The UK exit from the European Union is turning into a golden opportunity for the Spanish property market. Many UK funds are betting on residential property assets in Spain, especially those in the Valencian Community. Translation and adaptation of an (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

There were 45,710 home sales witnessed by notaries in July (including VPO Government-subsidised housing), up 2.6% in a year (+2.9% seasonally adjusted), according to the latest figures from the Association of Spanish Notaries. The chart above shows how sales (left) (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

20 September 2017 – El Mundo The investment fund Aquila Capital and the property developer Momentum Reim have reached an agreement to jointly develop residential projects in Barcelona. The first investment as a result of this partnership has involved the acquisition of 13,000 m2 of buildable land in an area known as La Catalana, in Sant Adrià de Besòs, for the construction of 120 homes. This residential project is located 600m from Port Forum beach and one kilometre away from Diagonal Mar, in a very good location thanks to La Ronda and public transport links (Tranvía and Metro). The future development (www.jardinsdelforum.com) will contain two-, three- and four-bedroom homes, with double orientation for better ventilation and large terraces. The master bedroom in each home will have a dressing room and ensuite bathroom, and there will be a communal area with a solarium and pool on the roof. Aquila Capital is headquartered in Hamburg and currently manages investments amounting to more than €6,000 million around the world. It is one of the most active institutional investors in the real estate sector in Spain, where it is currently constructing more than 1,500 homes, as well as several hotels, in Madrid and Barcelona, […]

Home sales, mortgage approvals, and consumer confidence are all recovering, but there’s still the problem of the glut concentrated in areas with low demand, says the real estate consultancy Acuña y Asociados in a new report. Including bank repossessions, the (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

19 September 2017 – Real Estate Press The resurgence of real estate activity in Spain, and in particular, in the Community of Madrid, has given rise to a significant increase in the number of companies in the sector, which have grown by 18.5% since 2014. Currently, the Community of Madrid has 31,384 real estate companies and 33,616 real estate related premises. In other words, one for every 192 inhabitants. So far this year, 41,641 homes have been sold in Madrid, up by 17% compared to a year ago, and up by 30% compared to two years ago. Moreover, prices rose by 10.9% in the second quarter of 2017 with respect to the previous year. In addition, rental prices have risen by 11% over the last year. Jaime Cabrero, President of the Official College of Real Estate Agents in Madrid, says that “Normally, when the sales market is strong, the rental market is weaker, and vice versa, but now both sectors are booming”. He added that “Naturally, we are seeing an increase in (the number of) real estate companies (…); there are 33,616 estate agent premises”, which is a high number of establishments dedicated to real estate activity. According to figures […]

19 September 2017 – Expansión Interview with Álvaro de Remedios (pictured above, left) and Jaime Carvajal (pictured above, right), President and CEO of Arcano / The executives are committed to backing the Spanish economy and do not believe that Cataluña will break the rule of law. In 2003, after a lifetime as an investment banker, Álvaro de Remedios (Madrid, 1968) decided to found Arcano and he was soon joined by Jaime Carvajal (Madrid, 1964). Both shared the vision of accompanying their clients throughout the transaction process and of placing the knowledge of senior executives at their disposal. Fourteen years later, Arcano has 15 partners, a workforce of more than 140 people, offices in Madrid, Barcelona and New York, and it has added the management of alternative assets and real estate advice to its core investment banking business. Q: The boutique advisors have completed quite a few high-profile operations in recent months. Jaime Carvajal: It is a world that is growing. The bankers at boutique firms have a lot of experience and the teams are more senior than in the large investment banks, in general. But sometimes, it is good to have both profiles involved in an operation. For this reason, […]

19 September 2017 – Expansión Catella Asset Management is stepping on the accelerator in Spain. The Swedish fund manager, which arrived in the country just two years ago and which has already invested €150 million in assets, plans to boost the pace and make purchases amounting to €350 million over the next two years, whereby taking the firm’s total investment volume in the country to €500 million, according to Javier Hortelano, Managing Partner at Catella Asset Management in Iberia. Until now, the company has undertaken five transactions in the residential rental market – four properties in Madrid and one in Barcelona – and has participated in the purchase of two shopping centres. Specifically, the fund manager has bought the Portal Mediterráneo shopping centre in Vinaroz (Castellón), together with the fund Aberdeen, and the El Manar retail complex in Massalfassar, in the Valencia metropolitan area, with the Belgian investor Mitiska Reim. In both cases, Catella is responsible for managing the assets. The fund manager, which is listed in Stockholm, has a presence in 12 countries and manages assets worth around €3,400 million in Europe. “Spain is one of the markets that the firm is backing the most. Until now, we have […]

