Triuva Wants to Spend €100M in Spain Following Its Integration into Patrizia

3 April 2018 – Eje Prime

The German fund Triuva is looking for opportunities in Spain. The company, which has just completed its integration into another German real estate company, Patrizia, is going to allocate around €100 million to the acquisition of new assets in the Spanish market. The group is currently finalising the renovation of a building on Calle Serrano, 90 in Madrid, and has already leased the 6,300 m2 of retail and office space to Maisons du Monde and Natixis, respectively.

The fund is still hungry for new assets in Spain, and so it is considering the acquisition of office buildings, commercial assets and even hotels. Currently, the Spanish arm of Triuva is fully integrated into the Spanish business of Patrizia, which has its offices on the Madrilenian street Calle Génova.

Patrizia purchased the entire Triuva business in November last year, whereby creating a real estate giant of more than €30 billion. Triuva manages some forty funds around the world and has teamed up with more than eighty institutional investors in recent years.

Triuva has around 270 assets under management, worth €9.7 billion. In Spain, the fund owns three properties in prime locations. The first, acquired during the first quarter of 2015 for €70 million, is located on Calle Preciados, 4, and is leased to the fashion chain Sfera, itself owned by the Madrid-based department store group El Corte Inglés.

Last year, the fund acquired the Adidas flagship store located on Gran Vía, 21, also in Madrid, which had been owned until then by Iberfin Capital, which is in turn, owned by Medcap Real Estate. The consideration paid for that operation was not disclosed (…).

Serrano 90, its latest project 

The Serrano 90 building, also owned by Triuva, is located in the heart of Madrid’s golden mile. 70% of its total available space is allocated to offices and the remaining 30% to commercial use; the property also has a parking lot on its lower floors. According to sources in the sector, the fund has spent around €10 million on the renovation of the asset.

At the beginning of this year, Triuva closed the rental of 6,300 m2 of retail and office space. The retail premises have been leased to the French firm Maisons du Monde, which is going to open its first flagship high street store in Madrid, to accompany the store it already has in central Barcelona.

The household furniture and accessories firm is going to lease 1,860 m2 of space in the building spread over three floors (…). Similarly, the property is going to house the headquarters of Natixis, a French corporate and investment bank, whose offices are currently located in Recoletos. Triuva and the banking institution have signed a rental agreement for 2,940 m2 of office space, as well as the terrace and 34 parking spaces in the Serrano 90 building.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Socimi Tander Inversiones Debuts on the MAB

12 January 2018 – Expansión

The listed real estate investment company (Socimi) Tander Inversiones has debuted on the Alternative Investment Market (MAB) with no change to its initial price, which was fixed at €9.50 per share.

Tander Inversiones, which is trading under the code “YTAN”, was listed through the fixing contracting system, which sets prices twice a day, in such a way that the next variation will be published at 16:00.

The starting price of €9.50 per share, which had been established by the Socimi’s Board of Directors, represents a company valuation of €49.8 million.

Renta 4 Corporate served as the registered advisor, whilst Renta 4 Banco was the liquidity provider.

Tander Inversiones Socimi is a company dedicated to investment in properties, primarily retail premises allocated for rent.

The Socimi owns a portfolio of assets comprising five retail premises in Barcelona and another one in Santander.

Original story: Expansión 

Translation: Carmel Drake

PSN Gestión Socimi Will Debut on the MAB on 22 Dec

20 December 2017 – La Vanguardia

The Board of Directors of the Alternative Investment Market (MAB) has approved the incorporation of the company ‘PSN Gestión Socimi’ into the Socimi segment. It represents the forty-fourth company (of this kind) to join the exchange. Its shares will start trading on Friday 22 December.

The incorporation of the company, which specialises in property investment, comes after the Board’s analysis of the information submitted by the company and after the Coordination and Incorporations Committee issued a favourable assessment report, according to sources at the MAB.

The company’s trading code will be “YPSN”. The registered advisor isVGM Advisory Partners, and Banco Sabadell will act as the Liquidity Provider.

The Company’s Board of Directors has established a reference value for each share of €14.20, which corresponds to a company valuation of €28.1 million in total.

PSN Gestión Socimi is a real estate company, dedicated to property investment, primarily focusing on offices and retail premises to let.

The company owns a portfolio of assets comprising one entire building, dedicated to hotel use, as well as several offices distributed across 27 buildings in 21 cities in Spain and Portugal.

Original story: La Vanguardia

Translation: Carmel Drake

AXA Buys 850 Prime Residential Assets in Spain for €170M

20 December 2017 – Eje Prime

AXA is redoubling its commitment to Spanish real estate. Two weeks after formalising the purchase of the largest portfolio of student halls in Spain, through a joint venture with CBRE, for which it paid Resa €0.5 billion, the investment arm of the insurance company has acquired 850 prime residential assets from Goldman Sachs and B Capital. This operation has been signed for €170 million.

Most of the homes purchased by AXA are located in the central areas of Madrid and Barcelona. Moreover, fourteen of the properties have been built since 2005 and the remainder have all been renovated within the last fifteen years. As such, the portfolio comprises luxury homes, which the company will revalue over the next few years by putting them up for rent.

Hermann Montenegro, Director of Investments at AXA Real Assets, also said that “the purchase of this portfolio of high-quality residential assets reflects our confidence in the residential markets in Madrid and Barcelona, where the growth in rentals has increased and the outlook for the next few years in terms of demand is very favourable.

This investment forms part of a long-term plan by AXA Real Assets to invest in sustainable and growth markets. In this context, in the last year, it has undertaken investments in Finland, Germany and the USA, amongst others.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Santander Wants To Sell RE Assets Worth €6,000M In 1 Year

30 October 2017 – Voz Pópuli

Banco Santander does not want to stand idly by following the sale of Banco Popular’s real estate. After the completion of that operation (the largest ever real estate transfer in Spain), the entity chaired by Ana Botín wants to continue accelerating its real estate clean up. In this way, it plans to reduce its real estate exposure by more than €6,000 million over the next year.

That would mean that Santander’s real estate balance would decrease by half, given that it currently amounts to around €12,300 million in gross terms (excluding provisions).

According to the bank’s CEO, José Antonio Álvarez, speaking at the results presentation, the objective is for the entity’s real estate exposure “to be immaterial” by the end of 2018.

This immateriality means having a net balance of between €1,000 million and €2,000 million left on the balance sheet within 14 months, besides the rental properties, explained the banker. That, in turn, means selling around €6,000 million (in gross terms) and leaving around €6,000 million on the balance sheet.

The numbers

In this way, Santander España’s net exposure to the real estate market is €5,900 million. The entity has an average coverage ratio of 52% over these assets, which means that their gross value is €12,300 million.

Of those €5,900 million, €3,372 million are foreclosed assets, €1,203 million are rental properties and €1,325 million are delinquent real estate loans.

In August, Santander agreed to transfer almost €30,000 million (in gross terms) of Popular’s property to Blackstone. Specifically, the bank sold 51% of a new real estate company, for €5,100 million and retained ownership of the remaining stake.

In terms of the rest of the real estate assets on its balance sheet, Santander could undertake similar operations, although it will also continue to analyse sales through the retail network and the option of putting properties on the market through Socimis. Both the Spanish bank and its competitors are under pressure from the ECB to get rid of the real estate on their balance sheets as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Santander is negotiating with Värde Partners, owner of 51% of WiZink, to repurchase Banco Popular’s customer card business and to sell it Barclays and Citi’s business in return.

Original story: Voz Pópuli (by Jorge Zuloaga)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Criteria Cuts Ties With Servihabit & Will Manage Its Own Properties

2 June 2017 – Expansión

Criteria Caixa has taken another step forward in the process to deconsolidate itself from CaixaBank. The holding company that owns stakes in subsidiaries of the La Caixa Banking Foundation (Fundación Bancaria La Caixa) has decided to internalise the management of its real estate assets, a function that until now have been performed by Servihabitat.

That servicer is owned in part (51%) by the US fund TPG and the remaining 49% stake is owned by CaixaBank. According to sources, Criteria will have to indemnify Servihabitat for the early termination of the contract with a payment amounting to €34.5 million.

The original agreement between the two companies was signed in 2014 and the contract still has six years left to run, given that it is due to terminate in 2023. The document included a clause to cover the possibility of an early termination in exchange for the payment of compensation, which has now been agreed by mutual agreement between the two parties.

The properties owned by Criteria account for around 7% of the total volume of the portfolio that Servihabitat has under management. The company also manages the properties foreclosed by CaixaBank, but its aim over the last few years has been to increase its client base by incorporating new portfolios onto its platform. The servicer took a giant leap when it was awarded the management of several portfolios by Sareb, comprising real estate assets from Novacaixagalicia, Liberbank and Banco de Valencia.

In 2016, the assets managed by Servihabitat increased by 4.8%, to reach 239,132 units, with a value of almost €50,000 million. The company recorded turnover of €285 million, up by 14.8%, thanks to the sale of homes worth €1,645 million, up by 11%.

Portfolio of €2,842 million

Criteria, which is chaired by Isidro Fainé, considers the decision to move to directly managing its own real estate assets, worth €2,842 million, to be strategic. Of the total amount €515 million – 18% of the total – are assets allocated for sale; €1,021 (36%) correspond to the land portfolio – noteworthy plots include those adjoining Port Aventura park –; and €728 million (26%) relate to rental properties. Finally, another €578 million (20%) constitute assets allocated to La Caixa Banking Foundation’s affordable housing programs.

Original story: Expansión (by S. Saborit)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sareb To Create A Socimi For Its Rental Properties

19 May 2017 – Expansión

Sareb is preparing to create a Socimi through which it will manage its rental business. That is according to Luis de Guindos, the Minister for the Economy, Industry and Competitivity, who made the announcement yesterday. He stated that the Government is considering creating a real estate investment company, which it would “place on the market before the end of the year”. De Guindos made these declarations at a symposium about Spain’s role in the reworking of the EU, organised by the Association for the Advancement of Management (APD).

The objective of this strategy is three-fold. On the one hand, Sareb would obtain new income, through the dividends that its Socimi would generate from renting out its assets. On the other hand, the debut of this subsidiary on the stock market would allow the entity to raise capital, which could be used to reduce Sareb’s indebtedness. According to De Guindos, we should take into account that Sareb has already divested more than 20% of its assets. Finally, through the Socimi, Sareb would have a structure to accelerate its sales, given that it could place entire blocks of flats in the hands of the Socimi.

Several unknowns

The Minister of the Economy said that this strategy is supported by “the current, strong performance of the market”, which is turning its focus towards the rental segment, and as such, Socimis are generating significant returns from their assets. Nevertheless, the new Socimi presents several unknowns, such as how many assets may be transferred to the new entity. It is also worth remembering that the majority of the properties that Sareb manages are located in peripheral areas or in new urban developments, where the rental market is complicated. Nevertheless, the regulations governing this type of company require 80% of the revenues to come from rental properties, and so Sareb would have to be very careful when it comes to choosing the assets to transfer. De Guindos did not indicate how much private capital he hopes to raise through this initiative, how much weight individual shareholders would have in the Socimi or what percentage take would be assumed by institutional investors.

Sources at Sareb indicate that the entity has 4,600 homes, but has still not decided how many of those would be transferred to the Socimi, aside from stating that “it would be a small percentage”.

Asset sales

Over the last five years, since it was created, Sareb has divested 20% of its assets. That percentage is small still and makes it difficult to fulfil the entity’s mandate, which requires it to liquidate all of the assets that were transferred to it by the banks in a period of 15 years and in an orderly manner. Moreover, it is worth noting that Sareb has already sold the properties that were easiest to place, with the aim of boosting the market, which means that now it is left with those properties that have the least possibilities.

Although the volume of real estate transactions grew at an annual rate of 16.1% during the first quarter, according to data from INE, and the stock of unsold homes is starting to run out in certain areas, prices are still falling in certain segments of the market and sales are not being closed.

Finally, the launch of the Socimi would come in parallel to the decision taken by Sareb to start building an average of 1,500 homes per year until its liquidation, even through it estimates that the figure would be much higher during the next three years, reaching up to 4,000 homes.

Original story: Expansión (by Pablo Cerezal)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Bank Of Spain: Average Housing Yield Amounts To 8.8%

30 April 2017 – Expansión

Housing is still one of the most profitable investments. The net return from buying a home to put it on the market to rent, now amounts to 8.8% on average. That is according to data from the Bank of Spain, which takes into account not only income from the rental of properties, but also the annual appreciation in their values. In other words, if the rental of a home generates an income of 4.4% and the price rises by 5% in twelve months, then its total return would be 9.4%. And that represents an attractive yield, well above the rates being offered on debt and deposits. Moreover, in some places, the real estate market is offering even higher returns.

To this end, Expansión has identified the districts in Spain’s five largest cities where investors can earn more than 10% from buying a home. And the conclusions are clear: 9 out of the 10 districts in Barcelona and 12 of the 21 districts in Madrid already exceed that percentage. In Valencia, 10 of its 19 districts generate returns of more than 10%; in Sevilla, only 1 out of 11; and in Zaragoza, 4 out of 12.

The most profitable districts are concentrated in the Catalan capital, above all due to the very high appreciation in property values there. Ciutat Vella leads the ranking with 27.7%, followed by Eixample (22%) and Horta-Guinardó (20.5%). That same percentage is also being generated in the Madrilenian district of Hortaleza (20.5%), which is not one of the most selective neighbourhoods, but, prices are rising quickly there nevertheless. It is followed by the Centro district of the Spanish capital (19.8%). Following those five, the ranking continues with Rascanya (Valencia) and Tetuán (Madrid), both with a gross annual return of 18.9%.

In the most exclusive neighbourhood of Madrid (the district of Salamanca) the figure is 13.9%. In Sarrià-Sant Gervasi (Barcelona), the average return is 9.8%. Other prime locations such as Chamartín (14.6%) and Gràcia (17.9%) are also very attractive. (…).

“The increase in returns in the city centres is happening due to a cocktail of senior boomers (the generation born in the 1960s) returning to the city centre and the huge boom in tourist rental properties”, said José Antonio Pérez, Director at the Real Estate Practice of the ‘Instituto de Práctica Empresarial’. That means that “now is a good time to buy a small flat or a small building to turn it into apartments for tourists”, said Pérez. (…).

But, investors should not limit themselves only to the large cities to find attractive investments. “Savers should also buy tourist homes in areas along the coast where there is already a lot of demand, or in peripheral areas of large cities that are well connected or in university areas”, advised Pérez.

The recovery in the residential sector is spreading out across the whole country. Slowly and unevenly, but it is happening. (…).

According to Jorge Ripoll, Director of Research at Tinsa, “The best prospects for investment in housing are located in established areas with active markets that are clearly recovering, such as those in Barcelona, Madrid, Málaga, Valencia, San Sebastián and Bilbao, for example”. They are areas “where asset prices are rising and where there is solvent demand for primary residences from those who cannot afford to buy a home due to their inability to have been able to save in the past”, he said.

Original story: Expansión (by Juanma Lamet)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Inveriplus Will Spend €20M On Its First Purchases As A Socimi

26 April 2017 – Eje Prime

Inveriplus is one step closer to becoming a Socimi. The company, led by Óscar Bellete, will spend €20 million on its first purchases as a Socimi, according to comments made by the company to EjePrime. Moreover, Inveriplus, which specialises in the transformation of toxic assets into liquid assets and in converting struggling real estate companies and property developers into profitable enterprises, plans to add around 450 new assets to its portfolio over the next few months.

The group has already started the countdown to become a Socimi and is waiting to debut on the Alternative Investment Market (MAB) before the first quarter 2018. “We are expecting to raise funding amounting to approximately €160 million, which will be spent on the acquisition of residential assets”, said Bellete.

Currently, the portfolio of properties that Inveriplus manages comprises approximately 5,700 assets. “In the short term, we will add 450 new assets to our management of developments that have not been marketed yet”, added the Director. In this way, Inveriplus will incorporate assets in Galicía and Andalucía, specifically on the Costa del Sol and in Sevilla.

For the time being, the group is not planning to invest outside of Spain or in any other products besides residential. (…). Inveriplus’ capital is owned by investors ranging from family offices to small and institutional investors.

The next step for Inveriplus is to carry out its first purchases as a Socimi, which will happen later this year. According to the Director, the group is already holding advanced talks to acquire “one building in Madrid, a couple of chalet developments in Valencia and a residential complex on the Costa de Almería”, although no more details can be provided about these operations at the moment.

These assets will involve an investment of between €15 million and €20 million (…).

Services to individuals

Nevertheless, Inveriplus is not only playing in the Socimi league, it is also in contact with property owners and end consumers. At the beginning of the year, the group launched a new service onto the market, known as AR36, whereby it commits to renting out a home to a tenant for 36 months and paying the owner all of the monthly payments, together and in advance.

The company has already convinced around 100 homeowners to sign up to the service, and the group forecasts that between 500 and 700 assets will have adopted this new way of leasing a home by the end of 2017. (…).

In this way, AR36 is aimed at people who own a property or who have the option of renting one out and who want to ensure the collection of the full rent. For the time being, this solution is only being offered in Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona and Málaga, although Inveriplus plans to extend the service to other cities over the next few months.

The Inveriplus group has more than fifteen years experience in the real estate sector and its team specialises in capital markets and the management and restructuring of assets. Currently, Inveriplus, which already manages more than 140 clients, has an average occupancy rate of 88%.

Original story: Eje Prime (by C. Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Fotocasa: Rental Prices Rose by 1.7% In January

24 February 2017 – Expansión

The price of rental housing in Spain rose by 1.7% in January to €7.61/m2/month, according to data from the real estate portal Fotocasa. This figure represented the most pronounced monthly increase since December 2007, when prices rose by 1.8% with respect to the previous month.

In addition, the price of rental properties increased by 7.9% YoY with respect to the same month in 2016. This data also represents a record, in line with the monthly one, given that it represents the largest YoY rise since 2007.

“The rental market is experiencing significant tensions in terms of prices as a result of greater pressure on demand, given that despite the reopening of the credit tap by banking institutions, many Spaniards are unable to access financing and are being forced to seek refuge in rental properties as their only means of accessing a home”, said Beatriz Toribio, Head of Research at Fotocasa.

Ten autonomous regions saw increases in their rental prices, with rises ranging from 1.7% in Cataluña to 0.2% in the Community of Valencia. By contrast, seven autonomous regions saw decreases in their rental prices in January. The decreases ranged from -0.4% in Castilla y León to -1.5% in La Rioja.

Barcelona is the most expensive city

The most expensive city to rent a home in January was Barcelona at €15.25/m2/month after prices rose there by 13% YoY. It was followed by Ibiza (€13.81/m2/month), Sant Cugat del Vallès (€13.47/m2/month), San Sebastián (€13.15/m2/month) and Sitges (€13.06/m2/month).

At the other end of the spectrum were Lucena in Córdoba (€3.35/m2/month), Fuensalida in Toledo (€3.40 /m2) and Almendralejo en Badajoz (€3.42/m2/month), as the cheapest towns in Spain to rent a home.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake