News from 02/29/2008
Berlin: Sony Center goes to Morgan Stanley Real Estate
The Sony Center at Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz will change owners. Sony Corporation announced Thursday that it will sell all stakes in Sony Berlin GmbH to a Morgan Stanley Real Estate fund, Corpus Sireo and a subsidiary of John Buck Company. The transfer of Sony Berlin—the current owner and manager of the famous quarter in the Berlin Mitte district—is to be completed by the end of March, 2008. Sony said the reason for the sale is a change in medium-term strategy to focusing on the company’s core business. Founded in 2002, the Sony Center attracts more than eight million visitors each year and is one of Berlin’s landmark buildings. The ensemble, designed by Helmut Jahn, comprises eight buildings with a total of 132,500 sqm for offices, retail stores, gastronomy, entertainment and apartments. No official announcements referring to the sale price were made; according to rumors, it will be significantly lower than the original construction costs of €750mn.
Stuttgart: 60 m residential tower planned for "Stuttgart 21"
The residential portion of the large-scale urban development project "Stuttgart 21" will most probably be increased. Schwäbische Wohnungs (Swabian Apartments) AG, together with the Hamburg-based Bankhaus (Bank House) Wölbern, is planning a 60 m tower in which up to 50% of the area is earmarked for apartments. The northwestern corner lot at the intersection of Heilbronner Strasse and Wolframstrasse is the foreseen location. "We are moving in the direction of apartment construction," Tobias Fischer, Chairman of Schwäbische Wohnungs AG, confirmed in reply to an inquiry from the daily newspaper Stuttgarter Zeitung. He did not presently wish to go into any further details. The city is also showing a positive reaction to the project: "We're going to support this as best we can," Matthias Hahn (SPD), director of the city's construction department, said to the paper.
Cologne: Adobe Systems rents 1,000 sqm by the Rheinauhafen
Adobe Systems GmbH will move from Ratingen to Cologne in mid-April: the software company has rented approximately 1,000 sqm of office space in the "Kontor 19" by the Rheinauhafen for this purpose. Colliers Trombello Kölbel Immobilienconsulting GmbH acted as advisor and broker for the deal. Completed in December, 2005, the commercial building Kontor 19 offers some 5,400 sqm of office and professional practice space on five floors, more than 80% of which are rented.
Hannover Leasing: "Süd-Carrée" in Hamburg acquired for €40mn
Via an affiliated company, Hannover Leasing GmbH has acquired the office center "Süd-Carrée" ("Southern Block") in Hamburg, which is still under construction. The seller is a joint venture of Becken Projektentwicklung GmbH, Hamburg, and Competo Capital Partners, Munich. The purchase price is around €40mn. The transaction was handled by the Hamburg legal firms CMS Hasche Sigle and Wiegel Ihde Ekrutt + Partner, as well as the brokerage house Savills Immobilien Beratungs-GmbH. The Süd-Carrée consists of a substantially refurbished, old building, extended by a new seven-story wing. The plans for the Carrée, which is to be completed by the middle of 2008, were designed by Bothe Richter Teherani. The building has a total lettable area of 13,374 sqm, 957 sqm of which are retail. The two-level underground garage offers 183 parking spaces. 81% of the building is already rented to, among others, Veolia Umweltservice GmbH—which is establishing its German headquarters here—, Dalkia Energie Service GmbH and Golf House.
IVG: Marketing of first Asia fund starts
The IVG Funds business division of IVG Immobilien AG has started marketing its first closed-end Asia fund. "IVG Balanced Portfolio Asia" is investing in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea, as well as in China, Malaysia and Thailand. The target volume runs to $236mn and aims for a yield before taxes between 10 and 14% annually (expires June 30, 2016). The fund is investing in an index certificate issued by a Luxembourg securitization vehicle that invests in target funds. The choice of the target funds will be conducted by IVG exclusively. According to the released statements, an important criterion for the choice is the "international experience and the local networks" of the managers of the funds. Georg Reul, a member of the board of the IVG and responsible for the funds segment, said, "Some of the funds' portfolios already have considerable volumes." IVG Funds reported that a further EuroSelect-Fund for private investors, with a high-quality office property in Luxembourg, is already in preparation.
Deka Immobilien Investment: Fund reports rental in Freiburg
Deka Immobilien GmbH has rented out 820 sqm in the Multimediahaus, or Multi-Media Building, in the Freiburg commercial area "Auf der Haid" ("On the Meadow") to the auditing/tax consulting and legal firm Dr. Stilz & Partner. The object, which Deka-ImmobilienFonds (Property Fund) has owned since 2000 and has a total of 7,960 sqm of usable area (71% offices and 23% trade), is thus completely rented. The closing was handled by fwi-Freiburg Wirtschaftsimmobilien (Commercial Properties), a mutual subsidiary of Sparkasse Freiburg - Nördlicher Breisgau (Freiburg - Northern Breisgau Savings Bank) and FWTM Management und Marketing on behalf of the city of Freiburg.
Munich region: 9,200 sqm rented in Logicpark Garching
In February of this year, approximately 9,200 sqm of storage and office space in the Logicpark Garching were rented to a total of four firms. Gillhuber Logistik-Gruppe rented some 3,600 sqm, the textile refining company TFC GmbH took on around 1,800 sqm, and the packaging marketers Ragaller-Gruppe leased approximately 1,400 sqm, reported the lessor, Logicreal Development GmbH. The lessor partnered with Colliers Schauer & Schöll for the deals with TFC and Ragaller. Moreover, through services provided by Realogis, Toyota Material Handling Deutschland GmbH will expand the area it uses to market forklifts to approximately 2,400 sqm. Logicreal said the logistic complex measuring some 40,000 sqm should be completely rented by the middle of the year, at the latest.
Cologne: Cologne lawyers rent 360 sqm in the SILO at the Rheinauhafen
The Cologne legal firm Lungerich & Lenz Rechtsanwälte has rented more than 360 sqm on the second story of the landmarked office building SILO by the Rheinauhafen in Cologne. The twelve-story SILO was developed by the project partners Kreissparkasse Köln (Cologne County Savings Bank), LEG Standort- und Projektentwicklung Köln (Cologne Location and Project Development) GmbH and Development Partner AG from Düsseldorf. It was sold in the summer of 2007 in a package together with the neighboring office building ECR to DIC Asset AG. Development Partner reported that 76% of the approximately 4,000 sqm of office space in the SILO are thus rented. Further tenants are the Radeberger group–—which will open the "SILOS" restaurant on the ground floor of the SILO shortly—, FAI Health Care, the office furniture manufacturer König & Neurath and the engineering company Flagsohl GmbH.
Evans Randall: Office building in London acquired for €63.46mn
The British investment bank Evans Randall has made another purchase in London. The company acquired the office building at 10 Old Burlington Street in Mayfair for £48.5mn (approximately €63.46mn). The seller of the object, with a total area of some 3,762 sqm, was Standard Life. The building is rented to firms such as Goodman, MKM Longboat Capital Advisors, Davidson Kempner European Partners and Nevsky Capital. The gross initial return runs to around 5.7%. As was previously reported, the company also acquired the London headquarters of Commerzbank for approximately £127.5mn (€169mn). The seller of that 11,200 sqm property was New Star Asset Management.