New subsidiary for growth in Austria
The incorporation of Immo KAG into the Union Investment Group in December 2015 saw the start of an integration process that culminated in the new subsidiary being renamed Union Investment Real Estate Austria AG at the end of August 2016, marking an important milestone for the Real Estate segment.
Both companies have their roots in a cooperative network, which facilitated successful integration of Immo KAG (founded in 2003) and also means that they have a similar investment philosophy. Vienna-based Union Investment Real Estate Austria AG has 12 employees and works closely with the Real Estate segment at the company’s headquarters in Hamburg. This delivers significant advantages, particularly in terms of fund management, asset management, property acquisition and reporting for immofonds 1, one of the largest open-ended retail real estate funds for private investors in Austria.
Improved market development activity in Austria also spells greater opportunities for all Union Investment real estate funds to complete transactions in the Austrian market. Alongside Vienna, which is one of Europe’s most important real estate markets, other attractive locations for commercial real estate investment include Graz, Innsbruck, Salzburg and Linz.
Immofonds 1 had assets under management of EUR 700 million when the integration process was completed. Its investment focus is on the office, retail and hotel sectors in Austria and Germany. The portfolio also includes two medical centres. As a result of the close collaboration between Union Investment Real Estate Austria AG and the Real Estate segment in Hamburg, logistics properties are now also being targeted for acquisition.
A further indication of the success of the integration process is the first new acquisition for immofonds 1, made shortly after Union Investment Real Estate Austria AG changed its name from Immo KAG. In November 2016, the fund acquired the Doppio Offices building in Vienna’s third district, one of the city’s most sought-after office submarkets, close to the main railway station and Belvedere Palace. The transaction was the starting point for a series of further acquisitions in 2016 involving office properties in Munich and Düsseldorf, and for securing a retail park in Styria. The latter will be added to the immofonds 1 portfolio in early 2017 after completion of the transaction. The acquisitions have a total value in excess of EUR 100 Million.