Business Times - September 9, 2009
CIMB Group is eyeing sale-and-leaseback exercise for its properties, said group chief executive Datuk Seri Nazir Tun Razak.
"We are engaging a few potential buyers and they are financially, potential investors," he said.
According to Nazir, the transactions for all its buildings, especially CIMB branches and some other offices, would be completed by the fourth quarter of this year or the first quarter of 2010.
Early this year, the group had signed an agreement with Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera Bhd (PHBB) for the sale and leaseback of the new 630,000 sq ft 39-storey Menara Bumiputra Commerce. The group is now the sole tenant of the building, he said.
"The transaction with PHBB was worth RM460 million. On top of that, we spent about RM80 million for internal refurbishments," he told reporters after the opening of the building by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin today.
The Menara Bumiputra-Commerce, which cost RM400 million, was constructed by IJM Corp Bhd. It began in October 2004 and was completed early this year.
It will serve as the headquarters for commercial banking, franchises of CIMB Group, CIMB Bank and CIMB Islamic.
Nazir said the investment banking and capital market arm would be located in Menara CIMB, which was still under construction in Kuala Lumpur Sentral.
He said construction was expected to be completed in 2012.
Nazir said today also marked the completion of CIMB Group's multi-year branch re-branding exercise.
"South-East Asia's largest retail network of 1,150 branches across Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand have now all assumed the CIMB icon, its red and green colours and consistent branch look and feel," he said.
Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Co-operative Group Sale Leaseback - Update
Crain's Manchester Business - September 7, 2009
The Co-operative Group is on the verge of selling the freeholds to 20 of its stores for £40m as part of a sale and leaseback deal, Crain's has learned.
Property investor Threadneedle is within days of finalising the deal which has been in the pipeline for months, according to sources familiar with the situation.
The London-based fund, which is owned by New York Stock Exchange listed Ameriprise Financial, is buying the freeholds for cash and will lease the properties back to the Co-op for 25 years at rents linked to inflation.
Threadneedle and LaSalle Investment Management were whittled down from eight bidders in the race to land the properties, which are spread throughout the UK.
A source familiar with the situation said: “It's one of the biggest deals at the moment. The Co-op are just trying to raise a bit of cash.”
The stores have been in Co-op hands for decades in some cases and are not among those recently acquired as part of the £1.6bn acquisition of Somerfield in 2008.
In its latest accounts for the year to the end of January the Co-op said it was aiming to sell £175m of “surplus properties” over the next three years.
A note in the accounts says: “Disposals are particularly important as they realise capital that can be invested in other group projects.”
Last year the Co-op made a profit of £20m on property sales which raised a total of £58.4m. It said this was “well ahead of target” but some observers of the property scene have raised eyebrows about the decision to make large scale disposals at a time when asset values have been falling. The capital value of the Co-op's investment portfolio dipped by £62.3m in the year.
The Co-op owns land and buildings worth a collective £1.6bn, not including investment properties, and the sell-off comes at a time when other parts of the group, in particular the expanding food and financial services businesses, require more capital.
The group needs cash for a £100m rebrand of its stores, which began last year, and is planning a £100m project to build a new headquarters on Manchester's Miller Street. Sphere: Related Content
The Co-operative Group is on the verge of selling the freeholds to 20 of its stores for £40m as part of a sale and leaseback deal, Crain's has learned.
Property investor Threadneedle is within days of finalising the deal which has been in the pipeline for months, according to sources familiar with the situation.
The London-based fund, which is owned by New York Stock Exchange listed Ameriprise Financial, is buying the freeholds for cash and will lease the properties back to the Co-op for 25 years at rents linked to inflation.
Threadneedle and LaSalle Investment Management were whittled down from eight bidders in the race to land the properties, which are spread throughout the UK.
A source familiar with the situation said: “It's one of the biggest deals at the moment. The Co-op are just trying to raise a bit of cash.”
The stores have been in Co-op hands for decades in some cases and are not among those recently acquired as part of the £1.6bn acquisition of Somerfield in 2008.
In its latest accounts for the year to the end of January the Co-op said it was aiming to sell £175m of “surplus properties” over the next three years.
A note in the accounts says: “Disposals are particularly important as they realise capital that can be invested in other group projects.”
Last year the Co-op made a profit of £20m on property sales which raised a total of £58.4m. It said this was “well ahead of target” but some observers of the property scene have raised eyebrows about the decision to make large scale disposals at a time when asset values have been falling. The capital value of the Co-op's investment portfolio dipped by £62.3m in the year.
