Tag: #BrainsFlash

#Brainsflash

Last week’s highlight came in the form of Fercopor’s announcement that it would build a new luxury housing project in Porto, investing 9 million euros.

In yet another week of public holidays in Portugal, as we’re already halfway through the year, last week remained calm in terms of announcements regarding investments and transactions, with special emphasis on the housing sector in the central and northern regions of the country.

At the beginning of the week, Terzzit announced that it would launch the West Plaza development with an investment of over €4 million. The investment firm presented the new project, a contemporary building composed of 28 flats in the centre of the village of Bombarral. The two-to-four-bedroom flats will go on sale in July, and construction is scheduled for completion in March 2023. The location, nearby several beaches and tourist sites, and a short distance from Lisbon, has been attracting people who are after a better quality of life.

In the meantime, 70 more homes will be built in Lisbon, financed by the RRP in an investment of more than 6.2 million euros. The first stone has already been laid in Lisbon in Bairro Padre Cruz. Under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, the financing contract was signed, which involves the 100% non-refundable financing of the investment under the scope of the Local Housing Strategy of the municipality of Lisbon.

At the end of the week, Fercopor announced a new luxury housing project in a 9-million-euro investment. Enlight will be built in Porto, on Avenida da Boavista, the most recent development created by the luxury real estate company to renew the housing supply on that avenue. The project is located next to the former Dallas Shopping Centre, on a plot of 2,636 m2, which has so far remained unoccupied. The new development will provide 20 flats, distributed over seven floors. The one to four-bedroom homes will have interior areas up to 280.5 m2 and exterior areas of up to 95 m2, including balconies, gardens and patios. The project also includes a gymnasium and common room for the use of all future residents. The construction is in its initial phase, but sales began on June 15.

#Brainsflash

The principal investments and highlights of the last week in the Portuguese real estate market.

June 14, 2022

Last week’s highlight came in the form of the sale of the Infante de Sagres hotel in Porto to Gaw Capital.

In anticipation of the holiday celebrations during these weeks in June, the first week of the month proved to be quiet regarding the property market. However, a few transactions stood out, especially in the hotel sector.

Right at the beginning of the week, Home Tailors Real Estate announced the sale of a wine estate for 8 million euros. The real estate agency was responsible for selling the Herdade das Fontes Bárbaras, located on a classic Alentejo hill near Castro Verde. The estate has a wine-growing component and a rural tourism and wine tourism project. The tourism project is on the estate’s 162 hectares, where the predominant culture is the vineyard.

The 400-m2 tourism project comprises six suites, two living rooms, a game room, a library and heated pool and an independent, 120-m2 two-bedroom house. The property has 43 hectares of irrigated vineyards, two dams, three water holes and two boreholes, 2, approximately 600-m2 warehouses for agricultural support, and all the necessary equipment. Herdade das Fontes Bárbaras also has a fully functioning, 1,000m2 wine cellar, the capacity for 800,000 litres of wine and a wine tasting room.

Meanwhile, the Fladgate group sold a hotel in Porto to Gaw Capital. Owner of the Intercontinental Palácio das Cardosas, Gaw Capital is the new owner of the oldest 5-star hotel in Porto, the Infante de Sagres hotel. The Fladgate Partnership sold the historic hotel in a deal whose value was not disclosed. The new hotel, which has yet to be named, will have between 85 and 90 rooms and is expected to be operational within two years.

#Brainsflash

May 30, 20222

The Pestana Group has inaugurated the Madeira Acqua Residences after an investment of 100 million euros.

With summer coming, these last days of May began to heat up, and the same applied to the real estate market, which was particularly fervent during the last week. Real estate investments were particularly dynamic across the board.

The week was beginning when Novo Banco announced the sale of a portfolio of logistics properties. The deal’s completion is expected to have a positive impact of around 35 basis points on the Novo Banco group’s total capital ratio. The buyer’s identity and the amount of the sale of the logistics properties located in Portugal were not released. At stake are real estate assets held mainly by the real estate funds NB Património and NB Logística, both managed by GNB Real Estate. On average, Novo banco held around 75% of the said real estate assets in March 2022.

Meanwhile, Sonae Capital opened a luxury hotel in Porto after an investment of around 20 million euros. The 68-room Editory Boulevard Aliados Porto Hotel is the latest five-star hotel to open in Aliados. The Editory Boulevard Aliados Porto Hotel is in the heart of the city of Porto. It offers nearly seventy rooms, a heated outdoor swimming pool, two meeting rooms, a sensorial provocation restaurant and a cocktail bar. The hotel results from a partnership between FVC Group and SC Hospitality, with an architecture and interior design project designed by Ding Dong.

The week was still in its early stages when a new British School of Lisbon campus was revealed, resulting from a €30 million investment. The second campus, measuring 7,000-m2s, has 30 classrooms, a swimming pool complex and sports pavilion and will be located on land adjacent to the Belenenses stadium. Following an agreement with the Belenenses Football Club, the British School of Lisbon plans to open its second campus in Lisbon. The space will be built on land located just above the main stadium.

As the week was ending, it became public that the Pestana Group had inaugurated the Madeira Acqua Residences after an investment of 100 million euros. Madeira Acqua Residences results from the refurbishment of the Madeira Palácio Hotel and has 181 flats with one to four bedrooms and penthouses. More than 60% of the units have already been sold. Madeira Acqua Residences has over seven thousand square meters of green area, direct private access to the beach and an infinity pool on the edge of the cliff, immediately overlooking the sea. The real estate project located in Madeira, also offers a gym, swimming pool, relaxation, social and work areas, and parking for residents and visitors.

#Brainsflash

May 22, 2022

Of particular note was Sonae Capital’s sale of Aqualuz Tróia Mar & Rio and The Editory by The Sea Tróia-Comporta.

The middle of May proved to be especially active for the real estate market in Portugal, particularly in the residential and hotel sectors. Some news of interest came to light, along with significant investments.

At the beginning of the week, Coporgest’s Chiado 12 announced that it would gain new luxury flats. Transformed into a residential building, in a total investment of 9.25 million euros, Chiado 12 is undergoing an intervention to add two new luxury flats. The development located in Largo do Chiado, in the heart of Lisbon, has been a reference in the capital for being where the famous Hermès brand shop is located. In 2014 it was acquired by Coporgest, a company specialising in the development of luxury real estate projects.

Madeira plans to invest €136 million in housing for 1,400 families under the Recovery and Resilience Programme (PRR). The Government of Madeira aims to build 783 homes by 2026 in the autonomous region’s 11 municipalities. The projects built in the 11 municipalities may suffer changes due to the rise in the price of raw materials and labour shortages. At stake is the acquisition of 533 homes at controlled costs and the rehabilitation of 325 homes, especially regarding energy efficiency improvement. There is also a budget of 1.6 million euros for information technologies linked to social housing.

Midweek, it was announced that Herdade Monteverde is the new residential tourist resort on Lisbon’s south bank. Located in a 102-hectare nature reserve, Herdade Monteverde will have 355 homes, including detached villas, townhouses, and flats. In partnership with the SIL Group, Homelovers is now exploring this new project after the success of Herdade da Aroeira. It is a tourist residential development, so it may be eligible for Golden Visa buyers. Prices for detached villas start from €740,000 and townhouses from €420,000.

Meanwhile, a new My Auchan convenience store has opened in Costa da Caparica. More My Auchan shops are planned for the coming years. This is the 32nd My Auchan shop to open. The 385-m2 space is located in Rua dos Pescadores and intends to offer a simple and quick response to its customers and a better shopping experience.

With the week coming to an end, the São João da Praça was announced as a new residential project in Alfama. The new project next to Sé de Lisboa, is the result of the rehabilitation of a Pombaline building in Alfama. The renovation project, designed by Appleton & Domingos Arquitetos, will bring to this traditional neighbourhood nine modern 1 to 2-bedroom flats, and two duplexes on the top floor. The areas of the flats vary between 60 m² and 124 m², with prices from €500,000 to €1,040,000. Construction began in April and delivery of the flats is scheduled for the last quarter of 2023.

Finally, Sonae Capital announced the sale of Aqualuz Tróia Mar & Rio and The Editory By The Sea Tróia-Comporta. The Editory Hotels, Sonae Capital’s Hospitality business unit will keep the management of these tourism assets, with a total of 377 rooms. This is one of the largest real estate investment operations in hotels carried out in the Portuguese market since the beginning of the year, the transaction value of which was not disclosed.

#Brainsflash

The biggest investments and highlights of the previous week in the Portuguese real estate market.

May 16, 2022

The highlight of the week was the launch of the Octant Hotels brand by Discovery Hotel Management.

The last week was marked by some news and investments in the Portuguese real estate market. The highlight was the hotel sector, where the most significant announcements from north to south of the country predominated.

At the beginning of the week, it came to light that a German transport and logistics multinational had opened a technology centre in Porto. The new facility is located in the Latin Building, with a total area of 1,000 m2. It will be the office building’s first tenant as it expands its operations in Portugal. The new technology centre is intended for developing digital solutions.

Meanwhile, the Hotel Meliã Lisbon has entered the second phase of construction. The hotel going up next to the Marquês de Pombal should be ready by 2023. It will have approximately 240 rooms, convention rooms and a congress centre for 550 people. There are 22,220 m² of gross construction area on 14 aboveground floors and six underground floors.

Portugal’s housing sector also saw some significant news, as a project was announced involving the development of 400 flats in an investment of 16.25 million euros. The new project has the potential for building over 50,000 m2 of residences located next to Marina de Lagos in the Algarve. Marina Park II has an approved PIP with the potential to build around 400 homes in addition to a retail area. Interfundos has awarded the exclusive commercialisation of this project to JLL. The project represents an excellent opportunity to reinforce the supply of homes in the Algarvian city. It foresees a total construction area of over 51,000 m2, of which 49,520 m2 is distributed over 16 plots for residential development and 1,600 m2 for retail.

The week came to a close as news broke of Auchan’s investment of around €40 million in a new store in Cascais. The old Pão de Açúcar there was Portugal’s first supermarket 49 years ago and has now been renovated. The Auchan Retail Portugal group is responsible for the investment in the new spot, which opened last Wednesday. The new shop will have an area of around 7,000 m2, a garden at one of the entrances, a rooftop with sea views and a shopping gallery with several restaurants.

Discovery Hotel Management announced that it had launched Octant Hotels. DHM’s new brand will group and manage the eight hotels owned by the Discovery Portugal Fund in Portugal, called Octant Hotels. Its portfolio includes a unique set of boutique hotels throughout the country, which will become part of the Octant Hotels brand.  The hotels include the Douro41 Hotel & Spa, Palácio da Lousã Boutique Hotel, Évora Farm Hotel & Spa, Santiago Hotel Cooking & Nature, Praia Verde Boutique Hotel, Vila Monte Farm House, Azor Hotel and the Furnas Boutique Hotel.  DHM intend to offer a unique approach to service and experience, allowing it to showcase the best of Portuguese hospitality and highlight its various regions, cultures and landscapes.

Finally, Azora acquired the Pestana Blue Alvor. Built in 2019, the five-star hotel covers 120,000 square metres and has almost 500 rooms. This is Azora’s fourth investment in Portugal, after previously acquiring the Tivoli Marina Vilamoura resort, the Tivoli Carvoeiro resort and the Vilalara Thalassa resort. Azora bought the Pestana Blue Alvor through its Azora European Hotel & Lodging fund. Details of the investment was not disclosed. The hotel is in Alvor, on Portugal’s southern coast, with access to several beaches.

#BrainsFlash

April 26, 2022

Thor announced the expansion of its portfolio, acquiring a project in the heart of Porto.

The last two weeks, which encompassed the Easter holidays, saw an extended period of calm in Portugal’s real estate market. However, some of the sectors were more prominent during these weeks of the month, primarily housing, which provided the most interesting news of the period.

Residential

April was almost halfway through when the beginning of construction on MERECES 718 was announced, in an 8-million-euro investment. The first building of the new multipurpose complex, developed by dstgroup, began with the construction of 36 flats and two shops in Barcelinhos, the municipality of Barcelos. Focused on creating a familiar and safe environment, the project has already sold more than 40% of the units.

Meanwhile, the Convento do Beato will build a more than a 60-flat residential condominium. The Larfa Properties group will redevelop the surrounding buildings to accommodate the residences and a central square with a garden to unify the entire block. The block of Convento do Beato in Lisbon is being redeveloped to include a new residential condominium called Beato Quarter, in addition to the well-known events space.

Finally, the real estate developer SOLYD Property Developers has started the construction of the third block of Lago Altear, having already sold 80% of the units after just three months. The third building of the development LAGO ALTEAR – Block C – is the seventh launch of the project ALTEAR, consisting of 63 new flats and three shops in Alta de Lisboa. Composed of three buildings, Block C represents an investment of 31 million euros and is the final phase of the LAGO ALTEAR development. The first ones are already concluded and fully let. The construction company Alves Ribeiro is responsible for the project, which will be completed in 2024.

Senior Citizens Homes

Thor announced the expansion of its portfolio, acquiring a social and health project in the heart of Porto. Thor Private Equity bought a home for senior citizens on Rua 5 de Outubro, Porto, which will consist of more than 6,910 square metres of surface area. The investment company is following through on its previously announced investment plan for the Iberian Peninsula. It is set to develop a six-floor building with 96 single rooms and eight double rooms.

Hotels

The Barceló Angra Marina received an award at the Traveller Review Awards 2022. The awards are given according to high scores in customer reviews in recent years. The Traveller Review Awards 2022 were awarded to 113 Barceló Hotel Group hotels located in 13 countries in Europe. The only five-star hotel in Angra do Heroísmo, on the island of Terceira, was one of the winners. The hotel unit has 130 rooms and is an urban holiday resort located next to the sea and the Angra do Heroísmo marina.

Proptech

Late last week, Tiko announced that it is continuing its expansion in Portugal with a new branch in Porto. Tiko now has three locations in Portugal: Lisbon, Setúbal and Porto. The company is the first international iBuyer to operate in the Portuguese market and is looking to expand further after beginning its expansion in November 2021. At that point it chose Lisbon as its first overseas location and is now expanding to Porto.

#BrainsFlash

March 28, 2022

Last week’s highlight was Solyd’s €260-million investment in a new project in Miraflores.

After a relatively serene period week before last, the real estate market gained a new lease of life. With the end of the month approaching, the real estate market has picked up speed again. The most important news came from investments in the hotel sector, where new units in the north of Portugal were inaugurated.

Right at the beginning of the week, the inauguration of the Sé Catedral Hotel Porto was announced, in an investment of 23.8 million euros. Sé Catedral Hotel Porto, part of the Tapestry Collection by Hilton, results from an urban rehabilitation project. The new 4-star hotel unit is Mercan Properties’ new investment in the centre of Porto. This is the first project under the Tapestry Collection brand, which belongs to the international Hilton group in Portugal. The result of another Mercan Properties’ urban rehabilitation project, it will be managed by Ace Hospitality Management (AHM). Sé Catedral Hotel Porto has 77 rooms, a restaurant, a bar and a café on the terrace overlooking Porto’s Sé Cathedral.

Meanwhile, the sale of three logistics warehouses in Porto Alto to Bedrock Capital and Europi Property was announced in the logistics sector. The warehouses are located in the Porto Alto Industrial Park and total around 40,000 m2 of gross construction area. The assets were owned by a real estate investment firm and have now been acquired by a joint venture between Bedrock Capital Partners and Europi Property Group. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Meanwhile, another hotel unit was inaugurated in Aveiro after an undisclosed investment. The 1877 Estrela Palace, a new luxury hotel unit, is in the city’s historic centre, under the management of Unlock Boutique Hotels, responsible for managing various units throughout the country. The new hotel has nine luxurious rooms and suites. The building is an old 17th-century manor, considered an ode to luxury in the heart of Aveiro. It is in the historical centre and has stunning views of the main channel of the great Ria de Aveiro.

At the end of the week, the most significant investment of the week was revealed, as Solyd invested 260 million euros in a new project in Miraflores. The real estate developer, SOLYD Property Developers, has launched its latest urban project in Miraflores, called MIREAR. The project has 426 residential units, 25,000 m2 of above-ground gross construction area for the development of workspaces, and 23 commercial spaces. MIREAR is the new multi-purpose project that includes 5 residential buildings, 1 office block and shops, located in a premium area in the heart of Miraflores.