19 September 2017 – Expansión The US fund Wellington Management has entered the share capital of Neinor Homes by purchasing an 8.53% stake in the property developer. The estimated value of that percentage amounts to around €126 million, on the basis of current market prices. In this way, Wellington is one of the investors that has acquired some of the shares in Neinor that were put up for sale by its majority shareholder, Lone Star, last week. The fund took the decision to sell a 27% stake in the company through an accelerated placement process, for a figure of around €394 million. As a result of the deal, Wellington Management has become the second largest shareholder in Neinor Homes, behind only Lone Star, which has decreased its stake to around 13%, compared to the 40% share that it controlled when it listed the company on the stock market in March. Original story: Expansión (by Jesús de las Casas) Translation: Carmel Drake The post Wellington Management Buys 8.5% Of Neinor Homes appeared first on Aura Real Estate Experts. Source:: AURA Real Estate Experts

19 September 2017 – El Confidencial Azora, Artá Capital, March Campus (the investment vehicle backed by Banca March clients) and Mutua Madrileña have reached an agreement to sell 100% of Grupo Resa to a group of international investors. AXA IM – Real Assets and CBRE Global Investment Partners – on behalf of their clients – have acquired most of the portfolio, whilst Greyster, which has acquired the operating business, will act as the asset manager. The operation is subject to final authorisation from the competition authorities and, although the amount of the transaction is unknown, real estate experts say that it will be one of the most important transactions in 2017 by investment volume. Grupo Resa, which has been on the market since the beginning of March, has consolidated its position as the largest platform of student halls in Spain, with 9,309 beds in 19 cities, including Madrid, Barcelona and Salamanca. Resa is the largest student hall company in Spain, and in Continental Europe. Managed by Azora since 2011, it has experienced significant growth during that period, increasing its portfolio of halls from 26 to 37, of which 33 are currently operational and the remaining 4 are being constructed. BBVA […]

This year’s high season, particularly August, was disappointing for most holiday-let owners in Ibiza and Formentera, claims a local trade association. Roberto San Esteban, president of the islands’ Holiday Lets Association (Asociación de Viviendas Turísticas Vacacionales de las Pitiusas in Spanish), (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

18 September 2017 – El País The house building sector in Spain is back after a decade adrift during which many of the large firms went to the wall (…). But the same crisis (that harmed so many) has also given rise to a new, more institutionalised house building sector, which claims to have learnt from the mistakes of its predecessors (…). In this new industry, there are some familiar faces, such as Realia, Quabit, Amenabar, Pryconsa, Ferrocarril, and ACR, amongst others (…). But the market now is dominated by new firms. They are the new generation of property developers, or rather, they are real estate giants, and their names include Neinor Homes, Vía Célere, Aelca, Aedas Homes and Kronos, poised to ride the new wave in the residential sector. Ahead, they face some major challenges, such as facilitating housing for young people, cutting costs, the industrialisation of the sector, putting clients first to avoid the errors of the past, and improving the image of the sector by being intolerant to all forms of corruption. At the helm of these giants are overseas investment funds, which have chosen to back the Spanish residential market, with the economic cycle in full […]

18 September 2017 – Cinco Días On Thursday, the General Shareholders’ Meeting of Testa Residencial approved the non-monetary capital increase for its integration with Acciona’s rental housing business, in an operation worth €341 million. In this way, a real estate giant of the highest calibre has been born. Testa Residencial, the rental home Socimi in which Santander, BBVA and now Acciona all hold a stake, is considering debuting on the stock market in the second quarter of 2018, between April and May, according to comments from market sources on Thursday (…). The company will thus debut on the stock market after becoming the largest rental home company in the country. On the basis of the operation that was approved by the General Shareholders’ Meeting on Thursday, the group chaired by José Manuel Entrecanales will enter Testa’s share capital with a stake of 21%, which will turn it into the Socimi’s second-largest shareholder after Santander (36%), in exchange for it transferring 1,000 homes to the company. The assembly also approved the entry of Acciona onto the Socimi’s Board of Directors, where it will be represented by Isabel Antúnez, the Director General of the Real Estate Development area at the construction and […]

Real estate information company urbanData Analytics (UDA) argue the investment case for property in Barcelona at this stage in the housing market cycle. I read UDA’s analysis in an article published by the Spanish daily El Mundo. Curiously, the article (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

The following article is an abridged and adapted translation of an article published by the Spanish daily El Mundo on the 11th of September 2017, explaining how real estate development is recovering faster in the Valencian Region’s Alicante province than (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

Sterling surged higher across the board at the end of the week following a hawkish statement from the Bank of England (BoE). The UK central bank left interest rates on hold at the record-low 0.25%, with policymakers voting 7-2 against (more…) Source:: Spanish Property Insight

How 3D Rendering Could Benefit Your Construction Business Financially Wherever the technology rules, the benefits are incredible, which is quite true for the construction industry supported by the superior 3D rendering technique. To the starters, 3D rendering is the concept of preparing the image based on the three-dimensional data present in the computer thus, making the final product visually appealing and conceivable. This concept is gaining the attention of the construction industry significantly as it benefits both the business providers and the end users. If you are owning a construction company and are yet to adopt this amazing technique then, you should read the below-mentioned facts that elucidate, how your business could be benefitted financially by using this technology. Saves cost on ‘unwanted’ modifications The 3D architectural renderings are easily conceivable, both by the construction fraternity and the end users and hence, the concept is understood clearly by the audiences. Therefore, in the case of any misjudgments, appropriate actions could be taken then and there by correcting the drawings so that you do not spend your time and money on unwanted modifications affecting your project’s outcome. Appealing marketing concept When a new client approaches your company with the requirement of […]

15 September 2017 – Expansión A new alliance between international funds and Spanish real estate companies has been forged in the market. This time, the stars are the fund Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing and the Madrilenian property developer Gestilar. Created in 2009 by Javier García-Valcárcel (pictured above), the real estate company specialising in residential property development has become a leading player in the north of Madrid, following the construction and completion of more than 800 homes in just four years. With García-Varcárcel as the sole shareholder, the company launched the so-called Project Orizone, with the aim of finding a strategic partner. Through a process led by A&G, more than a dozen international funds interested in the project were invited to participate, and in the end, the winner was the fund owned by Morgan Stanley. “The investor was looking for a partner in Spain and after a year of negotiations, we have reached an agreement. We were never looking for a corporate operation but rather a strategic partner to work with over the next four or five years”, explains Javier García-Valcárcel, President of Gestilar. The agreement between the fund and the real estate company has materialised in the creation of […]

14 September 2017 – Expansión El Corte Inglés has sold 40% of the company Iberiafon, owner of the Torre Serrano building in Madrid, to the real estate company Infinorsa for €50 million, according to sources at the distribution giant. The firm that has acquired the property, which is owned by several European funds, already owned 60% of Iberiafon’s share capital and also owns other buildings in Madrid, such as Torre Europa. This operation, which forms part of the distribution group’s divestment plan, effectively assigns a value of €125 million for 100% of the property. The building’s current tenants include the Masaveu Group and the firms GVC Gaesco and Beka Finance, amongst others. Located at number 47 on one of the most exclusive shopping arteries in Madrid, next to the El Corte Inglés department store on Calle Serrano, the tower has 13 floors, which have a combined surface area of 20,000 m2, including a 5,700 m2 car park. Half of the total space is used for offices, whilst the shopping area occupies 4,300 m2, which will continue to be leased to the group chaired by Dimas Gimeno, according to the press release. El Corte Inglés closed its last tax year, from […]

14 September 2017 – Expansión Inmobiliaria Espacio, the holding subsidiary of Villar Mir, and the ACR Group have announced the joint purchase of a plot of land measuring 15,000 m2 (buildable surface area), where they plan to construct 160 homes. The operation, whose consideration has not been revealed, forms part of a joint venture that the two companies have closed to construct homes in different parts of Spain. In fact, the plot of land in Valladolid is the second purchase made by this joint company, which acquired another plot of land a few months ago in Madrid, specifically in Avenida Daroca, for the development of 32 homes. “This new acquisition demonstrates the success of the collaboration between both companies and reinforces our idea of continuing to promote homes in those areas where we observe increasingly more demand and where both companies have an outstanding track record”, explains David Botín, Director of Real Estate Development at the ACR Group. Sources at the company have said that they will continue to look for investment opportunities together with Villar Mir’s subsidiary. Moreover, ACR also has another alliance, with Allegra, the real estate arm of the Losantos family. At the beginning of the year, […]

14 September 2017 – El Confidencial Lone Star, the fund that controls Neinor Homes, has put up for sale 20% of the share capital in the property developer. The stake represents half of its current shareholding in the company, a percentage worth around €304 million, based on current market prices. At the close of trading yesterday, the listed company’s share price had barely moved, up slightly by 0.26%, to €19.25 per share. So far this year, Neinor’s share price has risen by 17%. This is the first divestment that the fund is making of it stake of around 40% that it holds in Neinor, after placing the other 60% in the IPO that took place in March. Following this new share sale, Lone Star will reduce its controlling stake in the company led by Juan Velayos (pictured above) to around 19.5%. By virtue of the operation, Lone Star has put the shares up for sale through an accelerated placement, aimed at institutional and qualifying investors. The package comprises 15.81 million shares in Neinor, representing 20% of its share capital, according to a statement filed with Spain’s National Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV). Other shareholders of the real estate company, which […]