Tag: renovation

Colonial To Open 4-Star Hotel In Former Palace In Almería

9 June 2015 – Expansión

The real estate group Colonial is branching out from its traditional office market. It will open a resort hotel in Mojácar (Almería) in the next few weeks.

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The building has been closed for years and so Colonial has undertaken a complete renovation of the property over the last few months. The facilities include the former Palace of the Marqués de Chávarri, constructed at the beginning of the last century, which will house some of the hotel’s common areas as well as some of the suites. It also has a large modern annex building which contains 140 rooms in total.

The hotel will be operated by the Catalan chain Fergus, under its Fergus Style brand. It will be called the Gran Hotel Palacio de la Marina and will be a four star establishment. It is located in the Marina de la Torre development, next to Marina Golf, an 18-hole course. The hotel has a fitness room, spa and several rooms for conferences and events.

Fergus Hotels, headquartered in Santa Susanna (Barcelona) operates 17 hotels in Mallorca, Ibiza, the coast of Barcelona, the Costa Brava (Gerona) and the coast of Almería.

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Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hotel Villa Magna On The Market For €180M

2 June 2015 – Expansión

Madrid/ Sodim, the holding company owned by the Portuguese family Queiroz Pereira, is looking for a buyer for the five star hotel it acquired for €80 million in 2001.

Following the sales of the InterContinental and Ritz hotels to the Qatari sovereign fund and the alliance formed by Mandarin and the Saudi firm Olayan, respectively, it is the turn of Villa Magna. Sodim, the holding company owned by the Portuguese family Queiroz Pereira, has put the hotel, which it purchased from the Japanese company Shirayama in 2001 for €80 million, up for sale.

Sodim is asking €180 million for the five star property, located on Paseo de la Castellana. If it achieves its goal, it will become the largest operation to be signed in Madrid, ahead of the Ritz – €130 million – and the InterContinental – €70 million – but behind the €200 million paid by the Qatari Diar fund for Hotel Vela in Barcelona in 2013.

The operation, which is in its initial phases, may attract interest from foreign investors and international hotel groups wanting to improve their location or enter Madrid’s market, such as Hyatt, Hilton, Shangri-La, Kempinski and Jumeirah, amongst others.

Hyatt managed the Hotel Villa Magna for almost two decades until 2009, when following the complete renovation of the hotel, the owners decided to take over the management themselves. Sodim also owns the Hotel Ritz in Lisbon, which is operated by Four Seasons, which is itself finalising its entry into the Spanish market, at the Canalejas complex in Madrid, together with Juan Miguel Villar Mir.

Hyatt no longer has a presence in Spain after it exited the Villa Magna and La Manga (Murcia). Its name has also appeared on the list of candidates to take over the management of the Hotel Miguel Angel, whose future is still not clear. Its owner, the British investor of Iraqi origin Nadhmi Auchi, is operating the property following Occidental’s exit last year.

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The Hotel Villa Magna underwent a major refurbishment several years ago. It closed its doors on 1 August 2007 and reopened again at the beginning of 2009…€50 million was invested in total…the result was a hotel with fewer, but more luxurious rooms. The property retained its distinctive pink granite façade and the number of rooms decreased from 182 to 150. In exchange, the number of suites increased from 18 to 50. It also expanded its gastronomic and leisure offer, with new restaurants and a spa. Since 2009, it has offered rooms measuring between 30m2 and 290m2 – the Royal Suite.

The average room rate at the Villa Magna starts from €310 per night for a standard room. The Royal Suite costs €16,000 per night.

(….) The luxury hotel sector has been hit by the crisis, although the Villa Magna has not suffered as much as some. In 2013, it generated turnover of €19.29 million, up 4.8%…and the net profit was €3.68 million, compared with losses of €14.89 million in the previous year.

Nevertheless, the hotel closed 2013 with negative equity of €33.8 million, due to financial charges and impairment losses. Its financial debt exceeded €70 million. Even though it has the backing of Sodim through equity loans, the auditor PwC warned of significant uncertainty in terms of the hotel’s capacity to continue as a going concern.

Original story: Expansión (by Yovanna Blanco)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Barceló Sells Hotel In Tenerife To Chinese Group ‘Kangde’

23 April 2015 – Expansión

Another transaction in the Spanish hotel sector has a foreign buyer. Barceló has sold the Hotel Barceló Santiago (in Tenerife) to the Chinese group Chongqing Kangde Industrial. Negotiations began in 2013, when Barceló and Kangde signed a framework agreement to explore options together.

After more than a year of meetings, the Spanish tourism group agreed the sale of the property to Kangde. According to the Chinese group’s website, the alliance was signed during Lu Chaokang’s tour of Europe in search of investment opportunities. Chaokang, the Chairman of Kangde, visited a dozen projects in Budapest, Madrid, Barcelona and the Canary Islands.

Consideration of €50 million

The sale, which amounted to around €50 million, has not been formalised yet, as the buyer is still waiting to receive approval (of the purchase) from the Chinese government. The deadline for obtaining the backing ends in May. Nevertheless, according to industry sources, Barceló has already received confirmation that the transaction will close on time.

The Spanish chain will continue to manage the four-star hotel, which has 406 rooms and is located close to the Playa de los Gigantes. However, Kangde may be interested in renovating the property and increasing its (star) rating. In 2006, Barceló invested €7 million in the refurbishment of Hotel Santiago, which entered its portfolio in 1995. The sale of the hotel forms part of the process designed by Barceló to reduce its exposure to real estate, which has reached a historic high – (it owns) almost 63% of all of its rooms. The major milestone on this roadmap has been the creation of the Socimi, Bay, together with Hispania. Barceló will transfer 16 hotels and two shopping centres worth €421 million to the Socimi and whereby reduce the percentage of rooms it owns to 43%.

In 2014, Barceló recorded a profit of €46.4 million, up 85.6% on the previous year and a turnover of €2,056.6 million.

Original story: Expansión (by Yovanna Blanco)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Investors On The Hunt For Prime RE Assets

20 April 2015 – Expansión

Opportunities / The Spanish real estate sector has aroused interest from all types of purchasers, from those that are more opportunistic in nature to those that are seeking lower risk. Offices, shops and shopping centres are the most sought-after assets, but hotels and logistics centres offer the best returns.

The volume of investment has increased from just over €3,000 million to more than €8,500 million in only 12 months. That has been the evolution recorded by the non-residential real estate segment, which reflects the highest level of interest from all kinds of investors in Spain. Thus, the Spanish market has become the second most attractive country for investment in Europe, according to the consultancy CBRE.

But, what are these investors looking for in Spain? Based on the nature of the deals closed last year, offices and commercial assets (both shopping centres and high street stores) are the most sought after. “The transactions that spark the most interest have a value of between €40 million and €50 million, rely on financing for 50-60% (of the price) and generate an initial return of between 5% and 7%. Investors are looking for buildings with: occupancy rates of more than 70%; solvent tenants; and (lease) contracts lasting for around 6 years”, explain sources at JLL, based on data collected in a survey prepared together with the Iese Business School from more than 100 investors.

Excess demand for buildings, and for offices and shopping centres in particular, has led to “very competitive processes for star assets, i.e. those that are best placed in terms of location or that have high rentals, as well as good buildings that require management to improve their profitability”, explain sources at Catella. “Socimis and US funds are very active, along with institutional funds. All of them are creating strong investor pressure”, they add.

The fierce competition has meant that offices and commercial assets no longer offer such high returns, and so many investors have started to invest in other kinds of assets, such as logistics and industrial centres and hotels. Thus, whilst deals involving offices in prime locations offer a return of 5.5%, well-located industrial assets generate a return of 8.25% and logistics centres in secondary areas produce returns of up to 9.5%, explain sources at Deloitte Real Estate.

In the hotel segment, the experts predict that the volume of investment in 2015 will exceed that recorded last year (€1,081 million) thanks to deals involving distressed assets and the activity of debt portfolios, given the shortage of attractive assets.

Renovation

Another possibility being considered by investors looking to enter the Spanish market and make a good return is the recovery of out-of-date properties or those without good lease contracts, through their renovation. “On the one hand, Socimis are looking to purchase offices, logistics assets and shopping centres that guarantee a return of between 6% and 7.5%. On the other hand, we have the real estate funds owned by private equity firms, which are looking for riskers assets that offer higher returns, such as properties that require renovation or land that needs developing. The expected returns in those cases can exceed 15%”, explain sources at Deloitte RE.

“Investors are becoming increasingly sophisticated and demanding. As has happened in other European countries, the most efficient buildings are going to be the key and, in the case of the financial district in Madrid, they have the lowest availability rates in Europe for that type of asset, which opens an important niche, both for investment as well as for the renovation of existing properties”, say source at Knight Frank.

Original story: Expansión (by R. Ruiz and Y. Blanco)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Mutua Owns Prime RE Assets Worth €1,200M

9 April 2015 – Expansión

The real estate subsidiary of the insurance company owns more than twenty assets, including 15 (properties) on the Paseo de la Castellana, Madrid’s prime (real estate) axis.

Mutua Madrileña is not only one of the largest insurance companies in the Spanish market, it is also one of the largest owners of office buildings. Through its real estate subsidiary, led by Emilio Colomina, Mutua manages a portfolio of more than twenty real estate assets, with a (combined) surface area of around 200,000 square metres.

Fifteen of the buildings in the portfolio are particularly noteworthy; they have a (combined) surface area of approximately 175,000 square metres and include several properties located on the prime axis (the most sought after area) of Madrid. Mutua Inmobiliaria owns numbers 31, 36, 50 and 110 on the capital’s main thoroughfare, the Paseo de la Castellana, as well as the Torre de Cristal, located in the Cuatro Torres complex, at number 259.

And just a stone’s throw away from La Castellana, in the heart of the capital’s financial district, the company also owns the Alfredo Mahou building (pictured), which has a surface area of around 24,000 square metres; as well as the Torres de Colón.

At the end of 2014, these fifteen buildings had an appraisal value of €1,200 million, representing a slight increase on the previous year, with unrealised gains of €356 million.

In 2014, the real estate company recorded turnover of €46.8 million from rental payments, and (its buildings) had an occupancy rate of 90%, i.e. 2% higher than last year.

“The favourable development of Mutua Inmobiliaria’s business is due, to a large extent, to the investment plan that the company launched in 2008 and completed in 2014. As a result, the company modernised its (portfolio of) buildings”, explains the insurance company.

During this period, Mutua invested around €150 million in upgrading (its buildings, including) the Torres de Colón, for example – work there began in late 2011 and involved a budget of around €25 million. “The investments made have allowed us to build loyalty and retain customers, sign new rental contracts, at maximum prices, and reduce operating costs, which has increased the attractiveness and efficiency of our properties”, says Colomina.

The new (rental) contracts include: the move of the law firm Hogan Lovells to Castellana 36-38 late last year, where it leases 4,608 square metres, and KPMG’s upcoming move to Mutua’s skyscraper in the Cuatro Torres, which has a surface area of 20,000 square metres.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Housing: Completions Exceed New Starts For 7th Year

30 March 2015 – Cinco Días

It is not easy to measure how robust activity is in the real estate sector. But if there is one indicator that has been taken into account historically to assess the sector’s health, it has been the volume of housing starts. That is where the problems begin. The permits that developers have to obtain to enable them to begin construction work did not always used to correspond to the exact number of homes that were built in the end, and so the gross figure that was published, had to be carefully extracted.

And this market suffers from another peculiarity. Since house building is a slow process, which tends to take between 12 and 24 months, it is not easy to halt developments that are already underway, even once it has been established that most of the homes under construction may not be sold upon completion.

These two aspects help us to understand what has happened in recent years, when we analyse the data for housing starts and completions. If we take the year 2000 as a starting point, when nobody doubted that the real estate market was heading towards a boom of as yet unknown proportions, the number of house starts began to open up a sizeable gap over the number of completed homes, of more than 40%, approximately. The former moved in the vicinity of 500,000 homes, whilst the latter remained at just over 350,000.

Right after that, house production volumes climbed to more than 600,000 per year, spurred on by demand for a primary residence by one of the largest population cohorts in Spain’s recent history (the baby boomers), strong employment and the almost unlimited access to very cheap financing over almost “eternal periods”.

Thus, the gap between the two variables continued to grow until 2008, when everything came to an abrupt end. In fact, that year closed with 264,795 housing starts, when just a year before the figure had amounted to no fewer than 651,427. In 12 months, activity had collapsed by 59%, but the majority of the construction work underway continued to run its course (only a minority of developments were left unfinished even during the worst years of the crisis), which explains why since then, the number of finished homes has exceeded the number of house starts, year after year, for seven years in a row.

Shortage of new supply

In 2014, this trend was almost reversed, but in the end it was not. Last year, construction of 34,873 houses began, which represented a slight increase of 1.7% compared with the figure a year before, but still a long way below the 865,561 homes that developers began building in 2006, during the height of the boom. This means that today, the number of homes being constructed accounts for barely 4.02% of the volumes that were being constructed during the economic boom. Moreover, the figure is slightly lower than the number of homes that were completed last year (46,795), which in turn represented 7.29% of the number of homes that were finished in 2007 (the peak of the series), when 641,419 homes were completed.

All indications are that this year will be the first year that the two curves cross again, in such a way that more homes are started than are completed. In fact, if this does not happen, there could be problems due to a shortage of stock of new homes in places where the stock has already been absorbed and demand is beginning to intensify. Another important indicator for the sector, namely the consumption of cement, also indicates the same trend. During the first two months of this year, cement consumption has increased by 6.6%, to amount to almost 1.6 million tonnes, which corroborates the theory that the cranes are returning, albeit in a selective way.

Another business niche, which is key to the recovery of the construction sector, but which does not seem to stop decreasing is: refurbishments. According to figures from the Spanish Confederation of the Construction Product Manufacturers Association (Cepco), 2014 closed with 22,428 permits for the renovation or refurbishment of homes, down 0.80% on the previous year. And the number of building permits barely grew (rising by only 2.8%).

Original story: Cinco Días (by Raquel Díaz Guijarro)

Translation: Carmel Drake

‘Dear Hotel’ Overtakes Wanda In Plaza de España

2 March 2015 – Expansión

In Madrid’s Plaza de España, the hubbub of construction work is accompanying tourists as they journey into the commercial heart of the capital: Gran Vía. The Edificio España remains in tact (for the moment), as Wang Jianlin, the owner of Dalian Wanda, finalises the designs for his megaproject, which will include a hotel, shopping centre and homes.

The site that will house the future Hotel VP Plaza de España remains empty, but scaffolding is now up on the Torre Madrid, where Metrovacesa is refurbishing the building that will house a Barceló hotel – on one of the corners that Plaza de España shares with Gran Vía.

Plaza de España is also where the first of the hotels that is intended to revitalise the area will be opened. The area has been in decline since 2005, when Intercontinental closed its Hotel Crowne Plaza, which was located into the Edificio España building. Now, work is nearing completion on the Dear Hotel, a property that the Sebrango family acquired in 2012, after exercising a call option that Renta Corporación held over the building. The Sebrango family, which also owns the Hotel Chiqui (in Santander) have designed a four star hotel, with 162 rooms and it is scheduled to open on 15 May, on the day of San Isidro, one of the most important fiestas in the Spanish capital.

Roof terrace

The Dear Hotel project, which will have its entrance on Gran Vía, 80, has required an investment of €30 million – including the purchase of the building and the work required to refurbish it. Previously, the property housed homes and offices.

The hotel will have 12 floors and there will be a roof terrace and restaurant on the top floor, which its owners hope will become an iconic space for the hosting of special events in the capital. The style (of the property) will be elegant and modern, and in terms of prices, the average room will cost between €150 and €160 per night. The price of the suites will range between €250 and €300 per night and the hotel will create between 70 and 80 new jobs.

“It will be a four star hotel due to the individuality of the building, but the service and quality will be on a par with a luxury establishment”, explains its director, Francisco Sebrango. According to the owner’s forecasts, more than 60% of the hotel’s guests will be foreigners.

Since purchasing the building, the Sebrango family has received numerous offers to sell or transfer the operation of the hotel. Nevertheless, they have decided to pursue their original strategy and operate the hotel themselves. “We considered the option of a franchise agreement, but in the end we ruled that out. We want to create a unique hotel and we believe that it has the most value in our hands”.

Original story: Expansión (by Yovanna Blanco)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Madrid To Build A Conference Centre & Luxury Hotel Opposite The Bernabeu

19 February 2015 – Expansión

The Town Hall will approve the operation of a conference centre and the construction of a five star hotel in exchange from the renovation of the complex, which will also include a retail area.

It is one of the most iconic buildings in Madrid’s financial district, in particular due to the mural on its facade, designed by the artist Joan Miró.

Built in the 1960s and located on the Paseo de la Castellana, opposite the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, Madrid’s Conference Centre (Palacio de Congresos) has been closed for two years due to the poor state of its facilities, which violate basic safety standards.

But today, the Town Hall expects to approve a plan for the comprehensive remodelling of the site and in addition, to construct a luxury hotel that could have up to 23 floors.

According to sources close to the transaction, the Town Hall will invite tenders for the renovation of the Palacio and the construction of a hotel that do not result in any cost to the taxpayer: the successful bidder will complete the building work, estimated to amount to €86 million, in exchange for a licence to operate the entire complex.

In other words, the management of the Palacio and hotel will be in private hands, but ownership of the space will continue to remain with the public. “The role of the State should be to promote different types of tourism, but given the quantity of highly prestigious tour operators in our country, the best option is for them to take care of the management to ensure we provide state-of-the-art facilities”, explained an internal document about the operation.

Both the Town Hall and the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism, have been very involved in the process. They want the new Palacio to be an engine for attracting “sophisticated, profitable” tourists with “higher added value and greater spending power”, which is why one of the requirements of the tender is that the hotel be a five star facility, “capable of meeting the highly specialised demand for conferences and meetings”, said the document.

In theory, the Government will oversee the aesthetics and architectural modelling of the project, which will not affect the Miró mural under any circumstances. The halls in the new building, designed especially to host professional conferences and large events, must have the latest technology and the best audiovisual facilities and scenography. Similarly, the new complex will have to provide a catering service for at least 1,800 diners.

The current surface area of the Palacio is 40,000 square metres, although since the partial remodelling plan approved in 2001, it has been allowed to increase that to 47,000 sqm; additional space that could be used to build the hotel. Moreover, the space available to construct “compatible” businesses (shops, high-end boutiques, travel agencies, etc.) will increase from 25% of the current total surface area up to 35%. The only business that the tender excludes from being housed in this space are large superstores, reflecting its goal of ensuring that the Palacio does not become a kind of shopping centre. “Other compatible uses will be permitted, but the main use will continue to be as a conference centre”, says the report.

Original story: Expansión (by Yago González)

Translation: Carmel Drake

NH Has Raised Its Room Rates By Between 15% & 40% After Renovating Hotels In Spain

13 February 2015 – Expansión

The CEO of the NH hotel Group in Spain, Hugo Rovira, says that “customers are not fools, if you offer them quality, then they are willing to pay for it”, but he recognises that “if you give out peanuts, then you will attract monkeys”, after sharing his opinion that “retaining customers through low prices is not sustainable, there will always be cheaper competitors”.

The NH Hotel Group is spending 25% of its turnover on the renewal of its gastronomic offer, a major commitment for the hotel chain, which regards high quality gastronomy as the “saviour” of the sector as a means of differentiating itself.

And so it is with good reason that NH has invested almost four million euros in the renovation of its gastronomic offer, a fundamental part of the transformation that the chain is undertaking in virtually all of its hotels.

The renovation of its facilities has resulted in “an increase in the room rates at NH hotels across the country, of between 15% and 40% of the original cost, depending on the establishment”, according to the CEO of the NH Hotel Group in Spain, Hugo Rovira.

Rovira stresses that “it is hard to see how it could have got any worse in Spain” and that the commitment to high quality culinary tourism has led to the “salvation” of the sector, differentiating NH accommodation thanks to its wide-ranging gastronomic menu, without renouncing the commitment to offer customers the best service.

“Coffee for everyone is not good” said Rovira categorically to journalists on Thursday morning at a business breakfast. Specifically, the executive was referring to NH’s decision to provide a top class service both in room and in its restaurants.

By way of example, Roviro explained that NH continued to serve the best products in its minibars throughout the crisis and generated more or less the same volume of sales, with an increase of up to 20% in recent years.

Rovira also wanted to highlight the trend towards recovery in the Spanish market and he noted a “slight recovery”, although he made it clear that “we still have a long way to go, but at least we are on the right track”.

Positive outlook for 2015

In fact, the outlook for 2015 in our country is “good”, according to the CEO, who said that results from the last quarter of 2014 showed signs of recovery “both in terms of corporate clients and families”.

And he said that “clients are not fools, if you offer them quality, then they are willing to pay for it”, but he recognises that “if you give out peanuts, then you will attract monkeys”, after sharing his opinion that “retaining customers through low prices is not sustainable, there will always be cheaper competitors”.

NH seeks to differentiate itself and continue to maintain its image of high quality service through two clear commitments (a line of restaurants that serve products with Designation of Origin (Denominación de Origen or DO) and “show-cooking” or “Domos”, led by renowned chefs and apprentices from the hotel chain’s culinary school).

Renovations and relaunches

The NH Hotel Group is immersed in its renovation and relaunch plan, for which it has a total budget of €220 million to spend between 2013 and 2018; 55 hotels have signed up to the plan, of which 20 are located in Spain.

Other lines of action, such as the so-called “open bars” represent another model for the local market, as the company offers a service “similar to those provided in VIP lounges at the airport” in which clients can access “self service” bars.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Wanda’s Plans For Edificio España Get Green Light

30 January 2015 – Expansión

Yesterday, the Governing Board of the Community of Madrid gave the green light to the refurbishment of the Edificio España, owned by the Chinese group Wanda, controlled by the magnate Wang Jianlin.

The businessman, who also owns 20% of the football club Atlético de Madrid, will invest €114 million in the renovation of the property, located in Madrid’s Plaza de España, which it purchased from the Santander Group for €265 million. Inside the Madrid skyscraper, he will create a luxury hotel, more than 300 homes and a retail space, which he plans to expand to 15,000 sqm.

The permission to refurbish the Edificio España has been granted in parallel to the negotiations that the Wanda Group’s team is conducting with the Madrid and central Governments to create a macro-complex on the site of the old barracks in Campamento, in Madrid.

To this end, the Secretary of State for Defence, Pedro Argüelles, met yesterday with the CEO of the Wanda Group, Laurent Fischler, to discuss the purchase of that land, which covers around 200 hectares, and where Jianlin plans to invest €3,000 million in the development of a residential, housing and leisure complex.

Original story: Expansión (by R. Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake