Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Eroski Closes EUR 150 Million Sale Leaseback of 12 Supermarkets Across Spain

Expansión (as translated by Google) - April 29, 2010

The Eroski supermarket chain has closed its third real estate sales transaction in just four months. The latter was closed this Tuesday. The agreement provides for the sale and subsequent rental (market operation known as a sale & lease back) of more than a dozen establishments in the background episodes.

The transaction, advised by property consultant Cushman & Wakefield, has been closed for 150 million euros. The facilities have a combined total area of 120,000 square meters and are spread throughout Spain, including the hypermarket of the Bañeza (Leon), Azuqueca (Guadalajara) and Luz de Castilla (Segovia).

The average length of contracts signed by Eroski is situated in 20 years.
With this operation, Epis (acronym of European Property Investors Special Opportunities) enters the Spanish real estate market. In 2008, the fund reached 788 million euros for institutional investors, to date, purchases of assets in the UK and France.

The vehicle is real estate fund managed by AEW Capital Partners Europe and Tristan. "We are delighted to have closed this transaction with a major corporation and we believe that due to its strong defensive position in a sector such as the power, this transaction is the ideal investment vehicle to make your diving episodes in a market as in Spanish, "says Ric Lewis, CEO of Tristan Capital Partners.

In accordance with episodes, the supermarket chain that closes the third operation is the sale and subsequent rental of their facilities. The first one took place in late December when the investment firm WP Carey purchased a large block of businesses. In that case, Eroski has not provided or the total number of businesses sold or the total amount of the transaction. In the second transaction, closed on 16 February, the chain received 75 million euros for a portfolio of properties transferred to the same non-listed company (REIT) fund of WP Carey. The sale and subsequent lease was closed at 7% return (yield).

Eroski operates throughout the Spanish territory with a hundred hypermarkets, 1,700 supermarkets and franchises. The group also owns shopping centers, in addition to managing gas stations and travel agencies.

This is not the first time the distribution group uses the divestment of property assets to achieve liquidity. Specifically, since 2001, Eroski has conducted an intense policy of sale of real estate (both supermarkets and hypermarkets, such as schools), keeping their premises as a tenant.

Thus, the company transferred several of its local financial institutions ING and Eurohypo, in addition to selling tracks logistics platforms in Zaragoza and Malaga. In both cases, Eroski opted for the formula for sale and rent back.

Thus, Eroski joins the group of companies and financial institutions that use the formula for sale & lease back to obtain liquidity through the sale of assets, but without losing their respective locations. Among them, BBVA, Banco Sabadell and Barclays. Sphere: Related Content

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Popular Seeking EUR 700 Million Sale Leaseback of 800 Bank Branches

Reuters - April 26, 2010

Spanish bank Popular (POP.MC) is aiming to sell more than a third of its branches by the end of June in deals that could raise about 700 million euros ($940.9 million) of capital gains, El Economista reported on Monday without citing sources.

The bank has agreed to sell up to 800 branches to wealthy investors who in return will lease them back to the bank, the financial daily reported.

A spokesman for the bank declined to comment on the report.

A number of competitors such as Santander (SAN.MC) and BBVA (BBVA.MC) have already signed sale-leaseback deals on property. Sphere: Related Content

EUR 130 Million Carrefour Distribution Center Portfolio in France For Sale

PropertyEU - April 23, 2010

US real estate investor WP Carey has mandated CB Richard Ellis and BNP Paribas to sell a portfolio of distribution centres across France, according to well-informed market sources. The portfolio, worth some EUR 130 mln, offers 360,000 m2 of logistics space mostly let to French hypermarket Carrefour. The properties are spread across nine locations in France, including the cities of Paris, Lille, Caen, Nancy, Le Mans, Agen, Bourges and Lyon.

"The company wants to capitalise on the expected recovery for the logistics sector," a person familiar with the situation said.

Eight of the nine assets were bought in 2002 in a EUR 104 mln sale-and-leaseback transaction with Carrefour. The facilities were purchased on behalf of Corporate Property Associates 14 Incorporated, a member of the WP Carey Group of publicly held non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs). Sphere: Related Content

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Co-operative Group Agrees to 20 Year Lease on Build-to-Suit UK Distribution Center

PropertyEU - April 14, 2010

Legal & General Property has agreed to acquire a distribution centre project in the UK from Goodman for 47 mln (EUR 53 mln). Goodman, a global provider of industrial and business space, announced this week that it will commence development of the pre-let 43,484-m2 regional distribution centre (RDC) at Andover Commercial Park, formerly Andover Airfield, in Hampshire following the forward-funding agreement with LGP.

The distribution centre will be occupied by The Co-operative Group, the UK's fifth largest food retailer, on a 20-year lease. Goodman aims to achieve a BREEAM rating of "Very Good&" for the facility.

Goodman was represented by Savills and Carter Jonas. M3 acted for LGP and Thomas Round advised The Co-operative Group. Sphere: Related Content

Friday, April 02, 2010

Carestream Health Agrees to Sale Leaseback of HQ in Rochester NY

Democrat and Chronicle - April 2, 2010

Carestream Health Inc. is selling its seven-story building that houses its world headquarters.

The Rochester-based health imaging company that employs 1,100 people locally said it plans to remain in the Verona Street building and will sign a 10-year lease for most of the space with the new owner, Rochester property management firm Buckingham Properties LLC.

"We're staying right here," Carestream spokesman Robert Salmon said. "We just don't want to be in the property management business."

The building was put up by Eastman Kodak Co. in 1988 adjacent to its own headquarters at 343 State St. Kodak sold off its health imaging operations, which became Carestream, in 2007.

Terms of the sale to Buckingham Properties were not disclosed. Buckingham CEO Larry Glazer said he hopes to close on the deal by late June.

Carestream will continue to occupy all but the third floor of the building, Glazer said. With 61,000 square feet and adjacent parking, the space could be particularly attractive to firms looking to have a downtown Rochester location but not wanting to deal with parking issues. The space already has attracted some interest from prospects, though Buckingham has not yet begun to heavily market it, he said.

Salmon said part of the motivation for the sale is the fact Carestream had too much unused space in the building.

Companies selling off and then leasing back their own real estate is a common move in the business world as it can free up money for other uses. Xerox Corp. currently is looking to make a similar deal for the 30-story Xerox Square on South Clinton Avenue. Sphere: Related Content

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