Vía Célere To Build 1,700 Homes In Sevilla Este

21 September 2017 – ABC de Sevilla

The construction of new homes is recovering with a vengeance in the Andalucían capital, after years of stagnation. The revitalisation, which started with small developments in city centre neighbourhoods, has taken a leap with several million-euro investments to acquire land, such as the deal announced yesterday by the property developer Vía Célere. The Madrilenian based firm is planning to build 1,700 homes on the more than 150,000 m2 of land that it has acquired in the city, the largest operation of this kind since the crisis.

Sources at the company confirmed to ABC that this land is located in Sevilla Este, where an ambitious urban project is going to take shape between now and 2023. The property developer, which has been reluctant to reveal the exact location details, has spent €26.5 million to acquire plots of land, close to the Aquópolis aquatic park, which were once owned by the real estate company Osuna and which ended up in the hands of several banking entities.

This package forms part of a much larger plan that also includes land acquisitions in Getafe and Valladolid. Nevertheless, the project in Sevilla will be the largest. The negotiations have been quick, according to the company itself, which began conversations in July and sealed the deal just a few days ago.

Not a single VPO property

The intention is to build private housing blocks only on this land over a five-year timeframe. In fact, the acquisition of these plots is accompanied by a commitment to build homes (…).

The President of Vía Célere, Juan Antonio Gómez-Pintado, said in a statement that the company will continue to grow its land bank “at a sustainable pace, in line with demand”. He also revealed that since the beginning of the year, his firm has added 393,000m2 of buildable land to its portfolio, which will allow it to build up to 3,800 homes over the next few years right across Spain.

Interest from the USA

The capital that has motivated this welcome resurgence in the real estate sector in Sevilla has come from the other side of the Atlantic. The US fund Värde Partners, which acquired this Madrilenian company just a few months ago, will finance the construction with contributions from its shareholders.

The gigantic Hacienda Rosario project, involving more than 1,000 homes, has been presented under very similar conditions. It is being promoted by Aedas Homes – in whose share capital the US investment fund Castlelake holds a stake – on land located to the south of the Torreblanca neighbourhood, between the A-8028 road and Calle Parsi (…).

Original story: ABC de Sevilla (by Elena Martos)

Translation: Carmel Drake