Amenabar Joins Forces with Ares to Invest €110M in Construction of 400 Build-to-Rent Homes

17 January 2020 – El Confidencial

Amenabar Promociones has signed the largest build-to-rent operation to date in Spain with the fund Ares. Together, they are going to invest more than €110 million in the construction of more than 400 rental homes in Valdebebas, Madrid.

The homes are going to be built on a plot that Amenabar acquired at the end of 2019 from Ferrovial for €56 million. The Basque, family-owned, property developer made its debut in Madrid’s residential market five years ago and handed over more than 1,000 new homes last year. In 2020, it plans to increase that figure to almost 1,600, a volume that it hopes to maintain for the next couple of years, which will see it outperform many of its listed competitors.

With this operation, Amenabar is following in the footsteps of companies such as Aedas, Metrovacesa, Quabit, Momentum and Urbas, which have all committed to projects in the build to rent sector in recent months.

Meanwhile, Ares has become one of the most active funds in this segment of the market. For example, Aedas is going to build 500 rental homes for Ares (€70 million); and Metrovacesa is going to construct another 121 homes for the fund (€29 million).

The appeal of the segment lies in the attractive returns that rental homes are currently generating. In Q2 2019, the average gross yield on rental homes across Spain amounted to 3.9%, according to official data from the Bank of Spain, which is much higher than the return on bonds and other prime real estate assets, such as offices and high street premises. Moreover, various cities and neighbourhoods offer even higher returns e.g. Madrid Capital (5.06%) and the Villaverde neighbourhood (8.43%).

Original story: El Confidencial (by E. Sanz)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Vivenio, Millenium & Atom Invested €543M in New Purchases in 2019

9 January 2020 – Eje Prime

Vivenio and the hotel Socimis drove the MAB in 2019. The Socimi controlled by Renta Corporación, plus Millenium Hoteles and Atom Hoteles together invested €543 million in new acquisitions during 2019. That figure accounted for 71.2% of all the funds spent on asset purchases by the MAB’s Socimis during the year.

Specifically, Vivenio invested €234 million, including €75.5 million on some of the Operación Calderón plots; Millenium closed 3 operations amounting to €192.4 million, including the purchase of 2 buildings in central Madrid which it is going to convert into a 5-star hotel; and Atom Hoteles spent €116.6 million on 5 hotels in Madrid, A Coruña, Cádiz, Tenerife and Gran Canaria.

In total, all of the Socimis on the MAB spent €762.1 million on the purchase of assets during 2019, up by 34.1% compared to 2018.

Original story: Eje Prime (by Marc Vidal Ordeig)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

BNP Paribas: Investment in Logistics Assets Amounted to €1.85bn in 2019

9 January 2020 – Cadena de Suministro

According to data compiled by BNP Paribas, investment in the Spanish logistics sector amounted to €1.85 billion in 2019, which represented a new record, for the fifth consecutive year, and an increase of 42% YoY. The rise was driven by the boom in e-commerce and the attractive returns in the segment.

During Q4 2019, investment in the sector amounted to €545 million with prime yields falling to 4.90%. Notable transactions during the quarter included the sale by GreenOak to Patrizia of the largest logistics portfolio in Europe for €1.3 billion (€225 million in Spain); and the acquisition by Roebuck of the Pikolin logistics platform in Zaragoza for €78 million.

Original story: Cadena de Suministro

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Neinor Reports Profits of €90M, Exceeding its Own Forecast by 30%

9 January 2020 – El Confidencial

Nine months after issuing a profit warning, announcing a new roadmap and appointing a new CEO (Borja García-Egotxeaga (pictured below)), Neinor has reported profits of €90 million, up by 30% compared to the revised forecasts of €70 million.

The property developer handed over 1,269 finished homes last year, within its forecast range of between 1,200 and 1,700, and has another 200 ready to hand over this year. It plans to hand over half of those this month (January) and the rest during the course of the year, depending on its margins.

2020 is going to be a critical year given the looming change in the economic cycle, with stabilisation expected in terms of sales and prices. In 2018, prices rose by 8%; in 2019, they increased by 6-7%; and in 2020, the firm’s objective is to sell 1,700 homes and achieve a price increase of 3.5-4%. Thanks to these rises, the group’s margin amounted to 30% at the end of 2019.

By contrast, Neinor has not managed to fulfil its land purchase plan to date, although it expects to achieve its ambitious forecasts for 2020 when it aims to invest €110 million in total.

The property developer’s two largest shareholders, Orion (28%) and Adar are both keen to support the growth of the company and benefit from the consequent recovery of its share price.

Original story: El Confidencial (by Ruth Ugalde)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

CBRE: Hotel Investment Fell by 49% in 2019 Due to Lack of Large Deals

8 January 2020 – Expansión

According to CBRE, investment in the hotel real estate sector amounted to €2.5 billion in 2019, down by 49% YoY. In total, 126 hotels changed hands last year, containing 15,000 rooms, together with another 3,200 planned rooms.

Most of the transacted properties were individual assets (72%), with just 28% of the hotels forming part of portfolios, down from 65% in 2018. The main reason for the decrease is a reduction in corporate operations in 2019. Blackstone took the market by storm in 2018 when it made a takeover bid for the Socimi Hispania, which was the largest hotel owner in Spain.

By type of asset, more than half of investors (51%) invested in urban assets in 2019, resulting in a decrease in investment in the vacation sector.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Addmeet: Investment in RE in Madrid Exceeded that in Barcelona by 2.5x in 2019

7 January 2020 – El Confidencial

According to the real estate portal, Addmeet, real estate investment in Spain amounted to €35.0 billion in 2019, of which 70% was concentrated in Madrid and Barcelona (€18.0 billion and €6.8 billion, respectively). The data compiled reflects all real estate operations amounting to more than €3 million in all sectors of the professional real estate market.

In the Community of Madrid, investment broke all records (€18 billion), exceeding the figures recorded in 2018 (€15 billion) and in 2008 (€10 billion). There, the office sector was the main driver, accounting for 61% of the total figure (€11 billion). The star transaction was the sale of Santander’s Ciudad Financiera, which the financial entity repurchased from Marme Inversiones for €3.2 billion 11 years after selling it to that same firm.

Other office-related deals included the sale of the La Finca business park to the Socimi owned by the Cereceda family for €423 million; and the purchase by Allianz Real Estate of Castellana 200 (comprising 20,000 m2 in office space and 6,500 m2 in retail area) for €250 million.

The next main drivers were the residential sector, which accounted for 11% of investment (€2 billion), boosted by the build to rent segment, and the retail sector, which accounted for 11.5% of the total investment.

Meanwhile, record figures were also recorded in the province of Barcelona (€6.8 billion) despite the “procés”. In fact,  the investment volume almost doubled that recorded in 2008 and far exceeded the total recorded two years ago (€5.6 billion).

Like in Madrid, the office sector in Barcelona accounted for most of the real estate investment (46% or €3.1 billion). The retail sector represented 11.5% (€0.8 billion), whilst the hotel segment attracted almost €1 billion (14%) and the residential segment just €0.5 billion.

Major deals in the Catalan capital in 2019 included the sale by Telefónica of Diagonal 00 to the Philippine magnate Andrew L. Tan for €150 million, amongst others.

Original story: El Confidencial (by E. Sanz)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Slim Acquires 3% of Quabit for €4.8M

7 January 2020 – El Confidencial

The Mexican businessman Carlos Slim has acquired 3% of the share capital of Quabit for €4.8 million through his investment company Inversora Carso to become the property developer’s sixth-largest shareholder.

Quabit’s share price rose by 5.15% to €1.14 following the announcement of the purchase. The property developer’s president Félix Abánades is the largest investor with a 20% stake, followed by the Swiss manager Julius Baer (8.7%), the investor Francisco García Paramés (5%), the fund Gescooperativo (3.5%) and the Malagan property developer Sankar Real Estate (3.3%).

Slim appears to be redoubling his commitment to the Spanish real estate market, given that he already holds stakes in FCC and Realia, which currently have 800 and 750 homes under construction, respectively, along with 4.4 million m2 and 5.8 million m2 of land ripe for development, respectively.

Original story: El Confidencial (by Ruth Ugalde)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

CBRE GI to Invest €350M in Real Estate Projects in 2020

6 January 2020 – Eje Prime

CBRE GI is entering the real estate finance market. Following its acquisition of Laxfield Capital, a British real estate debt platform, at the end of last year, the group has announced that it is going to invest €350 million in new purchases in 2020, focusing not only on the acquisition of assets but also on the commissioning of real estate projects.

CBRE GI already reported that the Spanish market will be a clear objective for this new line of business. Last year, the firm invested €350 million in Spain and Portugal, where it currently owns 13 shopping centre, 43 logistics platforms, 3 office buildings, 10 hotels, 37 halls of residence and 73 homes.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

ASG Homes Acquires Former Student Residence in A Coruña

17 September 2019 – La Opinión A Coruña

The sale has been completed of a former student residence in A Coruña. The congregation of the religious order of María Inmaculada has sold the property, which spans 6,000 m2 and comprises 6 or 7 storeys (depending on where you are in the building), to the real estate firm ASG Homes Propcorp for €7.7 million.

ASG Homes Propcorp is owned by several European investors, namely: East Hampton Partners Limited (40%), headquartered in London; Fido Holding GMBH (10%), headquartered in Berlin (Germany), Caveco Investments (40%), headquartered in Madrid, and Gotrina (10%), also based in Madrid.

The group is in the process of investing the resources that it raised for its sixth fund, which amounted to €500 million in total, and the focus of its investments is now directed towards Valladolid, Zaragoza, Bilbao, Portugal… and A Coruña.

The international group specialises in the construction of residential complexes, and also promotes hotels, shopping centres and gas stations.

The property is currently divided into two halves, with the right-hand side forming the subject of the sale by the religious order; the left-hand side, which comprises commercial premises on the ground floor, offices on the second floor and private apartments on the upper floors, does not form part of the sale.

Original story: La Opinión A Coruña (by Marta Villar)

Translated by: Aura Ree

Land Prices and Production in Ribera del Duero Continue to Increase

5 August 2019

The Ribera del Duero wine region is in the midst of a boom, with production fully sold before harvest. The area produced 133 million tons of grapes, the second largest haul in  history from a total of 23,200 hectares of vineyards and 8,300 wine growers. The grapes supplied 315 wineries classified under the Denomination of Origin (DO).

While some investors think that the price of land in the region has risen too far too fast, the profile of buyers these days is undergoing a sea change as more professional winegrowers and entrepreneurs are looking to buy land. Thus, prices are expect to continue to increase, but at the more sedate, estimated range of between 5 and 6 percent per year.

Original Story: El Confidencial – Graciano Palomo

Adaptation/Translation: Richard D. K. Turner