Continued international growth for DIFA funds

Continued international growth for DIFA funds

Two new builds acquired in Parisian suburb of Clichy

Hamburg, 5 May 2004 – The new DIFA-Global fund has acquired its first property in the shape of a fully let office block in Clichy, an up-and-coming location to the north of the 17th arrondissement in Paris. Set up on 1 April 2004 by Hamburg-based DIFA Deutsche Immobilien Fonds AG, the portfolio of this international open-ended real estate fund will initially focus on European investment, with subsequent expansion into North America and Asia. Completed in September 2001, the Capella property offers some 6,200 sq m of office and retail/commercial space, while benefiting from good transport links and 87 parking spaces. Let to a total of four tenants for between nine and twelve years, this two-storey building represents an investment of around 17 million euros.

The DIFA-GRUND fund is also set to benefit from the dynamic development of the office and business sector in Clichy following its acquisition of the Altaїr office project for approx. 17 million euros. Scheduled for completion in May 2005, the building is situated close to Capella and within walking distance of the DIFA-owned Equinox property acquired in 2002. Altaїr will provide some 4,300 sq m of floor space. A guaranteed rent scheme offered by vendor Eiffage Immobilier for four or six years, depending on occupancy levels, gives DIFA the best possible protection against leasing risk.

“Many Paris-based companies are looking for attractive overspill space outside the city centre at comparatively low rents. Like the entire “first periphery”, being conveniently located for both Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport and La Défense will allow Clichy to experience a significant increase in value over the next few years,” says Dr. Reinhard Kutscher, the DIFA Management Board member responsible for business outside Germany. Thanks to the most recent purchases in Clichy and the joint-venture with GLL Real Estate Partners on the Left Bank, DIFA’s French portfolio now comprises fourteen properties and projects, as well as two associated companies.

Press contacDIFA Deutsche Immobilien Fonds PR/Communication
Fabian Hellbusch
Caffamacherreihe 8, 20355 Hamburg, Germany
Tel: +49 40 3491 9160, Fax: +49 40 3491 9190
E-mail: fabian.hellbusch@difa.de