in Germany, IBUS has invested in apartments only: For a total of €190mn, almost 4,000 units have been acquired.