Inveriplus Investments Acquires 4 Gyms to Operate Under its New ‘XXII Fit Club’ Brand

16 April 2019 – Palco23.com

The real estate consultancy firm Inveriplus Investments has purchased four sports centres in Madrid for an undisclosed sum. Specifically, it has acquired one gym in Chamberí (Calle Alberto Aguilera, 1) and one in Las Rosas shopping centre from Urban Fitness, as well as two others in Tres Cantos and Pozuelo from another vendor.

All four establishments will operate under the XXII Fit Club brand from September and the company plans to offer additional services to its clients, besides the standard fitness offering, including beauty, nutrition, personal training and physiotherapy.

Inveriplus intends to expand its portfolio to include twenty centres by the end of 2020, before growing beyond the Spanish capital to Barcelona, Valencia, Bilbao, Sevilla, Málaga and Zaragoza.

Original story: Palco23.com (by P. López)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Which Homes Cost More Than €10,000/m2 in Madrid?

2 November 2018 – Expansión

Canalejas (€14,500/m2)

Canalejas is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated major luxury mega-projects. Owned by OHL and Mohari Limited, the company owned by the Israeli businessman Mark Scheinberg, the central corner surrounded by Calles Alcalá, Sevilla and Carrer de San Jerónima, now known as Project Canalejas, is going to be home to the first Four Seasons hotel in Spain, with 200 rooms, as well as 22 luxury apartments costing €14,500/m2 on average. For the project, 7 historical buildings have been joined together, which used to house the headquarters of some of the most important banking institutions in the country, and in which €300 million have been invested. Of the 22 properties available, 16 have already been sold, including a penthouse for €10 million.

Lagasca 99 (€11,800/m2)

But the record for an apartment with these characteristics in the centre of Madrid is still held by the duplex that was sold on Lagasca 99 at the end of 2016. It is a penthouse duplex spanning 703 m2, with a terrace and private swimming pool, and two parking spaces, which was sold for €14 million. That building, which is currently being promoted by Grupo Lar, after suffering several ups and downs in its development history, has become one of the most exclusive buildings in Madrid, with 44 new homes in total, measuring between 300 m2 and 700 m2 each, and of which 90% have now been sold.

General Castaños 2 (€20,000/m2).

Meanwhile, the property developer Mabel Real Estate has undertaken a stunning renovation of the property at c/General Castaños, 2. Although the 11 homes that the building is going to comprise never actually went on the market (they were offered directly to private investors), the sector calculated that the prices amounted to around €20,000/m2.

José Abascal 48 (€10,000/m2)

Two years ago, the first homes in one of the best fully reformed buildings in the Castellana area, José Abascal 48, started to be handed over. Three exclusive penthouses are still available, including the so-called “duplex penthouse retreat” measuring 462 m2, with terraces spanning 100 m2, 4 parking spaces, a storeroom and an independent service room, which is on the market for €5.87 million.

The home has two main entrances on each of its floors, in such a way that you can access the rooms from the lift if you do not want to use the internal stairs. Moreover, the building has an exceptional entrance hall and an automated parking lot, an events area, a 100 m2 gym and a spa.

Original story: Expansión (by L. Ruiz-Ocaña)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Caledonian Buys 10,000 m2 of Land in Central Madrid For Residential Development

14 September 2018 – Eje Prime

Caledonian has increased its land portfolio in Madrid, but this time it has done so in the centre of the Spanish capital. The property developer has purchased a plot spanning 10,000 m2 in the Chamartín district of the city centre. The company plans to construct a residential development on the site, which it will add to the two that it already owns in the municipality of Pozuelo de Alarcón.

The objective of the construction company is to convert an industrial plot into a residential one. On the site, located on Calle Javier Ferrero, the company is planning to build different types of apartments with between one and four bedrooms.

Like on other occasions, Caledonian is going to collaborate this time with the architecture studio MK27, led by the Brazilian Marcio Kogan, to carry out the design of the urbanisation. The development will also have common areas with a gym and indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

The company, founded in 1998 by Enrique López Granados, plans to start work on the construction of the homes at the beginning of 2019. The project managers confirm that the construction work will take approximately one year.

Caledonian’s turnover in 2017 amounted to €25 million. The firm focuses its activity on the north-west of Madrid with projects that include several residential developments containing more than thirty homes.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Metrovacesa Invests €175M in Torre del Río Residential Project in Málaga

13 September 2018 – Eje Prime

Metrovacesa is backing the Malagan residential market. The property developer is going to invest €175 million in the Torre del Río residential project in the city of Málaga. The proposal involves the construction, on a surface area spanning 58,368 m2, of three residential properties, distributed over 21 storeys and with the capacity for more than 250 homes.

Each tower will house around 75 large homes, two swimming pools, a gym, a gastrobar, a coworking area and a movie theatre. The first units are expected to be handed over at the beginning of 2021.

The construction of the project is going to generate 1,500 direct and indirect jobs and is going to be led by Estudio Lamela, the company that won the architectural tender to construct Torre del Río. In the vicinity around the three skyscrapers, 39,131 m2 of space will be dedicated to free public areas and 12,648 m2 will be allocated for school, sports and social uses, as well as a building for tertiary and hotel use.

According to the developers of the project, “the urban development of this area is going to allow the recovery for Malaga of old industrial enclaves along the Antonino Banderas seafront on Calle Pacífico.

The Torre del Río residential development follows another investment undertaken by Metrovacesa in the south. In June, the listed property developer signed an agreement with the Town Hall of Sevilla to unblock the largest real estate development in the Andalucían capital at the moment.

That project is going to be located in Palmas Altas and will comprise more than 2,800 homes, of which 2,200 will be constructed by Metrovacesa. In terms of investment, access and the urbanisation of the land, the Spanish property developer is going to invest €60 million, funds that will come from a corporate loan that it signed with seven entities at the end of 2017.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Spain’s Most Expensive Property in Palma de Mallorca is up for Sale

7 September 2018 – Majorca Daily Bulletin

Villa Solitaire in Son Vida, Palma is said to be the most expensive property in Spain. It is on the market with the John Taylor real estate agency for €65 million.

The villa was designed by the Italian Matteo Thun. It has outstanding views over Palma Bay. At €65 million, it is a lot more expensive than two other properties in Mallorca that have been highlighted previously because of their high prices – a mansion in Bonaire, Alcudia and a country estate with a house in Puigpunyent. Villa Solitaire beats the former by some €30 million.

There are seven bedrooms in the property, which occupies a surface area of 2,300 square metres. Six bathrooms, a rooftop terrace with open-air cinema, gymnasium, parking for six cars, a botanical garden, a lift; these are just some of the other features. The interior is designed in harmony with the Mediterranean environment and the exterior’s natural spaces. Everything is of the highest possible quality. At €65 million euros, that should be taken as a given.

Original story: Majorca Daily Bulletin

Translation: Carmel Drake

Gestilar Launches Plan to Address Mallorca’s Scarce Housing Supply

6 July 2018 – Eje Prime

Gestilar is thinking about the Mediterranean. The property developer has started the summer by marketing the first 89 homes that it is building in Mallorca. As part of its €123 million investment plan, the real estate company is going to build 400 homes over the next few years in Palma across three developments in the Nou Llevant area, to the south-east of the city.

Mediterrània 1, the residential development through which the real estate firm has arrived in the Balearic Islands, is going to comprise homes with two, three and four bedrooms. It is designed for locals, both first-time buyers as well as those looking to reposition”, explain sources at Gestilar speaking to Eje Prime.

On an island with a “shortage of structural supply and economic stability”, Mallorca has become “one of the most desirable markets in Europe for investing in the real estate sector”, according to Raúl Guerrero, Director of Developments at Gestilar.

At the end of 2017, the property developer led by Javier García-Valcárcel purchased three plots in the Balearic capital with a total surface area of 55,300 m2. “We set our sights on Palma due to the shortage of new housing projects that have been built there in recent years”, explains Guerrero, who highlights the “the pent-up and unfulfilled demand” that exists in the city.

The first of the developments comprises several four- and seven-story blocks with their ground floors allocated to commercial premises. The design of the project has been entrusted to the Spanish architecture studio L35, which has created an urbanisation with substantial common areas.

Located 500 metres from the beach and the port of Portixol, Mediterrània 1 will have communal spaces with a swimming pool, a gym and a games area for children. The construction of the first phase is due to start between the last quarter of this year and the first quarter of 2019, with the aim of handing over the first keys before the end of 2020.

“There is space for new projects in Palma” 

Gestilar’s interest Palma is not the first from a Spanish residential property developer in recent months. A few days ago, the listed company Aedas Homes put on the market its fourth project in the Balearic capital and several other companies are working to begin projects this year.

This growing interest in Mallorca comes in response to the sales rates on the island that place it at the top of the ranking in the residential sector, behind Madrid and Barcelona. “It is still too early to assess the rates of our own developments, but for the last few months, we have been monitoring and updating our market research, and the results of this analysis reveal a high rate of marketing in the area”, explains Guerrero (…). According to the director of Gestilar, “there is space for new projects in Palma”, where the property developer has already opened an office.

In this regard, the property developer believes that Palma is going to be one of the cities, like Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao, that will look to improve its positioning abroad. In the Balearic capital, we are seeing a recovery in terms of property development activity, where a significant number of developments have started to be marketed between December 2015 and October 2017, which means that home completions are now growing, according to Gestilar (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by J. Izquierdo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

The Owners of Sambil Outlet Enter Spain’s Luxury Residential Market

4 April 2018 – Expansión

Having arrived in Spain in December 2012, the Venezuelan group Sambil, controlled by the Cohen family, has just launched its second project in the country. Whilst in the case of the first, its activity involved the purchase and subsequent transformation of the M-40 shopping centre – located in the Madrilenian town of Leganés and closed after it filed for bankruptcy – into the largest shopping outlet in Spain, it is now placing its focus on the luxury residential market.

Sambil has purchased a building located on Calle Ramón de la Cruz, in the heart of the Salamanca neighbourhood of the Spanish capital. After investing €11.5 million on that acquisition, the Venezuelan group has just launched its plans to create 14 luxury homes, with between two and four bedrooms.

“A year and a half ago, we purchased this small building, as a taster, to gain knowledge about the market. There we are going to build 14 luxury apartments, with a total investment of €24 million”, explains Alfredo Cohen, Director General of the Sambil group.

For its design, the company has engaged the architect Carlos Calero and the interior designer Ricardo de la Torre, whilst the marketing will be led by The Corner Group. “We expect the construction work to begin in May and to be completed two years later”, say sources at the company. The work will include the comprehensive renovation of the building, preserving the protected features such as the façade and the stairway. “We will undertake the construction work ourselves, given that we are builders”, said Cohen.

The homes will have a minimum surface area of 160 m2 and will span up to almost 300 m2 for the largest properties; they will cost between €1.5 million and more than €3 million for the penthouse. “There are going to be 14 super-luxury homes with common terrace areas with a jacuzzi, gym, sauna and robotic parking, amongst other services”.

A real estate giant

Founded 40 years ago by Salomon Cohen Levy and led today by his children, Sambil is one of the largest owners of shopping centres in South America. Most of its establishments are located in Venezuela, where the company is still working despite the problems in the country (…). Outside of Venezuela, the company, which has also developed hotels and other real estate complexes, has projects in Puerto Rico and on the Caribbean island of Curaçao.

In addition to the project in the Salamanca neighbourhood, Sambil is working on new opportunities in the Spanish market, both in the commercial and residential segments. “As a construction company we look at everything, but what we would most like to do is to build more Sambil centres”, said Cohen.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Oaktree Sells 49 Luxury Homes on Madrid’s Gran Vía

9 March 2018 – Eje Prime

Oaktree is successfully completing its luxury development on Madrid’s Gran Vía. The US fund has managed to sell the 49 homes that comprise the project, whose keys will be handed over at the end of 2018.

The good health of the residential sector in Spain, accompanied by the country’s period of economic boom, has allowed the fund to take full advantage of this promotion. Not in vain, the commercialisation of the building, located at number 68 Gran Vía, has reached prices of up to €10,000 per square metre, according to El Economista.

The consultancy firm Magnum&Partners has operated as the delegated promoter for this residential project, which first went on the market in September 2016, with prices as low as €6,000 per square metre, for properties without a parking space.

Due to demand, that figure has increased by 10%. The new homes in the renovated property will have surface areas of between 79 m2 and 247 m2. Moreover, the building will have a panoramic roof terrace with a swimming pool, as well as a gym.

The most expensive home in the building has been sold for an approximate price of €3 million. The tenants of the development, designed by the architecture studio Fenwick Iribarren, will be mostly Spanish, given that 87% of the buyers are nationals, and half of them are resident in Madrid.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hotusa Buys Hotel In Jerez From Banco Sabadell

14 November 2017 – Eje Prime

The Hotusa Group remains firmly committed to Andalucía. In Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz), the hotel chain has acquired the Hotel Eurostars Asta Regia, owned until now by Banco Sabadell.

The establishment has 31 rooms, a sauna, Turkish bath, gym and a rooftop swimming pool, as well as two meeting rooms. This investment, the amount of which has not been disclosed, strengthens Hotusa’s expansion plans in Andalucía; it now owns 24 establishments in the autonomous region.

Overall, the Spanish group’s total asset portfolio contains 175 hotels, spread over 17 countries, which generate an annual turnover of more than €1,000 million.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Ibosa & GreenOak Invest €86M In Luxury Housing Tower

28 September 2017 – Expansión

The real estate group Ibosa and the fund Green Oak are promoting a 23-storey tower containing luxury homes in the north of Madrid. Construction work will start at the site at the beginning of 2018 and will involve an investment of €86 million.

The 77m tall ‘Torre Australis’ will be constructed in the north of the capital, in the so-called Isla de Chamartín area. It will be completed by two lower annexe buildings and in total, will house 208 homes, with between one and four bedrooms, with prices ranging between €227,000 and €805,000.

Ibosa and Green Oak have already started to market the homes, whose owners will enjoy some exclusive services.

Moreover, the complex will have shared facilities such as workspaces, a gym, a sports room with spa, a swimming pool, green areas, sports facilities and a children’s playground.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake