Tag: Nueva Condomina

Deloitte: Inv’t In Retail Sector Will Reach €3.046bn in 2017

23 November 2017 – Expansión

Shopping centres have reached their cruising speed. After breaking all records last year, with a transaction volume of €3.769 billion, investment in the sector is maintaining its strong dynamism and could reach €3.046 billion by year-end. That would represent the second highest annual figure for a decade, according to research by Deloitte for The Shopping Centre Handbook.

So far this year, investment in shopping centres has amounted to €2.296 billion, which represents 30% of the total volume invested in the non-residential real estate market in Spain. Moreover, the remaining weeks of the year are expected to be particularly busy, which should allow the figure to exceed the €3 billion threshold in 2017.

Historical operations, such as the purchase of Xanadú (Arroyomolinos, Madrid) by the British fund Intu Properties for €520 million and the subsequent sale of 50% of that asset to TH Real Estate for €264 million; and the acquisition by Klépierre of Nueva Condomina, in Murcia, for €230 million, have catapulted investment this year despite the fact that, if the outstanding operations in the pipeline materialise, the total volume will be 19% lower than in 2016.

Record operation

Compared with other countries in Europe, Spain is consolidating its position as the third largest market in terms of investment, accounting for 16% of total volume. In this sense, the purchase of Xanadú leads the ranking of the largest operations transacted in Europe this year. Nueva Condomina also features in the list of top 5 deals, together with the purchase of Rathaus Galerie Leverkusen, (Germany) and Le Befane Shopping Centre (Italy), both of which were acquired by Union Investment, for €220 million and €244 million, respectively.

“Investors in shopping centres in Spain believe that the strong macroeconomic outlook will continue to boost household consumption and with that, the valuation of retail assets”, said the Partner in Financial Advisory at Deloitte, Javier García-Mateo.

In terms of the investor profile, García-Mateo explains that this year, “the stage has been shared by Spanish Socimis, which have seen their stake of total investment fall to 16%, to the benefit of international funds, which are looking to build large multi-country platforms”.

The Director of Financial Advisory at Deloitte, Ana Granado, also points out that this year, financing for shopping centres amounting to between €1.2 billion and €1.5 billion has been closed. “The traditional banks are being joined by a select group of alternative providers of capital, which are willing to finance the development of land and projects in the transformation and renovation phase”, she said.

Regarding the supply, currently, the average commercial density of shopping centres in Spain amounts to 285 m2 for every 1,000 inhabitants. By province, Zaragoza (with 638 m2 for every 1,000 inhabitants) and Las Palmas (with 641 m2 for every 1,000 inhabitants) are the Spanish provinces with the highest commercial density. At the other end of the spectrum are Lérida, with 40 m2 for every 1,000 inhabitants and Gerona, with 65 m2 for every 1,000 inhabitants.

Renovation

In terms of the commercial park, José María Espejo, Senior Manager at Deloitte Financial Advisory, indicates that 45% of the current supply of shopping centres is showing signs of significant technical obsolescence. “Any renovation processes will have to go hand in hand with some major capex investment”, he said.

According to Deloitte’s calculations, the amount of investment required to reposition the obsolete assets amounts to around €1.08 billion.

By way of example of some of the shopping centres that have been repositioned in recent years, La Moraleja Green, in Madrid stands out, with an investment of €10 million. That shopping centre, located in Alcobendas and inaugurated in 1995 is owned by Kennedy Wilson, which bought it from ING Real Estate in December 2015 for €71 million. Meanwhile, Unibail Rodamco, has invested €148 million in the repositioning of the Glòries shopping centre in Barcelona and Intu has spent €12 million on improvements at its shopping centre in Asturias.

Omni-channels

In terms of challenges for the future, commercial spaces are going to have to adapt to cater for the new habits of consumers and to make e-commerce an ally.

According to the report, shopping centres are at very preliminary levels of evolution and only the most advanced have online shopping platforms, mobile applications and loyalty programs for their clients.

Specifically, the level of omnichannel use of shopping centres in Spain amounts to 33%. By category, retail outlets achieve the highest degree of omnichannel use, whilst shopping centres bring up the rear in terms of their degree of digitalisation.

Original story: Expansión (by Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Deutsche Bank Negotiates Purchase Of L’Aljub Shopping Centre

9 November 2017 – Expansión

The real estate sector is heading for a new investment record this year and shopping centres are one of the star segments on the rise. Deutsche Bank, which marked a milestone in 2016 with its purchase of Diagonal Mar, wants to strengthen its position in this market and to this end, is negotiating the acquisition of the L’Aljub shopping centre, located in Elche. The operation could be closed for a price of more than €170 million, according to market sources.

L’Aljub is currently owned by the fund Seva (Southern European Value-Add Mandate), managed by TH Real Estate for the investors TPG Real Estate – the real estate platform of the international manager TPG – and Partners Group. The consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield is advising the vendor and CBRE the buyer.

This investment vehicle, which also owns two other retail assets in Italy, has a combined value of €300 million. The three assets were acquired a year ago from TH Real Estate for €250 million.

In addition to the retail and leisure premises, L’Aljub also houses an Eroski hypermarket on the ground floor. TH Real Estate purchased that store from Eroski a month ago through this investment vehicle for €18.7 million.

This investment in L’Aljub includes the hypermarket, which has a surface area of 9,900 m2, as well as the space leased by Primark (4,500 m2) and the gas station (200 m2), operated by Eroski.

The shopping centre was inaugurated in August 2003 and has a surface area of more than 60,000 m2, spread over two floors, as well as an extensive underground car park. The centre is home to 120 stores and 3,200 parking spaces (free of charge). Some of its most high profile operators include Inditex, H&M, Primark, Mango and Cines ABC.

If the negotiations prove fruitful, Deutsche Bank would strengthen its position in the retail segment in Spain. Last year, the company purchased the Diagonal Mar shopping centre (Barcelona) for almost €500 million. After the purchase of Xanadú, that operation was the second largest ever closed in the shopping centre segment.

Investment

Another example of the interest in this type of asset was the purchase of Xanadú by Intu Properties in March for €530 million. Subsequently, the British created a company with TH Real Estate to share ownership of the Madrilenian shopping centre.

Banca March has also decided to back this kind of asset with the purchase of the ABC Serrano shopping centre in Madrid this summer for €130 million, debt included. Meanwhile, Klépierre acquired Nueva Condomina in Murcia for €230 million earlier this year.

In this way, investment in the segment during the 10 months to October amounted to €2,300 million, which suggests a high volume year, behind only the historical maximum, recorded last year, of €2,700 million.

Original story: Expansión (by Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Catella: RE Inv’t Rose By 60% During First 8 Months To €7,061M

25 September 2017 – Expansión

The Spanish real estate market is still a magnet for investment at the global level. In this way, during the 8 months to August, investment in tertiary real estate assets (in other words, non-residential properties) rose to €7,061 million. That volume is 62% higher than the figure registered during the same period in 2016, according to data from the consultancy firm Catella (…).

By type of properties, commercial assets accounted for 45% of the total investment, with a volume of more than €3,200 million, up by 52% compared to the first eight months of 2016. In fact, that figure already exceeds the amount recorded for last year as a whole and is very close to the record investment made in 2007, when commercial assets worth more than €3,590 million were sold, according to sources at the consultancy firm.

Of that amount, investment in shopping centres accounted for 60% of total retail investment, amounting to €1,929 million. The figure is explained by the completion of major operations, such as the purchase of Xanadú, in Arroyomolinos (Madrid), on which Intu Properties spent €530 million; and the operation involving Nueva Condomina, in Murcia, which Klépierre purchased for €233 million.

Interest

Large assets were not the only retail assets to spark interest: high-street premises were also on investors’ radars. As such, €711 million was spent on that type of property between January and August, with highlights including operations such as the purchase of Preciados 9, the future flagship Pull & Bear store in the centre of Madrid, by Generali for €98 million. Meanwhile, investors spent another €516 million on retail parks and supermarkets, with the operation involving a portfolio of nine retail parks leading the way – the South African investor Vukile spent €193 million on that purchase.

In the case of offices, investment increased by 46% to reach €1,512 million. “The Boston portfolio – comprising 14 office buildings located in Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia – owned by BBVA and acquired by Oaktree for €180 million has been the most important transaction so far this year. In Madrid, the most significant transaction saw the acquisition of the Manoteras business park by Tristan Capital (€103 million), whilst, in Barcelona, the most high-profile deal has been the purchase of Torre Agbar by Merlin Properties (€142 million”, say sources at Catella.

During the first 8 months of 2017, hotel purchases rose by 25% to reach €1,760 million, thanks to operations such as the one involving Edificio España, for €272 million, as well as the purchase starring the international fund London & Regional (which acquired four hotels located on the coast and islands for €240 million), as well as others involving Starwood and KKR.

Moreover, the logistics sector has not been left behind in terms of the increase in investment. Between January and August, that segment saw investment grow by 31% to reach €575 million. (…). In this area, the most significant operation has been the sale of GreenOak’s portfolio to P3 Logistics Park for €243 million.

Whilst retail assets were the star product by type of property, international funds continued to be the undisputed stars in terms of buyer profile.

Between January and August, funds accounted for 42% of the total volume invested; whilst real estate companies represented 28% of the total (…). Meanwhile, the Socimis, who were the most active investors in 2014 and 2015, have seen their share of the cake decrease to 11% so far this year.

“On the other hand, core investors have returned to the market, with the acquisition of prime properties located in Madrid and Barcelona. Insurance companies, family offices and other institutional investors have purchased assets such as offices and retail premises in Madrid, with yields of around 3%”, said Carlos López, Partner at Catella.

Year-end

“…We expect 2017 to be a record-breaking year, with an investment volume of around €10,000 million, compared to the figures of more than €8,500 million in tertiary investment in 2016”, says López (…).

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Klépierre Buys Nueva Condomina Shopping Centre (Murcia)

25 May 2017 – Expansión

Klépierre has strengthened its presence in Spain with the purchase of the Nueva Condomina shopping centre (Murcia), which is worth €233 million, according to a statement issued by the French multi-national.

Specifically, as a result of this acquisition, Nueva Condomina is now the third most important asset in Klépierre’s Spanish portfolio in terms of net rental income.

The property covers a surface area of 110,000 m2, split between the shopping centre (73,000 m2) and the retail park (37,000 m2).

Last year, the Murcian shopping centre received more than 11 million visitors and recorded store sales of €257 million. Tenants include several brands from the Inditex group, as well as Mango and Fnac.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake