Aldara Building Three New Student Residences in Oviedo, Salamanca and Barcelona

14 October 2019 Aldara, a Spanish developer, is building three new student residences in Oviedo, Salamanca and Barcelona. The three new developments will add a total of 983 new beds to the company’s portfolio in a combined investment of sixty million euros.

The development in Oviedo is in the early stages of construction, with plans for 317 beds to be ready by May 2021. The complex consists of three buildings, with an area of 2,739 square meters and parking for 77 vehicles.

The project in Salamanca will have 270 rooms (July 2021), while the one in Barcelona will have room for 400 students (July 2022).

Original Story: Eje Prime – Marc Vidal Ordeig

Adaptation/Translation: Richard D. K. Turner

Corestate to Invest €25 Million to Build New Student Residence in Salamanca

20 July 2019 – Richard D. K. Turner

Corestate Capital Holding, an investment fund based in Luxembourg, will invest 25 million euros to develop a student residence on Calle Santiago Diego Madrazo, next to the University of Salamanca.

The property will have a net leasable area of 4,000 square meters, including 258 flats and 301 beds. The building will also have several common areas such as a TV room, gym and terrace, along with 74 parking spaces.

Original Story: Eje Prime – Marta Casado Pla

Global Geopolitics Fuels Demand for Luxury Homes in Madrid

12 May 2019 – El Confidencial

Wealthy investors and families from China, Russia, Venezuela and Mexico are particularly active in the luxury home segment in Madrid, in particular in the districts of Salamanca, Chamberí, Retiro and Moncloa-Aravaca.

According to the College of Property Registrars, foreigners accounted for 6.7% of all residential purchases over €500,000 in the Community of Madrid in 2017, a figure that rose to 8.4% in 2018.

There are several pull-factors motivating these buyers including tax exemptions, golden visas (thanks to Law 14/2013), (relative) legal certainty, low rates of crime and affordable prices, compared to Miami and other European capitals. The language, climate and excellent transport infrastructure also play their role, as do the world-class universities and business schools in the Spanish capital.

A number of push-factors are also evident, which is where the geopolitical developments come into play. The political and economic crisis in Venezuela, the election of Andrés Manuel López Obrador as the President of Mexico in December, the political uncertainty in Cataluña and even the on-going Brexit saga, are all important reasons for wealthy buyers to turn their backs on their home countries in favour of Madrid when it comes to buying a property.

To date, since they were introduced in 2014, 2,948 golden visas have been granted for the purchase of luxury homes, with half going to Chinese citizens (1,476) and a fifth going to Russians (621).

Moreover, according to official statistics from Spain’s National Institute for Statistics, the number of Mexican residents in Spain has risen from just over 20,000 in 2014 to more than 25,200 by the end of 2018, of whom one third live in Madrid.

Meanwhile, the number of Venezuelan residents has increased from just over 32,000 five years ago to 57,120 in 2018. Nevertheless, in both cases, the real number of arrivals is higher since many move to Spain through family links making them entitled to Spanish passports.

Original story: El Confidencial (by Marcos García)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

The Luksic Family will Reopen Hotel Adler in Madrid at the End of 2019

18 March 2019 – Preferente

The Luksic family is going to reopen the Hotel Adler in Madrid with BBVA as its main tenant, after the bank closed a rental agreement to occupy three floors of the property, spanning almost 1,600 m2.

The wealthy Chilean family purchased the iconic property, which is located on the corner of Calles Velázquez and Goya, in the heart of the Salamanca neighbourhood, from the Vázquez family for €27 million.

The new tenant is expected to move in during Q4 2019 since the building work is still in a very initial phase. BBVA is going to open a new multi-functional office/branch in the property.

Original story: Preferente (by R.P.)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

CBRE: Law Firms Conquer the Prime Business Districts of Madrid & Barcelona

5 March 2019 – Expansión

According to a new report from CBRE about work spaces in the legal sector, law firms are, in many ways, the perfect tenants. They seek iconic buildings, lease more space per employee than companies in other sectors and although they drive a hard bargain in terms of price, they are willing to pay a premium for the right property. What’s more, their businesses are stable, they seek long-term contracts and they pay their rent on time.

In this context, there has been a great deal of activity in the segment in recent years. In 2017, records were set in terms of transaction volumes and numbers, with Baker McKenzie and Allen & Overy leading the charge to move offices in Madrid. Last year was quieter, but several international firms leased new space, including Andersen, Latham & Watkins and Pinsent Masons). Moreover, international firms lease twice as much space as their Spanish counterparts, on average, although local firms account for most transactions in Madrid (6 out of every 10).

On average, over the last decade, law firms have leased 11,000 m2 of office space per year on average in Madrid, more than twice as much as in Barcelona (where 4,500 m2 per year is leased, on average), the second most active market.

In the Spanish capital, the neighbourhood of Salamanca is the most sought-after area, accounting for 43% of interest in the market, followed by the Cuatro Torres area, with 17%. In Barcelona, 9 out of 10 operations involve domestic firms and the most sought-after areas are Paseo de Gracia and Avenida Diagonal.

Average rental prices in Madrid have soared by 60% in the last six years from a low of €17/m2/month in 2012 to €27/m2/month last year, with highs of €35/m2/month in the most prime areas. In Barcelona, average prices have risen by 50% since their lows of 2013, with prime rates reaching €24/m2/month in 2018.

Original story: Expansión (by Sergio Saiz)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Anticipa: House Prices in Madrid & Barcelona Return to their Peaks of the Real Estate Boom

11 November 2018 – El Confidencial

The (real estate) recovery is really heating up. House prices in Madrid are on the verge of returning to their peaks of 2007. What seemed impossible, is now becoming a reality. That is according to a report from Anticipa Real Estate, which forecasts two-digit increases in house prices in the Spanish capital this year and next. Specifically, it predicts that homes will become more expensive by 10.2% in 2018 and by 11.5% in 2019, rises that are twice as high as the percentages that experts consider to be sustainable.

House prices have already been growing at rates of 10% during the last two quarters, according to the Repeated Sales House Price Index, prepared in accordance with the Case & Shiller methodology from the United States applied to Spain, which analyses repeat sales of the same homes. In other words, they are rising at double-digit percentages reminiscent of those recorded at the height of the real estate boom a decade ago.

Despite that, both property developers and banks are insisting that the market is very different to the one seen more than ten years ago and they categorically rule out that we are facing a similar situation to then. On the one hand, access to financing remains very restricted for solvent clients, whilst the recovery in prices is very uneven across the country. Whilst in the cities (and in certain neighbourhoods), prices are skyrocketing, in others, prices are still decreasing.

Although on average, by the end of 2019, house prices in Spain will be 15% below the peaks recorded in 2007, according to the report from Anticipa Real Estate, there are some hot spot areas where those prices have already been exceeded. In Cataluña, another of the hot spots in the Spanish market, increases of around 9% are expected next year and that despite the delicate political situation in Cataluña, which has had a direct negative impact on the real estate market – in Barcelona -, which, until a year ago, was performing extremely well in terms of transactions and prices.

Madrid stands out from the rest of Spain, with an evolution in terms of residential prices that has caused the first alarm bells to start sounding. In certain neighbourhoods, such as Chamartín, Chamberí and Salamanca, second-hand homes now cost the same as they did ten or twelve years ago, whilst in others such as Arganzuela, Centro, Moncloa and Tetúan, prices are close to exceeding those levels. In others, where prices are still well below their peaks of the bubble, the market is rising at rates of 20%, rapidly reducing the gap with respect to 2008.

They are peripheral areas of the city towards which price rises are moving like an oil slick. And that is because prices, both to the purchase and rental markets in the centre of the city have reached such prohibitive levels that much of the demand is moving en masse to more affordable areas, resulting in significant upward pressure on prices.

According to the latest data from Tinsa, in Vicálvaro, Ciudad Lineal and Villaverde, house prices have risen by more than 20% in the last year, compared with rises of 8.5% in Chamartín and 13% in the district of Salamanca. Meanwhile, the municipalities of Barcelona, such as L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Castelldefels, Esplugues de Llobregat and Sabadell, are experiencing a similar phenonemon with increases of more than 15% (…).

Original story: El Confidencial (by E. Sanz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Tinsa: House Prices Rose by 15.6% YoY in Madrid in Q3

9 October 2018 – ABC

Whilst most Spanish provincial capitals have reached what the experts define as “a turning point” with the stabilisation of house prices, Madrid is still the most dynamic city in the whole country. It is leading the house price rises once again with increases of 15.6% in Q3 with respect to the third quarter of last year. That rise in value reflects the tensions that demand for homes in the Spanish capital is exerting on certain areas. The scarce supply of new build homes is not helping to balance a panorama where the pressure on house prices is now moving towards the peripheral neighbourhoods. Some areas are recording price increases of more than 20%, well above those seen even in the traditionally most sought-after districts. All of the districts, without exception, have seen an increase in their price per square metre. Of the 21, only three saw price rises in the single-digits – Usera, Chamartín and Villa de Vallecas-. In this context, the average price in the Spanish capital now amounts to €2,876/m2.

That is according to the latest local market report on finished housing – new and second hand – published by the appraisal company Tinsa at the end of the third quarter. In it, Madrid ranks as the third most expensive provincial capital to buy a home after Barcelona (€3,383/m2) and San Sebastián (€3,151/m2), both with more discrete YoY growth rates. Despite the warning that the consecutive increases generate, a priori, the capital is still a long way from the maximums that it reached in the third quarter of 2007 (27.6% lower), which marked the start of the crisis. The real estate situation has changed little since the middle of the year, although the trends that some experts, such as Pedro Soria, Commercial Director at Tinsa, were indicating in June have been confirmed: high prices in the city centre are pushing buyers to focus outside of the M-30.

The furore to purchase properties is still defined by a striking fact: it only takes 2.6 months to sell a property in Madrid at the moment. That period is still the lowest in Spain, even though it increased by one tenth with respect to the second quarter. Even with property developer activity below what the sector considers healthy for the real estate sector, demand for second-hand products is extremely high. And it is not exactly a favourable scenario for buyers. One piece of evidence that a major problem is starting to emerge in terms of access to housing in the capital is in the financial effort that families are having to make to live in Madrid. This has exceeded what is considered to be the “sustainable” limit. Those that have purchased a home in the last quarter are having to spend 26.1% of their gross household income (before taxes and other deductions) to service the first year of their mortgages. The national average stands at 17.2%. The experts consider that the red line, which has always recommended spending no more than one quarter of a household’s income on the mortgage, is now being passed. In districts such as Arganzuela, which has become one of the most attractive areas of the capital, household’s financial efforts now amount to 27.6% and the figure reaches 41.5% in the case of Salamanca neighbourhood. Once again, house prices in that area are the most expensive in Spain, at €4,762/m2. Chamberi is ranked in third place, after the Barcelona neighbourhood of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, with €4,521/m2 (…).

The most expensive municipalities

The municipalities that generate the most interest include Pozuelo de Alarcón, which registers the highest price of €3,017/m2, followed by Alcobendas, at €2,847/m2 and Majadahonda, at €2,537/m2. By contrast, the municipalities of Arroyomolinos and Aranjuez registered the lowest prices: €1,337/m2 and €1,446/m2, respectively, of those analysed by the appraisal company (…).

Original story: ABC (by Adrián Delgado)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Silicius Acquires Offices in Madrid’s Prime Areas & Prepares Purchases Worth €500M

22 May 2018 – Eje Prime

Mazabi’s Socimi is growing its real estate portfolio. Silicius has purchased an office building in Madrid worth €20 million. The asset, located in the prime Salamanca neighbourhood, has a surface area of 2,350 m2 and has just been renovated.

The property was acquired by Mazabi in 2014 and, following the refurbishment, that same family office’s Socimi has won the auction for the building, in which several international funds and a Spanish insurance company participated, according to Idealista.

Similarly, the Spanish manager is working to undertake new investments over the next few months, ahead of its stock market debut, which is scheduled for later this year. The only question remaining is whether it will trade on the MAB or the main stock exchange. The real estate company is currently working on purchase operations amounting to almost €500 million.

Mazabi’s vehicle wants to reach an investment volume of €300 million before it rings the bell (makes its stock market debut) and opens up its share capital to new shareholders. They will boost its development in the Spanish market, where it owns a portfolio worth €120 million comprising commercial premises and offices in Madrid, as well as a hotel in Cádiz.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

PSN Gestión Socimi Buys Hotel Soho Boutique in Salamanca for €3M

7 May 2018 – Tribuna Salamanca

PSN Gestión Socimi S.A, the listed real estate investment company tasked with managing the properties owned by the PSN Group that are destined to leasing, has acquired the Hotel Soho Boutique Salamanca for €2.9 million.

This establishment, which has a four-star rating and is located in a central building next to the Plaza Mayor and the central market of Salamanca capital, has a constructed surface area of almost 1,200 m2, spread over seven storeys and a patio area of 25 m2.

According to information provided by the PSN Group, the property has more than 20 bedrooms, as well as lounges, a bar, a dining room and an indoor car park, leased in the building opposite.

In this way, PSN Gestión Socimi S.A. has incorporated the hotel into its real estate portfolio, which already contained another complete building that is used as a hotel in the centre of Madrid, as well as several offices, commercial premises and parking spaces spread over 27 buildings located in 21 cities in Spain and Portugal, with a constructed surface area of more than 15,600 m2, according to the entity.

These properties owned by “the largest company of its kind promoted by an insurance company in the Spanish real estate market” are located in several cities such as Madrid, Sevilla, Valencia, Barcelona, Lisbon, Coimbra and Oporto, amongst others.

PSN Gestión Socimi S.A. started trading on the Alternative Investment Market (MAB) on 22 December 2017 with a global capitalisation of more than €28 million.

Its shares debuted with a reference price of €14.20 and are currently trading at €14.50, according to the company that has purchased the hotel in the centre of Salamanca.

Original story: Tribuna Salamanca

Translation: Carmel Drake

Grosvenor Will Invest €200M to Double its Portfolio in Spain by 2022

25 April 2018 – Eje Prime

The British group Grosvenor is taking advantage of the strong performance of the real estate sector in Spain. The company, which has just presented its financial results for 2017, revealing a record profit of GBP 143.5 million (€163.8 million), has revised its plans for Spain. It is now going to spend more than €200 million on purchases, together with the Malaysian group Amprop, with which it owns a joint venture in the country. The group aims to double its portfolio of assets between now and 2022, according to James Raynor (pictured below), CEO of Grosvenor, speaking to Eje Prime.

“In 2017, we increased our potential in the residential sector, specifically in Madrid, where we undertook six acquisitions for development”, explained Raynor. “Our intention is to transform under-utilised assets into properties that contribute to the growth and dynamisation of the neighbourhoods in which they are located, and we have faith that our first projects in the districts of Salamanca and Chamberí will do just that”, he added.

Grosvenor’s most ambitious plans in Spain include its new purchases. The group, which now employs eight people in the country after it opened an office in Madrid, has increased its investment capacity to €200 million through its joint venture together with Amprop, created last year to build luxury homes in Madrid. “We will also evaluate investments outside of the joint venture”, added the director.

The alliance with Amprop set itself the objective of backing value-added investments, where it assumes high risks but also assigns them high profitability. For these types of projects, the two groups have allocated a budget of €70 million, although they have reviewed the numbers thanks to the “opportunities being offered by the Spanish market”, explained the executive.

Grosvenor evaluates its last year in Spain as “a good year”. (…). “Having expanded our team, we have more power to unlock opportunities that would have been impossible without the experience of professionals in the sector. We have also been making progress with projects such as the one we have underway at number 53 Jorge Juan”, explained Raynor.

Over the coming months, the British group is going to continue “to look for investment opportunities in the main neighbourhoods of Madrid”. “We think that this is the perfect time to invest in residential developments in Spain and in repositioning opportunities, although we are also open to the acquisition of mixed-use assets, as well as retail properties and offices”, says Raynor -; “As an investment company, we have a diverse portfolio and extensive experience in all of the real estate sectors, and so we will take advantage of that know-how to find the most appropriate opportunities to suit us (…).

The fund has been led in the Spanish market by Fátima Sáez del Cano since 2007, although its operations in the country date back to 1996. The director leads the fund specialising in the office and commercial sectors, which is also responsible for the management of the 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 (…).

In addition, in recent months, Grosvenor decided to add new blood to its management team by hiring more directors. In September, the group recruited Javier García as the new Technical Director for the Spanish market. The director is responsible for the technical management of operations in Spain, from the control of the design to the monitoring of project costs and deadlines (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake