Tag: Salamanca neighbourhood

Paraguayan Magnate Buys Luxury Development on c/General Oráa 9

8 April 2018 – El Confidencial

A new Latin American investor has entered Spain’s luxury residential market. The person in question is Carlos Gill Ramírez, a businessman who was born in Paraguay and who also has Venezuelan citizenship. He has just purchased the high-end development at c/General Oráa 9 in Madrid from Platinum Estates, according to sources.

This sale is the first divestment that the Asian fund has carried out in Spain and forms part of the asset rotation policy that it has launched for its first Spanish fund, to focus on raising and investing €500 million in its new vehicle.

For Gill, this acquisition represents the first step in his growth plans in the country, where he has constituted the company Sari Holdco with a view to continuing to star in operations that will allow him to create his own real estate empire. Uría has represented the Latin American businessman in the purchase of General Oráa and Garrigues has represented Platinum, whilst Engel & Volkers has acted as the advisor.

Having obtained all of the necessary authorisations from the Town Hall of Madrid, construction of this luxury development is almost 70% complete. It will allow the transformation of this building, dating back to 1926, into 10 high-end homes, measuring between 348 m2 and 409 m2 each, plus two penthouses measuring 500 m2, with 250 m2 dedicated to a solarium and private swimming pool. The sales prices range between €3.6 million and €10 million per home.

Since Platinum acquired this development from the Catalan firm Renta, four years ago, it has always been said that it would be aimed at Latin American buyers interesting in owning a home in the Salamanca neighbourhood. Nevertheless, nobody imagined that a businessman from the other side of the Atlantic would also end up taking over the entire project, with the objective of finishing the construction work and putting it on the market.

Industrial wealth

Born in Paraguay, in July 1956, aged just six, Carlos Gill moved with his family to Venezuela, where he ended up being an honorary counsel for his native country. After studying Dentistry at the Central University of Venezuela, the businessman participated in important restructurings such as those of Banco Unión, Mercedes-Benz Venezuela, Grupo Corimón, Banco Capital, Banco Canarias de Venezuela and Bancentro Banco Comercial.

He is currently the President of Grupo Corimón, a Venezuelan corporation that operates in the paint, chemical product and flexible packaging sectors. The firm claims to be the largest conglomerate of its kind on the entire sub-continent and its shares are listed on the Caracas Stock Exchange.

Moreover, four years ago, Gill purchased a controlling share of Ferroviaria Oriental, the company that operates the railways in the east of Bolivia and, months later, he did the same with the country’s western network, by acquiring Ferroviaria Andina from the Chilean firm Luksic. Recent operations include his purchase of Bridgestone Firestone Venezuela.

Original story: El Confidencial (by Ruth Ugalde)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Injects Another €15M into its Luxury Home JV with Amprop

29 January 2018 – Eje Prime

Grosvenor is still interested in growing in the Spanish market, hand in hand with its local partner. The British company has injected another €15 million into its Spanish joint venture with the Malayan firm Amcorp Properties Berhad (Amprop), created last year to build luxury apartments in Madrid. Both groups have financial muscle amounting to more than €200 million, which they plan to invest in the construction of new developments in the country.

In this way, Grosvenor and Amprop are continuing with the plans they started last year when they completed the purchase of an 820 m2 plot on Madrid’s golden mile on which to build a luxury residential development. That plot is located on Calle Jorge Juan, one of the most expensive areas to live in the Spanish capital.

The British fund, owner of more than 1,500 properties spread all over the world, transformed its fund Grosvenor Fund Management into Grosvenor Europe, with the aim of undertaking joint investments in key markets in Europe, including Paris, Madrid, Milan and Stockholm.

The alliance signed with Amcorp set itself the objective of backing value-added investments, where it assumes more risk but also receives greater returns. For these types of projects, the two groups have allocated a budget of €70 million.

Seven months after creating this alliance, the partners have closed their first investment, for an undisclosed sum. In this plot, Grosvenor and its partner will construct an exclusive development comprising six apartments and a penthouse with views over the Retiro park.

Grosvenor has not yet determined the price at which it will place these properties on the market although the average price per square metre for prime real estate in the Salamanca neighbourhood amounts to around €8,500. Although, according to the most recent residential reports, some developments are going for more than €9,000.

The purchase of these plots followed the acquisition of two buildings in Madrid in July, which it will transform into new residential and retail spaces (…).

Grosvenor in Spain

In the Spanish market, the fund has been led by Fátima Sáez del Cano since 2007, although it started to operate in the country in 1996. The director manages the fund that specialises in the office business and retail sector, which is also responsible for the management of funds and assets. Some of the properties under Grosvenor’s management in Spain include the Islazul shopping centre in Madrid and the Anecblau complex in Barcelona (…).

Moreover, in recent months, Grosvenor has decided to add new lifeblood into its leadership team with the hiring of new directors. Last September, the group recruited Javier García as the new Technical Director for the Spanish market (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

EspañaDuero Finalises Sale of its Madrid HQ

19 December 2017 – El Economista

Over the next few weeks, EspañaDuero will close the sale of its headquarters in Madrid, located on Calle Titán 8, according to confirmation from various sources in the sector, who say that the entity is holding advanced, exclusive negotiations with an investor.

The entity, which is soon going to be completely integrated into Unicaja Banco, declined to comment about the operation. However, this sale is reminiscent of the divestment strategy that the entity has been carrying out in recent years.

The office block that is about to be sold is located in the Méndez Álvaro area of the Spanish capital, overlooking the M-30 ring road. It also houses the offices of Enagás and Nozar, the former owner of the property. In this way, Caja Duero acquired the building for €55.8 million in 2008, a price that is €9 million higher than its current valuation.

At the end of 2011, following the merger of the entity with Caja España, which resulted in the creation of the current EspañaDuero, the combined company moved its offices to Caja Duero’s headquarters in Madrid, on Calle Marqués de Villamagna, 6.

In 2015, the company began a period of office restructuring, which led it to sell one of its real estate jewels: the former headquarters of Caja España in Madrid, on Calle Velázquez 23, in the heart of the Salamanca neighbourhood.

A year later, in the middle of 2016, EspañaDuero decided to move its headquarters again and vacate the offices on Marqués de Villamagna, very close to Madrid’s Paseo de la Castellana. The entity put them up for sale for €90 million and moved to Titán 8. Now, history is repeating itself, as the entity continues to sell off property, in a discrete sales process being advised by the consultancy firm Irea, according to the same sources.

The 13-storey building, including one underground floor and three basement levels for parking, has a total surface area, including the outside space, of 18,152 m2, of which 10,711 m2 are offices and 6,643 m2 are garages, with 212 parking spaces.

Currently, the property has almost 3,000 m2 of office space available for rent, which is being marketed by Knight Frank and Aguirre Newman.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Uniqlo Signs Lease To Open Mega-Store In El Jardín de Serrano (Madrid)

22 September 2017 – Eje Prime

The Revilla brothers are making their investments profitable. The company Hermanos Revilla, which specialises in the acquisition of real estate assets in Madrid, has signed a pre-lease contract with the Japanese fashion chain Uniqlo to open a mega-store in El Jardín de Serrano, a shopping arcade in the heart of the Salamanca neighbourhood. According to sources close to the operation, the store will be opened by 2020 and will see the conversion of the arcade into a single store.

El Jardín de Serrano is located at number 6 on Calle Goya, in the heart of the Salamanca neighbourhood of Madrid. Uniqlo will occupy two floors of the property, specifically the first and basement floors, which together span approximately 1,300 m2. The property, which will be subject to a comprehensive renovation, has been on the market for a long time and had also received interest from groups such as Primark and H&M.

According to the same sources, the rental contracts of all the retail establishments that currently occupy the arcade expire in 2019. In this way, Uniqlo and Hermanos Revilla will have a period of one year to carry out the necessary construction work to transform the property into a large format store. Professionals in the sector consulted by Eje Prime say that Uniqlo will pay rent of approximately €2.5 million per year.

El Jardín de Serrano underwent a remodelling project in 2011. It has a total surface area of 3,700 m2, spread over four floors. If Uniqlo does end up moving into the property (it has included a cancellation clause in the pre-lease contract, to be invoked in the event that “a better opportunity arises”), then the two upper floors will continue to be used as offices. This will represent the fashion chain’s first store in Madrid.

Sources at Hermanos Revilla declined to comment about the deal, whilst some of the establishments that currently operate in the shopping arcade confirmed that they are aware that negotiations are underway for a fashion brand to open a large store in the building.

Hermanos Revilla is one of the main investment families in the real estate sector in Madrid. The company owns a portfolio of properties comprising office buildings and shopping centres, such as the case of El Jardín de Serrano.

Currently, Hermanos Revilla own a dozen office buildings located in the financial district of Madrid, including iconic assets on Paseo de la Castellana, where it owns number 41, the buildings at numbers 29 and 8 on Calle Goya (which together span a surface area of more than 10,000 m2 for offices and retail use) and number 35 on Calle Jorge Juan.

Hermanos Revilla also owns other properties in the Chamberí area, with a building at number 2 on c/José Abascal; in Chamartín, with an asset at number 132 on Principe de Vergara; the Musgo 1 and Musgo 3 buildings in the Moncloa area and four buildings on the outskirts of Madrid, in the M-30 and A-2 districts.

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Aina Purchases 50% Of Gran Hotel Velázquez From Didra Group

25 July 2017 – Expansión

Aina Hospitality – the fund promoted by Edmond de Rothschild and Jaume Tàpies – has purchased 50% of the iconic Gran Hotel Velázquez from the Didra Group. The property is located at number 62 of the Madrilenian street whose name it bears.

This asset, located in the neighbourhood of Salamanca, just a stone’s throw from the Retiro park and in the heart of Madrid’s golden mile, has been owned by the Didra Group for just a few months. It is currently undergoing a comprehensive renovation with the aim of ascending its category.

Together with the Didra Group, owned by the Ardid Villoslada family, Aina Hospitality will reposition the property, transforming it into a five-star hotel. Last year, the family office owned by the Ardid family reached an agreement with the Salazar family – the former owners of SOS Cuétara – to purchase this hotel for €63 million and now, almost a year later, it has decided to open up the share capital to Aina Hospitality.

At the moment, the four-star Gran Hotel Velázquez, has 143 rooms but it recently closed its doors to undergo a complete refurbishment.

Repositioning

Following its renovation, the hotel will have 111 rooms and suites, a restaurant, a rooftop terrace, cinema, bowling alley, luxury spa and fitness centre.

Tàpies, the CEO of Aina Hospitality, highlighted the excellent location of the hotel: “Madrid is a cultural, historical and leisure destination and it is a tourist and financial centre. This hotel is located in the centre of the city, close to some of the most important tourist attractions and the historical centre”.

The operation represents Aina Hospitality’s seventh investment in Europe and is in line with the investment strategy carried out by the manager to date. Aina Hospitality purchases high-end properties – with four- and five-stars ratings. In addition to Madrid, the fund has recently made acquisitions in Paris, Eindhoven, Vienna, Brussels and Berlin.

Original story: Expansión (by R. Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor & Amprop To Sell Luxury Homes In Madrid

20 February 2017 – Expansión

The company Grosvenor Europe, owned by the British real estate conglomerate Grosvenor, has agreed to acquire a plot of land, measuring 820 m2, on Calle Jorge Juan in Madrid, in one of the most exclusive and expensive residential areas of the city.

The operation forms part of the investment plan that Grosvenor signed last summer with the company Amprop, which is listed on the Malaysian stock exchange and which operates in the real estate, renewable energy and public construction sectors.

At that time, the real estate group, which owns more than 1,500 properties all over the world, transformed its fund Grosvenor Fund Management into Grosvenor Europe, with the aim of undertaking co-investment projects in high profile markets in Europe, such as Paris, Madrid, Milan and Stockholm.

Seven months after creating this alliance, the partners have completed their first investment, for an undisclosed sum. Grosvenor and its partner will promote an exclusive development on this plot, comprising six apartments measuring 180 m2 each, and a penthouse with views of the Retiro park. The average price per m2 of prime products in the neighbourhood of Salamanca amounts to around €8,500/m2, but some developments average more than €9,000/m2, according to the latest residential reports.

The aim is to close another two operations within the next few months. “We are studying several opportunities for residential development and value added products in the centre of Madrid. We hope to build our portfolio in a very strong way in 2017”, say sources at the group.

Original story: Expansión (by R.Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

VBare: Rental Prices Are Rising Most Rapidly In Madrid & Barcelona

23 November 2016 – El Mundo

The Socimi VBare Iberian Properties, which specialises in the rental housing sector and which will soon make its debut on the MAB, has conducted a study whose findings show that, on average, it takes between 2.5 and 4 months to rent a home in Spain’s largest cities. “The current high level of activity in the rental market in Spain’s major cities is manifesting itself not only in terms of rising rents, but also in a reduction in the time it takes to let out properties”, say sources at VBare.

In this sense, the Socimi said that Barcelona and Madrid lead the ranking of cities for the time it takes to lease a property. On average, it takes less than three months to rent out a home in both cases. In other cities, such as Valencia, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, Bilbao, La Coruña and Alicante, it takes less than four months, whilst in Zaragoza and Sevilla, it takes around 4 months. “Nevertheless, those averages are significantly shorter in neighbourhoods with significant demand and limited supply”, say sources at VBare.

Specifically, it takes less than two and a half months to rent out a home in Barcelona. In areas such as Vila de Gràcia, Poble-Sec, Sant Antoni and Sants-Les Corts, it takes around two months on average, whereas in Diagonal Mar, it takes around three months and in Vallvidrera, the Urquinaona-Arc de Triomf-Gran Vía triangle and the area to the south of Paseo de Gracia, it takes more than four and a half months.

“There is a certain amount of positive correlation between the time it takes to lease a property and the rental cost in euros per month, as well as with the independent price of the surface area (in euros/m2/month)”, explain sources at VBare. “Thus, broadly speaking, it takes longer for landlords to find tenants in areas with larger homes and higher rents than it does for landlords in more affordable neighbourhoods with smaller homes”. “Nevertheless, demand is high across the city and the average deviation between the different micro-markets (by post code) in terms of the time it takes to find a tenant is less than two weeks”.

In terms of Madrid, it takes slightly less than three months for landlords to find tenants. Like in the case of Barcelona, the average search times are shorter in peripheral neighbourhoods, where prices are more affordable, such as in Villa de Vallecas, and areas to the south of the M-30 (Puerta del Ángel, Usera, Vista Alegre, etc.), whereas it takes between three and four months to lease a property in the more exclusive areas of the city, such as the southern quadrant of the neighbourhood of Salamanca, Cortes-Jerónimos and along the Paseo de la Castellana.

“Nevertheless, unlike in Barcelona, for the group of post codes analysed, there is no significant relationship between the time it takes to lease a property and the price per m2 per month, although there is a link between the time it takes to lease a property and the average surface area homes in each neighbourhood: the smaller the home, the easier it is to find a tenant, and vice versa”, explain sources at VBare.

A similar phenomenon is being experienced in cities such as Bilbao (3.3 months on average) and, to a greater extent, Palma de Mallorca (which has a similar average time to Bilbao) and Alicante (3.6 months): it takes longer to rent out homes in central areas with high rents per m2, whereas it is quicker to lease more affordable properties in peripheral areas.

By contrast, in Sevilla (where it takes just over four months to rent out a home on average), there is an inverse relationship between the two variables, given that homes located in the centre of the city – which are more expensive per m2 per month – are leased out more quickly than homes in peripheral neighbourhoods (with exceptions such as Sevilla Este, where supply is limited and demand is steady) (…).

Original story: El Mundo

Translation: Carmel Drake