Idom Sells its HQs to Catalana Occidente and Grosvenor for €90M

The engineering company has sold its headquarters in Bilbao and Madrid to Catalana Occidente and the Grosvenor Group for €90 million.

The engineering company Idom has closed the sale of its headquarters in Bilbao and Madrid to Catalana Occidente and the Duke of Westminster for €90 million, according to Expansión.

The Bilbao headquarters, located on the Deusto canal, which spans a surface area of 14,000 square metres, has been acquired by the insurance group Catalana Occidente.

Meanwhile, the property in Madrid, located in the Montecarmelo neighbourhood and comprising offices spanning 10,000 square metres and a below-ground space of 7,000 square metres, has been purchased by the Grosvenor Group, the real estate investment vehicle owned by the Duke of Westminster.

Grosvenor Buys its First Office Building in Spain

3 June 2019 – Expansión

The British real estate firm Grosvenor has made its debut in the office market in Spain with the acquisition of a building in the La Moraleja business park (Madrid) for an undisclosed sum. The property is located on Avenida de Europa, 19 and spans 22,000 m2.

Grosvenor returned to the Spanish real estate market in 2017 with the purchase of an 820 m2 plot of land on Calle Jorge Juan, 53 (Madrid) on which it is constructing a luxury residential development with views over the Retiro Park.

Since then it has been expanding its residential portfolio and is currently working on four projects in Madrid: La Esquina de General Arrando, Modesto Lafuente 26, García de Paredes 4 and Jorge Juan 53.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Purchases the MB One Building in Madrid for €80M

15 April 2019 – Eje Prime

Grosvenor has reached an agreement with Blackstone to acquire the MB One building, known for housing Citi’s headquarters, in La Moraleja (Madrid) for €80 million.

The US fund currently owns the property through Chameleon, a company that has put all of its assets up for sale.

MB One has a surface area of 22,129 m2, distributed over four modules and five storeys.

This represents Grosvenor’s return to the office market and accompanies its activity in the luxury residential market in Spain, where it plans to invest €200 million in projects in the neighbourhoods of Salamanca and Chamberí.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Goldman Sachs Pays €63M for A Plot of Land in Madrid

6 December 2018 – Eje Prime

Goldman Sachs is targeting the prime housing market in Madrid. The US investment fund has just purchased a plot of land in the centre of the Spanish capital for €63.7 million. The development of luxury apartments planned for the site is going to be built by the Catalan property developer Uniq.

The acquired plot is located at number 147 Paseo de la Habana and has a finalist surface area of 10,000 m2. The vendors are members of a family from Asturias. In the bid for this plot, Goldmans competed with other funds and property developers, such as Grupo Ibosa, Grosvenor, Pryconsa, Domo and Nozar, according to El Confidencial.

With this partnership, Uniq will have the possibility of increasing its presence in Madrid, where it already has a project underway in a former tenement building in Plaza de San Juan de la Cruz. Now, the Catalan property developer is going to build a development less than 1km from Paseo de la Castellana and the Santiago Bernabeú.

The area in which the development will be located has been receiving a lot of investment from wealthy Latin American families, recently. They are driving prices up in the residential market since they are “willing to pay well above the market average”, according to sources in the sector speaking to Eje Prime. They are interested in withdrawing their capital from their countries of origin, many of which are unstable, economically speaking, to invest in Spanish real estate, which offers them greater security.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Who is the Largest Residential Property Developer in Madrid

29 November 2018 – El Confidencial

With 12 developments underway comprising 758 homes with some type of protection, the Municipal Housing and Land Company (‘La Empresa Municipal de la Vivienda y Suelo’ or EMVS) is the most active property developer in the city of Madrid. Of the more than 350 residential projects under construction in the capital at the moment, the public initiative (by the Town Hall of Madrid), together with the promotion of cooperative homes or units with some kind of protection, has significant weight in Madrid, given that more than 16% of new build projects underway and 22% of the units under construction are public initiative developments (EMVS) or cooperative promotions.

That is according to data from the consultancy firm CBRE, which has compiled a study to analyse real estate activity in the Spanish capital, using satellites, taking into account both new build projects that require cranes for their completion as well as comprehensive renovation projects that do not need cranes or scaffolding. On the basis of the data obtained, the property developers who are currently carrying out those projects in the 21 districts of Madrid have been identified, be they new build projects, renovations, private homes or social housing units, excluding any homes being marketed on which construction work has not started yet.

The study establishes a ranking with the top 25 residential property developers in the capital on the basis of the number of projects underway and the number of units under construction. That ranking is led by the EMVS both by number of developments as well as by number of homes. Its developments are concentrated in the Pau de Vallecas (8 projects comprising 475 units), Latina (one development comprising 87 homes), Arganzuela (one development comprising 85 units), Villa de Vallecas (one development comprising 72 homes) and Carabanchel (one development comprising 25 homes).

Despite the strong development activity of the EMVS, the reality is that it is the private property developers who lead the activity overall, given that they account for three quarters (78%) of the new home units under construction in the city of Madrid. In fact, there are 12 private property developers with three or more projects under construction, which account for more than a third (34%) of the homes under construction.

Pryconsa and Inmoglacier, the most powerful

The second position in the ranking by number of developments is held by Pryconsa. The company chaired by Marco Colomer currently has seven projects underway, comprising 500 homes (…).

By number of units under construction, the second place in the ranking is held by Inmoglacier, with 748 homes under construction, distributed across just five developments, all of which are concentrated in Parque Ingenieros in Villaverde (…), all with some kind of protection and constructed on land acquired from Sepes more than three years ago. The company chaired by Ignacio Moreno (…) is one of the most active property developers in the capital and is focused towards a segment of the population capable of acquiring a home at affordable prices.

“At first glance, the sector appears to be vey fragmented. The 351 residential projects underway in Madrid are split between 241 companies or cooperatives. However, many property developers assign a separate legal entity to each promotion (…) and so it is not always easy to identify the large groups (and commercial brands) behind each project”, explains Samuel Población, National Residential Director at CBRE speaking to El Confidencial (…).

By area, the main national property developers are committed to constructing large projects in new areas, such as Arroyo del Fresno (Amenabar and Grupo Pinilla), Valdebebas, Parque de Ingenieros and El Cañaveral, where the projects with the largest number of units are concentrated. Companies such as Grupo Ibosa (…) and Vía Celere, along with the newcomer Brosh, complete the ranking (…).

International firms stick to the rich neighbourhoods

In terms of the property developers with a more international profile, by contrast, they are continuing with a strategy focused on the renovation of homes inside the city, in the most sought-after neighbourhoods. Venezuelan property developers have been particularly active, including Gran Roque (…), which has a dozen residential projects underway comprising more than 100 homes in some of the most sought-after areas of Madrid (…).

Also, Grosvenor (from the UK) and Darya Homes or Dazia Capital (France) are concentrating their activity exclusively in the districts of Centro, Chamberí and Salamanca. Those three developers – include Gran Roque – are currently managing 10 residential remodelling projects, which are characterised by the limited number of units (14 on average) and a clear vocation towards the high- and very high-end segments of the market.

Original story: El Confidencial (by E. Sanz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Backs the Rental Sector in Spain & Formalises its First Purchases in Madrid

1 June 2018 – Eje Prime

Grosvenor is betting on a business that is on the rise in Spain: the residential rental market. The group, which is going to spend €200 million on its growth plans in the country between now and 2022, as Eje Prime revealed, has recently acquired a building on Calle Rey Francisco, in the Madrilenian neighbourhood of Argüelles, which it is going to rent out.

The property in question is a protected building, located in an area that is very close to the university centres, and which the company hopes to renovate to create rental homes and convert the existing commercial premises into common areas, according to Expansión. In total, the building will have 23 homes, some of which are currently let out under the old rent system, whose tenants will be maintained by the British real estate company.

To give continuity to its business in Spain, Grosvenor will allocate more than €200 million to purchases, together with the Malaysian group Amprop, with which it has created a joint venture in the country. The group’s objective is to double its asset portfolio between now and 2022, according to James Raynor, CEO of Grosvenor, speaking to Eje Prime in an interview.

Grosvenor’s most ambitious plans in Spain include new purchases. The group, which has an office in Madrid and employs eight people in the country, has increased its investment capacity through its joint venture company with Amprop, created last year to build luxury apartments in Madrid, to €200 million.

The objective of the alliance with Amcorp is to back value-added investments, whereby assuming the associated risk but also receiving higher returns. The two groups have allocated a budget of €70 million for these types of projects, although they have reviewed the numbers thanks to the opportunities on offer in the Spanish market.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Will Invest €200M to Double its Portfolio in Spain by 2022

25 April 2018 – Eje Prime

The British group Grosvenor is taking advantage of the strong performance of the real estate sector in Spain. The company, which has just presented its financial results for 2017, revealing a record profit of GBP 143.5 million (€163.8 million), has revised its plans for Spain. It is now going to spend more than €200 million on purchases, together with the Malaysian group Amprop, with which it owns a joint venture in the country. The group aims to double its portfolio of assets between now and 2022, according to James Raynor (pictured below), CEO of Grosvenor, speaking to Eje Prime.

“In 2017, we increased our potential in the residential sector, specifically in Madrid, where we undertook six acquisitions for development”, explained Raynor. “Our intention is to transform under-utilised assets into properties that contribute to the growth and dynamisation of the neighbourhoods in which they are located, and we have faith that our first projects in the districts of Salamanca and Chamberí will do just that”, he added.

Grosvenor’s most ambitious plans in Spain include its new purchases. The group, which now employs eight people in the country after it opened an office in Madrid, has increased its investment capacity to €200 million through its joint venture together with Amprop, created last year to build luxury homes in Madrid. “We will also evaluate investments outside of the joint venture”, added the director.

The alliance with Amprop set itself the objective of backing value-added investments, where it assumes high risks but also assigns them high profitability. For these types of projects, the two groups have allocated a budget of €70 million, although they have reviewed the numbers thanks to the “opportunities being offered by the Spanish market”, explained the executive.

Grosvenor evaluates its last year in Spain as “a good year”. (…). “Having expanded our team, we have more power to unlock opportunities that would have been impossible without the experience of professionals in the sector. We have also been making progress with projects such as the one we have underway at number 53 Jorge Juan”, explained Raynor.

Over the coming months, the British group is going to continue “to look for investment opportunities in the main neighbourhoods of Madrid”. “We think that this is the perfect time to invest in residential developments in Spain and in repositioning opportunities, although we are also open to the acquisition of mixed-use assets, as well as retail properties and offices”, says Raynor -; “As an investment company, we have a diverse portfolio and extensive experience in all of the real estate sectors, and so we will take advantage of that know-how to find the most appropriate opportunities to suit us (…).

The fund has been led in the Spanish market by Fátima Sáez del Cano since 2007, although its operations in the country date back to 1996. The director leads the fund specialising in the office and commercial sectors, which is also responsible for the management of the funds and assets. Some of the properties under Grosvenor’s management in Spain include the Islazul shopping centre in Madrid and the Anecblau complex in Barcelona (…).

In addition, in recent months, Grosvenor decided to add new blood to its management team by hiring more directors. In September, the group recruited Javier García as the new Technical Director for the Spanish market. The director is responsible for the technical management of operations in Spain, from the control of the design to the monitoring of project costs and deadlines (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Injects Another €15M into its Luxury Home JV with Amprop

29 January 2018 – Eje Prime

Grosvenor is still interested in growing in the Spanish market, hand in hand with its local partner. The British company has injected another €15 million into its Spanish joint venture with the Malayan firm Amcorp Properties Berhad (Amprop), created last year to build luxury apartments in Madrid. Both groups have financial muscle amounting to more than €200 million, which they plan to invest in the construction of new developments in the country.

In this way, Grosvenor and Amprop are continuing with the plans they started last year when they completed the purchase of an 820 m2 plot on Madrid’s golden mile on which to build a luxury residential development. That plot is located on Calle Jorge Juan, one of the most expensive areas to live in the Spanish capital.

The British fund, owner of more than 1,500 properties spread all over the world, transformed its fund Grosvenor Fund Management into Grosvenor Europe, with the aim of undertaking joint investments in key markets in Europe, including Paris, Madrid, Milan and Stockholm.

The alliance signed with Amcorp set itself the objective of backing value-added investments, where it assumes more risk but also receives greater returns. For these types of projects, the two groups have allocated a budget of €70 million.

Seven months after creating this alliance, the partners have closed their first investment, for an undisclosed sum. In this plot, Grosvenor and its partner will construct an exclusive development comprising six apartments and a penthouse with views over the Retiro park.

Grosvenor has not yet determined the price at which it will place these properties on the market although the average price per square metre for prime real estate in the Salamanca neighbourhood amounts to around €8,500. Although, according to the most recent residential reports, some developments are going for more than €9,000.

The purchase of these plots followed the acquisition of two buildings in Madrid in July, which it will transform into new residential and retail spaces (…).

Grosvenor in Spain

In the Spanish market, the fund has been led by Fátima Sáez del Cano since 2007, although it started to operate in the country in 1996. The director manages the fund that specialises in the office business and retail sector, which is also responsible for the management of funds and assets. Some of the properties under Grosvenor’s management in Spain include the Islazul shopping centre in Madrid and the Anecblau complex in Barcelona (…).

Moreover, in recent months, Grosvenor has decided to add new lifeblood into its leadership team with the hiring of new directors. Last September, the group recruited Javier García as the new Technical Director for the Spanish market (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

McArthurGlen to Open 5 Luxury Outlet Centres in Spain

3 January 2018 – Cinco Días

The largest retail asset real estate firm in the world has set its sights on Spain. Simon Property Group will operate through its subsidiary in Europe, called McArthurGlen, in which it holds a 50% stake. This European firm, which specialises in luxury brand and premium outlets, plans to open five such centres in the country, according to José Luis Arenas, Director of Development at McArthurGlen in Spain, speaking to Cinco Días. In total, it plans to invest €750 million, with an average investment of €150 million per site.

McArthurGlen’s first project is already under development. It involves an outlet for luxury brands, which is being built as an extension of the Plaza Mayor shopping centre in Málaga. The firm will invest €140 million in the initiative, together with its partner Sonae Sierra, and its doors are due to open at the end of 2018 (…).

According to Arenas, “We are looking for more short-term opportunities in the north and east of Spain and we will end up entering both Madrid and Barcelona over the medium term” (…).

McArthurGlen is a company headquartered in London and founded in 1993 by the American Joey Kampfer. It is a large developer of designer outlets, given that it owns 24 centres in 8 European countries as well as in Canada, which house 3,000 stores for 1,000 brands in total. Simon Property, as the owner of 50% of the share capital, provides it with an enormous investment capacity. Meanwhile, that US real estate company, under the legal structure of a REIT or Socimi, owns 216 shopping centres around the world and has a market capitalisation of $54.95 billion (€45.7 billion), making it the largest real estate company on the planet (…).

McArthurGlen has joined forces with Sonae Sierra for this first project in Málaga, but has not ruled out teaming up with other property developers in the future. (…). Sonae Sierra is, in turn, a joint venture, between the Portuguese holding company Sonae and the British firm Grosvenor – belonging to Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster -. Sonae Sierra owns 76 shopping centres in 14 countries (…).

In terms of the Andalucían outlet, Arenas has set the objective of having between 2 and 3 million visitors per year. “Plaza Mayor by itself already receives more than 10 million people per year and we are going to benefit from those consumers and increase the numbers with new clients. We will also attract tourists”.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Alfonso Simón Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Buys 3 More Residential Properties In Madrid

26 October 2017 – Eje Prime

The youngest multi-millionaire in the world has set his sights on Spain. The young Duke of Westminster, 26, has acquired three properties in Madrid, where he is going to build luxury homes. The latest project involves the transformation of a property that used to house the Philatelic Forum for many years. The plan is to build twelve properties there for wealthy tenants, according to Cinco Días.

The Spanish subsidiary of Grosvenor has also purchased a plot of land on Calle Jorge Juan, where it plans to construct seven apartments and a property on Santa Engracia, which will contain 18 homes once the building has been renovated.

To carry out this series of investments, the British company has joined forces with the holding company Amcorp, which is headquartered in Malaysia and which has funds amounting to €70 million.

In addition to the residential market, Grosvenor is looking to purchase offices for their rental, according to the company. In Spain, the firm is a partner of the Sonae Sierra joint venture, one of the main players in the shopping centre sector.

Grosvenor, led by Mark Preston, currently owns properties with a value of around €7,300 million, most of which are located in the United Kingdom, where, it is also the main landowner in London’s most exclusive neighbourhoods. These assets generated revenues of €298 million in 2016 and profits of almost €90 million.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake