Pressinformation archive

Forum Kayseri, designed and developed by Multi Development Turkey, shopping center market leader in Europe and Turkey, together with Union Investment, opens its doors on December 21, 2011. 150,000 m2 of construction area, 65,000 m2 gla and parking for 2000 vehicles, Forum Kayseri has an investment value of €250 million, is Multi’s 10th mall developed in Turkey, and will be managed by Multi Mall Management.

Stoford Developments has agreed an investment sale of £58.7million with German fund manager Union Investment Real Estate GmbH for Admiral Group's headquarters building in Cardiff. The deal, which was signed (this week), will reflect a net initial yield of 5.85 percent. Stoford Director Tony Nash said: "This is great news and confirms that the office market outside of London is resilient and offers occupiers remarkable value for money in the current market." Stoford received planning permission in June to build the 11-storey, 220,000 sq ft scheme on the former David Street car park close to St David's Shopping Centre. It is the biggest pre-let in the Welsh Capital's history. Construction is scheduled to start early next year with completion planned for 2014.

Union Investment has acquired the office building at Prinzregentenplatz 7-9 in Munich from Warburg - Henderson Kapitalanlagegesellschaft für Immobilien mbH for its open-ended real estate fund UniImmo: Deutschland. Munich-based Colliers Schauer & Schöll and law firm Ashurst of Frankfurt/Main acted as investment consultants to HIH Hamburgische Immobilienhandlung GmbH, while Clifford Chance provided corresponding advice to Union Investment. The 20,030 square meter complex is fully let on long-term leases and situated in a highly attractive office location directly on Prinzregentenplatz in the Bogenhausen district.

Union Investment has acquired the Bethanien Center at Mirabellenstraße 2 in Neubrandenburg from a real estate company managed by Captiva Capital Partners III ELP, a Natixis Capital Partners fund. The property will be added to the portfolio of UniInstitutional European Real Estate, a fund for institutional customers.

Union Investment has now signed a long-term lease with logistics company GATX Rail Germany GmbH for 1,622 sq m of space. The deal was brokered by CB Richard Ellis. From 1 July 2012, some 70 GATX employees will work out of the ninth floor of EMPORIO.

Following a certification phase lasting around a year, Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has been awarded a sustainability certificate in "Silver" for its DomAquarée ensemble by the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). DomAquarée is one of the first urban ensembles in Germany to be recognised in this way. The presentation took place at EXPO REAL in Munich. The ensemble proved compelling in terms of ecological, economic, sociocultural/functional, technical and process quality, achieving the highest possible ratings for space efficiency and the incorporation of architectural art.

Union Investment has acquired the multi-tenant H19 building in Düsseldorf for its UniImmo: Deutschland open-ended real estate fund from a Luxembourg-based company. Located at Hammer Straße 19, the property was completed in 2003.H19 enjoys an exceptional location in the "Media Harbour" area with access from both Hammer Straße and Zollhof.

The 2012 Prime Property Award will recognise real estate projects in Europe that benefit the environment, society and investors / Entries must be submitted by 15 December 2011

Ortlergärten in Berlin-Steglitz acquired as first investment for fund - Union Investment has acquired Ortlergärten, a 223-unit apartment complex in Berlin-Steglitz, from a listed French property company. Offering 18,313 sq m of residential space, Ortlergärten is the first acquisition for the special "Residential Value" fund launched by Union Investment for an institutional customer on 30 June 2011. Under the mandate, Union Investment acts as property fund manager, focusing on fund administration services.

Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has strengthened its management team with the addition of Dr. Heiko Beck (44), who will join the Management Board of the Hamburg-based property fund manager with effect from 5 September. Dr. Beck, whose doctorate is in law, will fill the newly created role of Chief Operating Officer and be responsible for financial controlling, accounting, law and taxation, as well as central property management.

Union Investment is expanding its retail portfolio in France. The Hamburg-based investment management company has acquired a majority stake (80%) in an OPCI, which holds the Géant shopping centre in Bordeaux, investing approx. 63 million Euros. Developer Mercialys SA retains a 20 % stake and thus a long-term interest in the property, which has a value of approx. 80 million Euros.

Union Investment has acquired the Cargoport logistics property in Frankfurt from Cargoport Grundstücks GmbH (an Ardi Goldman project) for its institutional real estate fund DEFO-Immobilienfonds 1. The property, which is fully let on a long-term lease to Lufthansa Cargo AG, was completed in 2009 and offers approximately 30,000 sq m of space.

UII Shopping Nr. 1 enables investors to benefit directly from the positive market environment for retail property - Union Investment is expanding its product range for institutional investors with a fund for retail property. UII Shopping Nr. 1 allows investors to benefit from the performance of European retail properties and achieve greater diversification of their property portfolio.

Unit price calculation, redemption and issue possible again from 16 June 2011/Three fund properties in Tokyo revalued to reflect changed market conditions/Standard distribution of EUR 1.40 per unit/Fund management sees good prospects as market recovers

Sale price for SMT Building 70% higher than original purchase price - Hamburg-based Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has again leveraged cyclical opportunities in the Seoul investment market to make a successful property sale. Acquired in September 2006 for the company's institutional real estate fund Immo-Invest: Europa, the 18-storey SMT Building was sold for 100.4 billion South Korean won (around 64.6 million euros) to local investor TRUS Y7 REIT Co. Ltd.

Sale price for SMT Building 70% higher than original purchase price - Hamburg-based Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has again leveraged cyclical opportunities in the Seoul investment market to make a successful property sale. Acquired in September 2006 for the company's institutional real estate fund Immo-Invest: Europa, the 18-storey SMT Building was sold for 100.4 billion South Korean won (around 64.6 million euros) to local investor TRUS Y7 REIT Co. Ltd. The sale price is 70% higher than the original purchase price.

Union Investment Real Estate GmbH, Hamburg, has appointed Tania Concejo Bontemps to the management of its French subsidiary, with effect as of 16th May 2011. In the function of General Manager she will run Union Investment Real Estate France SAS in Paris at the side of Ms. Dominique Dudan, President of the Management Board.

Folke Sievers is the new general manager of the Scandic Hamburg EMPORIO, which will open within the EMPORIO complex in early 2012. Sievers has held a wide range of positions at various hotels both in Germany and abroad. In recent years, he has worked for Accor in various roles and most recently opened the Novotel Hamburg Alster as director.

The sustainable office is emerging as a competitive factor for businesses - Well-being is key criterion for office workers - Comfort aspects more important than technical facilities or accessibility - Workers more satisfied with offices in central locations - High employee awareness of sustainability issues

Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has completed further leases for a total of 6,500 sq m, with future tenants including Nord Event GmbH and Aquila Capital. One of North Germany’s leading events agencies, Nord Event GmbH, has signed a lease for space in EMPORIO and will hold exceptional events in the sky lounge on the 23rd floor. The company will also offer conference and meeting facilities to future tenants and third parties.

Focus on improving access to regional markets / Smaller properties for institutional products on radar - With transactions totalling EUR 2.6 billion, Union Investment Real Estate GmbH was again one of Europe's most active property investment management companies in 2010. In addition to 24 purchases worth EUR 1.6 billion, the company sold 17 properties for around EUR 1 billion. Sales opportunities were leveraged mainly in Germany, London, Paris and Seoul. As part of its active asset management strategy, the company intends to invest between EUR 1 billion and 1.5 billion in acquisitions in 2011 and will continue to consider selling opportunities as they arise, especially in the core European markets.

The Scandic Hotel in downtown Hamburg's EMPORIO complex is one of the first hotels to be pre-certified Silver by the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). "The new Scandic Hotel in Hamburg stands out for a range of ecological quality criteria and its economic efficiency," says Christine Lemaitre, CEO of the DGNB, which has been awarding certificates for hotels since the beginning of the year.

Sustainability seen as competitiveness issue / Metrics systematically recorded / Investors still cautious about benchmarking Assessing the sustainability of buildings is still problematic for investors, although a growing number of them now systematically collect metrics on their existing properties. Professional investors also largely agree on which KPIs are needed to evaluate ecological sustainability.

Union Investment has sold the Whitefriars office building at 65 Fleet Street after a holding period of 13 years. Offering some 20,760 square metres of space, the nine-storey property in London’s financial district was acquired by a special purpose vehicle (SPV) of Employee Provident Fund of Malaysia (EPF) for around GBP 148 million.

Union Investment has acquired the Chinon Center in downtown Hofheim am Taunus from Berlin-based developer and investor MIB AG on behalf of its open-ended real estate fund Unilmmo: Europa. Details of the purchase price were not disclosed. The Frankfurt/Main and Leipzig offices of Jones Lang LaSalle assisted in the transaction. Jones Lang LaSalle had already been engaged to let the shop space in the Chinon Center.

Union Investment Real Estate GmbH has acquired Euragone Asset Management, its longstanding French asset management partner, with effect from 1 January 2011. The new Paris-based subsidiary - Union Investment Real Estate France SAS - has a team of 12 staff and is responsible for Union Investment's 2.7 billion euro property portfolio in France. The managing director of Union Investment Real Estate France SAS, which is headquartered in the Trocadéro complex in Paris, is Dominique Dudan.