Euro Property articles from August 2007

Euro Property archives from August 2007

Shopping centres' sparkle lures international buyers.
August 6, 2007... Investors see potential for adding value through development and management Shopping centres are fast becoming the diamonds of the retail sector in Europe, as international investors pass on high-street properties that are difficult to obtain...

Investors seek retail therapy.
August 6, 2007... Improving European economies, particularly Germany and Russia, are fuelling a consumer boom that is luring investors away from offices and towards shops and mallsRetail property has firmly established itself as an alternative to offices. Its...

Extra value comes from extending and renovating.
August 6, 2007... Low economic growth and limited land supply in Western Europe are forcing investors to refurbish or enlarge existing retail and leisure property rather than build new developmentsFalling yields and rising interest rates are forcing investors to...

Gruppo Statuto.
August 6, 2007... From its inception as a construction company in the 1950s, Milan-based investor Gruppo Statuto now owns a 2.5bn portfolio of Italian properties and is branching out, with an eye on New York Like the Italian diaspora, Milan-based private...

Vivico.
August 6, 2007... The German property trader and developer is coming up for sale, but the development potential of its mixed-asset portfolio may make it difficult for bidders to put a price on the companyThe sale of German property company Vivico is one of the...

The rise of theglobal propertyconsultants.
August 6, 2007... The big agents are busy snapping up domestic firms. Is this good news for investors? As most football fans know, things start to become a bit tedious when the same two or three teams dominate the battle for the trophies. The same could be said...

Key data: recent deals.
August 6, 2007... - 640m sale of Place Vendome sets record low yield for Paris - RBS sells Citigroup's UK headquarters- Irish investor Sloane Capital's 640m purchase of 9 Place Vendome in Paris set a record low yield of 3.5% for the French capital. Previous...

More capacity in Barcelona's peripheries fuels growth.
August 6, 2007... - Office tenants find bigger spaces outside Barcelona's centre - Colliers finds staff want natural ventilationNew business districts and peripheral development are fuelling take-up in Barcelona.A report by Cushman & Wakefield says that the...

Size matters, but ite_SSRqs not the only thing.
August 6, 2007... If property consultancy firms keep expanding their empires at the rate they are doing, it won't be long before the industry will talk about the Big Four, just as in accountancy. Already, there are the big three - Jones Lang LaSalle, CB Richard...

In brief.
August 6, 2007... ANF checks into B&BFrench REIT ANF has spent 471m on 159 hotels in France. ANF bought the properties from hotel operator B&B, which will lease them back for 12 years and pay annual rent of 27.3m. ANF will also spend 58m on hotels being built...

Firms seek greener, high-tech offices.
August 6, 2007... Occupiers are increasingly concerned about the well-being of staff and sustainability issues, says a research report by Colliers International.The research, carried out by the agent's 85 Europe, Middle East and Africa offices, shows trends...

Pirelli jumps into Bulgaria and Romania.
August 6, 2007... Pirelli RE has entered Bulgaria and Romania as it expands into the EU's newest member states. Pirelli has teamed up with Italy's UniCredit to jointly buy assets, taking an 80% interest in a Romanian venture and a 75% stake in a Bulgarian...

KanAm and IVG pick up Paris office investments.
August 6, 2007... KanAm has bought the French headquarters of Cartier International for 370m from Bank of Ireland's private banking arm.The 21,000 m2 Cite du Retiro in Paris's 8th arrondissement was redeveloped by Unibail in 2002 before being sold to Bank of...

Tishman pulls off first stage of three-asset sale in Paris...
August 6, 2007... Hines pays 130m for Eurosquare 1, while Paris Bourse and George V await buyers Tishman Speyer's disposal of three trophy Paris assets has moved a step closer after private investor Hines bought Eurosquare 1 for 130m. Tishman has yet to sell...

Logistics spree for Fonciere des Regions.
August 6, 2007... Fonciere des Regions has bought logistics portfolios in France and Germany for 588m.The French SIIC bought a 425 portfolio on the edges of Paris and Marseille from ProLogis for its Fonciere Europe Logistique (FEL) subsidiary. The assets, in...

Cordea Savills gathers [euro]190m for German fund.
August 6, 2007... Fund manager Cordea Savills has completed the second closing of The German Retail Fund, raising more than 190m of equity. The fund is targeting 10% returns, including income distribution of 5% a year. It will invest across Germany, but with a...

Denmark's Keops favourscash from Iceland's Stodir.
August 6, 2007... The board of Danish property firm Keops has recommended shareholders to accept a DKr24 (3.2) cash-per-share offer from Icelandic group Stodir.Alternatively, Stodir will offer shareholders 19.2 of its shares for each Keops share. Keops said it...

TCN Property Projects.
August 6, 2007... The Dutch developer likes to work on government projects from planning to completion, retaining stakes in the finished property. It has ambitious plans for European expansionDutch company TCN Property Projects prides itself on being different...

Europe clocks up best ever take-up in first half of 2007.
August 6, 2007... Strong economic background causes first-half take-up to hit a record 6.7m m[sup.2], while Oslo, Budapest, Moscow and Athens record impressive increases in rental growthEuropean take-up hit a record high in the first half of 2007, according to...

Hypo bids [euro]5.6bn for German real estate bank Depfa.
August 6, 2007... Depfa board advises shareholders to accept the offerHypo Real Estate has launched a takeover bid for Germany's Depfa bank, in potentially one of Germany's largest financial services deals since Allianz bought Dresdner Bank in 2001.HRE is...

Deutsche Bank backs Moscow scheme.
August 6, 2007... Deutsche Bank's Global Commercial Real Estate Group is boosting its Eastern European property activities with projects in Russia and plans to expand into Ukraine and Kazakhstan. The group is providing a $320m (234m) construction loan to fund a...

In brief.
August 6, 2007... Klepierre revamps French mallsKlepierre is to spend C250.7m expanding two French shopping centres, at Saint Orens and Blagnac, by 11,300 m2 and 11,100 m2 respectively. Net rents on the two centres will rise to C4.6m for Saint Orens and C6.1m...

Plaza Centers strikes [euro]115m Romanian deal.
August 6, 2007... Israeli-based developer and trader Plaza Centers has paid 115m for a 46,500 m2 project in Iasi, north-east Romania. The development, sold by Romanian investor Iasitex, will comprise 54,000 m2 of shops and 15,000 m2 of offices. Work starts next...

Kenmore tight lipped after takeover talk.
August 6, 2007... Kenmore has refused to comment on market rumours that it is in talks to be bought by Australian property company Mirvac. The privately owned, Edinburgh-based company was founded in 1986 by chairman John Kennedy and initially invested in office...

Lehman and IVG vie to buy [euro]1.4bn Morgan Stanley SIIC.
August 6, 2007... US investment bank believed to have the edge in contest for Compagnie la LucetteUS investment bank Lehman Brothers and German property company IVG are favourites to buy Morgan Stanley's French SIIC for as much as 1.4bn.Lehman, which is teaming...

Change at top and merger plan come to Astroc's rescue.
August 6, 2007... Shares jump 34% as chairman quits and merger looms Share prices in beleaguered Spanish property company Astroc jumped 34% in two days after the news of a merger and a key resignation last month.Chairman Enrique Banuelos tendered his resignation...

... and offloads Amsterdam Atrium to Quinlan for [euro]200m.
August 6, 2007... Irish investor Quinlan Private has bought the Atrium building in Amsterdam for around 200m, reflecting a gross yield of 5.1%, say sources. The 33,500 m2 building on the Zuidas, between Schiphol airport and Amsterdam, was sold by Tishman Speyer,...

St Martins brings in CBRE to handle French operation.
August 6, 2007... St Martins Property Group, the investment arm of the state of Kuwait, has outsourced its French operations to CB Richard Ellis. The move follows the reshuffle of the company's UK business last year, which saw its assets and staff transferred to...

Caja Madrid scoops Spaine_SSRqs top tower.
August 6, 2007... Spanish bank Caja Madrid has bought Madrid's Torre Repsol building for 815m in Spain's largest single-asset deal. The tower went for nearly 200m more than expected. The bank was favourite to win the bidding as it was believed to have easy...

Curzon set to turn [euro]277m profit fromGerman retail sale.
August 6, 2007... Praktiker DIY stores and SinnLeffers clothing stores bought two years ago promise hefty return for CurzonCurzon Global Partners is set to make big profits from the sale of a portfolio of German clothing and DIY stores. Curzon bought the assets...

Development sale is Quantum leap for Germany.
August 6, 2007... Hamburg-based developer Quantum has sold 11 new office buildings covering 215,000 m2 to Morgan Stanley Real Estate for 750m. The deal heralds a new point in the German property market's cycle as the properties are understood to come without...

Key data: INREV.
August 6, 2007... - More than 300 of 478 funds target single countries - The UK is the favourite target, with Switzerland secondThe vast majority of funds in the INREV Vehicles Database focus on a single country. According to the INREV Vehicles Database...

Meinl expects to bounce back from share price fall.
August 6, 2007... Austrian property company Meinl European Land expects net asset value growth of at least 15% a year until 2010, despite a 17.54% fall in share price in the last week of July.The drop wiped out most of the company's outperformance of the EPRA...

Curzon set to turn [euro]277m profit from German retail sale.
August 6, 2007... Curzon Global Partners is set to make big profits from the sale of a portfolio of German clothing and DIY stores. Curzon bought the assets less than two years ago for a total of 680m and is close to selling the whole lot for around 957m. ...

Change at top and merger plan to come to Astroc's rescue.
August 6, 2007... Share prices in beleaguered Spanish property company Astroc jumped 34% in two days after the news of a merger and a key resignation last month. Chairman Enrique Banuelos tendered his resignation the day after the company announced that it...

St Martins brings in CBRE to handle French operation.
August 6, 2007... St Martins Property Group, the investment arm of the state of Kuwait, has outsourced its French operations to CB Richard Ellis. The move follows the reshuffle of the company's UK business last year, which saw its assets and staff...

KanAm and IVG pick up Paris office investments.
August 6, 2007... KanAm has bought the French headquarters of Cartier International for C370m from Bank of Ireland's private banking arm. The 21,000 m2 Cite du Retiro in Paris's 8th arrondissement was redeveloped by Unibail in 2002 before being sold to Bank...

In brief.
August 6, 2007... ANF checks into B&B French REIT ANF has spent C471m on 159 hotels in France. ANF bought the properties from hotel operator B&B, which will lease them back for 12 years and pay annual rent of C27.3m. ANF will also spend C58m on hotels being...

Lehman and IVG vie to buy [euro]1.4bn Morgan Stanley SIIC.
August 6, 2007... US investment bank Lehman Brothers and German property company IVG are favourites to buy Morgan Stanley's French SIIC for as much as C1.4bn. Lehman, which is teaming up with Atemi, is believed to be most likely to seize Compagnie la...

Development sale is Quantum leap for Germany.
August 6, 2007... Hamburg-based developer Quantum has sold 11 new office buildings covering 215,000 m2 to Morgan Stanley Real Estate for C750m. The deal heralds a new point in the German property market's cycle as the properties are understood to come...

Caja Madrid scoops Spain's top tower.
August 6, 2007... Spanish bank Caja Madrid has bought Madrid's Torre Repsol building for 815m in Spain's largest single-asset deal. The tower went for nearly 200m more than expected. The bank was favourite to win the bidding as it was believed to have easy...

Logistics spree for Fonciere des Regions.
August 6, 2007... Fonciere des Regions has bought logistics portfolios in France and Germany for C588m. The French SIIC bought a C425 portfolio on the edges of Paris and Marseille from ProLogis for its Fonciere Europe Logistique (FEL) subsidiary. The...

Meinl expects to bounce back from share price fall.
August 6, 2007... Austrian property company Meinl European Land expects net asset value growth of at least 15% a year until 2010, despite a 17.54% fall in share price in the last week of July. The drop wiped out most of the company's outperformance of the...

Tishman pulls off first stage of three-asset sale in Paris.
August 6, 2007... Tishman Speyer's disposal of three trophy Paris assets has moved a step closer after private investor Hines bought Eurosquare 1 for C130m. Tishman has yet to sell the C400m Paris Bourse building and the C125m George V building off the...

Hypo bids [euro]5.6bn for German real estate bank Depfa.
August 6, 2007... Hypo Real Estate has launched a takeover bid for Germany's Depfa bank, in potentially one of Germany's largest financial services deals since Allianz bought Dresdner Bank in 2001. HRE is offering Depfa shareholders C6.80 per share in cash...

Europe clocks up best ever take-up in first half of 2007.
August 6, 2007... European take-up hit a record high in the first half of 2007, according to Jones Lang LaSalle. According to the property consultant's office Property Clock, which gauges where 24 European cities stand in the rental growth cycle, strong...

Kenmore tight lipped after takeover talk.
August 6, 2007... Kenmore has refused to comment on market rumours that it is in talks to be bought by Australian property company Mirvac. The privately owned, Edinburgh-based company was founded in 1986 by chairman John Kennedy and initially invested in...