The Co-op owns land and buildings worth a collective £1.6bn, not including investment properties, and the sell-off comes at a time when other parts of the group, in particular the expanding food and financial services businesses, require more capital.
The group needs cash for a £100m rebrand of its stores, which began last year, and is planning a £100m project to build a new headquarters on Manchester's Miller Street. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Mayor Brown DC Headquarters Sold for $208 Million
CPExecutive.com - September 3, 2009
In Washington, D.C.--which was named the best urban real estate market in the world by the likes of the Association of Foreign Investors--Germany-based DekaBank Group’s recent $207.8 million acquisition of the newly developed 250,000-square-foot 1999 K Street office building came as little surprise to many, even given the slow investment market nationwide.
Vornado Realty Trust sold the property in an off-market deal to the DekaBank Group, which is the largest provider of open-ended property funds in Germany. The two investment companies, Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH and WestInvest Gesellschaft für Investmentfonds mbH, together manage fund assets of more than EUR 19 billion.
The building was designed by internationally recognized architect Helmut Jahn and achieved LEED-CS gold certification.
Designed by Helmut Jahn and recently awarded a LEED-CS Gold certification, the office property was completed in August and serves as the new headquarters for the law firm Mayer Brown. The building is 100 percent pre-leased to the law firm, which occupies the entire 12-story building as part of a new 15-year lease. In addition, TD Ameritrade occupies a 5,000-square-foot retail unit on the ground floor. Vornado will continue to manage the property.
“I’m not surprised by this deal. This is a trophy quality asset and the prices were on target. There is alot of liquidity in the marketplace and we’re seeing more activity,” Collins Ege, managing director for Jones Lang LaSalle, told CPE. “There is more activity going on in Washington, D.C. We’re closing a transaction this week and we’re probably busier now than we have been in the last 12 months. We have four deals under contract and we’re seeing other deals in development.”
A deal like this demonstrates that the Washington, D.C., area is a good location and still a viable marketplace, he added.
The $207.8 million sales price is $830 per square foot and is a first year cash cap rate of 6.3 percent. Vornado realized a net gain of approximately $41 million and received net proceeds of approximately $90 million after repaying the existing loan and costs.
CB Richard Ellis Inc.'s buy-side investment advisory group, Global Property Advisors, with the support of the firm's Washington D.C., Capital Markets team, represented Deka in the transaction. Sphere: Related Content
In Washington, D.C.--which was named the best urban real estate market in the world by the likes of the Association of Foreign Investors--Germany-based DekaBank Group’s recent $207.8 million acquisition of the newly developed 250,000-square-foot 1999 K Street office building came as little surprise to many, even given the slow investment market nationwide.
Vornado Realty Trust sold the property in an off-market deal to the DekaBank Group, which is the largest provider of open-ended property funds in Germany. The two investment companies, Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH and WestInvest Gesellschaft für Investmentfonds mbH, together manage fund assets of more than EUR 19 billion.
The building was designed by internationally recognized architect Helmut Jahn and achieved LEED-CS gold certification.
Designed by Helmut Jahn and recently awarded a LEED-CS Gold certification, the office property was completed in August and serves as the new headquarters for the law firm Mayer Brown. The building is 100 percent pre-leased to the law firm, which occupies the entire 12-story building as part of a new 15-year lease. In addition, TD Ameritrade occupies a 5,000-square-foot retail unit on the ground floor. Vornado will continue to manage the property.
“I’m not surprised by this deal. This is a trophy quality asset and the prices were on target. There is alot of liquidity in the marketplace and we’re seeing more activity,” Collins Ege, managing director for Jones Lang LaSalle, told CPE. “There is more activity going on in Washington, D.C. We’re closing a transaction this week and we’re probably busier now than we have been in the last 12 months. We have four deals under contract and we’re seeing other deals in development.”
A deal like this demonstrates that the Washington, D.C., area is a good location and still a viable marketplace, he added.
The $207.8 million sales price is $830 per square foot and is a first year cash cap rate of 6.3 percent. Vornado realized a net gain of approximately $41 million and received net proceeds of approximately $90 million after repaying the existing loan and costs.
CB Richard Ellis Inc.'s buy-side investment advisory group, Global Property Advisors, with the support of the firm's Washington D.C., Capital Markets team, represented Deka in the transaction. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Finnair Completes EUR 77 Million Sale Leaseback of Four Properties Near Helsinki-Vantaa Airport
PropertyEU - August 20, 2009
Property broker Newsec has advised Finnair Group's facilities division in the sale-and-leaseback of four properties in the vicinity of Helsinki-Vantaa Airport for EUR 77 mln.
The assets were sold to NV Property Fund I Ky.
The properties comprise Aircraft Hangar 7, the Ground Handling Fleet Centre, the Ground Equipment Maintenance Unit and the Training Centre. The properties will be leased by Finnair Facilities Management Oy and the users of the facilities are various business units of Finnair. The leased area totals around 60,000 m2.
The transaction was part of a financing programme announced earlier by Finnair. 'We see NV Property Fund I Ky as a reliable and desired long-term partner. We are very pleased with the cooperation within all parties in the arrangement,' said Mika Stirkkinen, Group treasurer of Finnair.
Newsec said the acquisition was also a significant step for the fund of NV Kiinteistösijoitus, as the volume of its investments increase to over EUR 300 mln. 'We are privileged to have such a remarkable actor, as Finnair is, as a tenant. The properties with long net lease agreements represent the general focus of our fund,' said Kari Louhenkilpi, the managing director of NV Kiinteistösijoitus
The fund is owned by Nordea Life Assurance Finland Ltd (45%), Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co (45%) and the State Pension Fund (10%). Sphere: Related Content
Property broker Newsec has advised Finnair Group's facilities division in the sale-and-leaseback of four properties in the vicinity of Helsinki-Vantaa Airport for EUR 77 mln.
The assets were sold to NV Property Fund I Ky.
The properties comprise Aircraft Hangar 7, the Ground Handling Fleet Centre, the Ground Equipment Maintenance Unit and the Training Centre. The properties will be leased by Finnair Facilities Management Oy and the users of the facilities are various business units of Finnair. The leased area totals around 60,000 m2.
The transaction was part of a financing programme announced earlier by Finnair. 'We see NV Property Fund I Ky as a reliable and desired long-term partner. We are very pleased with the cooperation within all parties in the arrangement,' said Mika Stirkkinen, Group treasurer of Finnair.
Newsec said the acquisition was also a significant step for the fund of NV Kiinteistösijoitus, as the volume of its investments increase to over EUR 300 mln. 'We are privileged to have such a remarkable actor, as Finnair is, as a tenant. The properties with long net lease agreements represent the general focus of our fund,' said Kari Louhenkilpi, the managing director of NV Kiinteistösijoitus
The fund is owned by Nordea Life Assurance Finland Ltd (45%), Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co (45%) and the State Pension Fund (10%). Sphere: Related Content
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Syngenta Seeds HQ Near Minneapolis Sold for $28.4 Million
Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal - August 17, 2009
Opus Northwest on Monday sold a newly built Minnetonka office building for about $30 million to CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust, a firm based in Princeton, N.J., according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The 116,300-square-foot building, called Crest Ridge Corporate Center I, is leased to Syngenta Seeds Inc., a division of Basel, Switzerland-based Syngenta International. Syngenta's lease runs through June 2019.
CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust said in the filing that it bought the building, at 11055 Wayzata Blvd., for $28.4 million plus closing costs.
The building and its attached 430-stall parking ramp is at the southeast quadrant of Hopkins Crossroad and Interstate 394. Work was finished on the building in June.
Syngenta is moving about 250 workers into the building from various sites around the Twin Cities, including its former headquarters on Highway 55 in Golden Valley. It has about 500 workers in the state, according to a spokesman for Syngenta.
Opus Northwest is marketing Phase II of the corporate center on an as-yet undeveloped, similar-sized adjacent site.
Opus Northwest is a division of Opus Corp., also based in Minnetonka, which has had some of its other regional divisions around the country file for bankruptcy amid a national downturn in the market for commercial real estate.
The property was marketed for sale by Tom Holtz and Steven Buss from the Bloomington office of CB Richard Ellis.
This is the second notable purchase in the Twin Cities by CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust this summer. In July, it bought an industrial building in Rogers that is leased to Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreen Co. for $15.34 million.
(Note: SEC Edgar prospectus supplement dated August 17, 2009 filed by CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust estimates that the acquisition cap rate for the Crest Ridge property was 8.7%.) Sphere: Related Content
Opus Northwest on Monday sold a newly built Minnetonka office building for about $30 million to CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust, a firm based in Princeton, N.J., according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The 116,300-square-foot building, called Crest Ridge Corporate Center I, is leased to Syngenta Seeds Inc., a division of Basel, Switzerland-based Syngenta International. Syngenta's lease runs through June 2019.
CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust said in the filing that it bought the building, at 11055 Wayzata Blvd., for $28.4 million plus closing costs.
The building and its attached 430-stall parking ramp is at the southeast quadrant of Hopkins Crossroad and Interstate 394. Work was finished on the building in June.
Syngenta is moving about 250 workers into the building from various sites around the Twin Cities, including its former headquarters on Highway 55 in Golden Valley. It has about 500 workers in the state, according to a spokesman for Syngenta.
Opus Northwest is marketing Phase II of the corporate center on an as-yet undeveloped, similar-sized adjacent site.
Opus Northwest is a division of Opus Corp., also based in Minnetonka, which has had some of its other regional divisions around the country file for bankruptcy amid a national downturn in the market for commercial real estate.
The property was marketed for sale by Tom Holtz and Steven Buss from the Bloomington office of CB Richard Ellis.
This is the second notable purchase in the Twin Cities by CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust this summer. In July, it bought an industrial building in Rogers that is leased to Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreen Co. for $15.34 million.
(Note: SEC Edgar prospectus supplement dated August 17, 2009 filed by CB Richard Ellis Realty Trust estimates that the acquisition cap rate for the Crest Ridge property was 8.7%.) Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, August 09, 2009
Credit Suisse Nearing £150 Million Sale Leaseback of Canary Wharf HQ
Property Week - August 7, 2009
An investment company backed by the former prime minister of Lebanon is in pole position to carry out a purchase and leaseback of one of Credit Suisse’s buildings in London’s Docklands.
M1 Real Estate is leading a consortium of Lebanese investors that is thought to have placed the 258,314 sq ft 20 Columbus Courtyard under offer for more than £150m – a yield of less than 6%. Credit Suisse will lease back the property for 25 years.
M1 Real Estate is a Monaco-based property company and an affiliate of parent company M1 Group, which was founded by the former Lebanese prime minister, Najib Mikati, and his brother.
The deal is another example of overseas investors believing the UK offers good value. This week an Australian fund has placed under offer a stake in the Bullring, Birmingham, and a German fund has bought Centrium in London’s Midtown.
M1 Real Estate has made other investments in central London. In March, it bought the Times Place building at 45 Pall Mall in London’s West End from Legal & General. It paid £56.5m, entirely in equity, for the 60,000 sq ft property at a net initial yield of 7.5%.
Credit Suisse has been assessing its sale-and-leaseback options on all of its buildings in London’s Docklands for more than three years.
In May this year it instructed CB Richard Ellis to market 20 Columbus Courtyard in a process dubbed ‘Project Hunter’. The guide price was around £147m, reflecting an initial yield of 6.25%. It offered the building on a freehold or long-leasehold basis with a guaranteed 25-year lease to Credit Suisse Securities.
The tenant has two options to extend the lease for five years. The rent will be reviewed annually on a Retail Prices Index-linked increase with a ‘cap and collar’ maximum and minimum increase of 4% and 1.5%, respectively. The current rent is £37.50/sq ft.
Credit Suisse received 20 formal bids from parties attracted by the size of the property and the guaranteed rent rises.
The purchase and leaseback is thought to be part of M1’s long-term strategy to build a global portfolio of prime assets in large cities.
Moustapha El-Solh, chief executive of M1 Real Estate, said after the purchase of Times Place that, ‘although the London real estate market, like many cities around the world, is currently seeing one of its worst downturns, we believe that making investments in prime assets with strong fundamentals is a sound long-term strategy.’
M1’s portfolio includes investments in the US, Europe and the Middle East.
Credit Suisse is also considering the sale and leaseback of other buildings it owns in London’s Docklands. Sphere: Related Content
An investment company backed by the former prime minister of Lebanon is in pole position to carry out a purchase and leaseback of one of Credit Suisse’s buildings in London’s Docklands.
M1 Real Estate is leading a consortium of Lebanese investors that is thought to have placed the 258,314 sq ft 20 Columbus Courtyard under offer for more than £150m – a yield of less than 6%. Credit Suisse will lease back the property for 25 years.
M1 Real Estate is a Monaco-based property company and an affiliate of parent company M1 Group, which was founded by the former Lebanese prime minister, Najib Mikati, and his brother.
The deal is another example of overseas investors believing the UK offers good value. This week an Australian fund has placed under offer a stake in the Bullring, Birmingham, and a German fund has bought Centrium in London’s Midtown.
M1 Real Estate has made other investments in central London. In March, it bought the Times Place building at 45 Pall Mall in London’s West End from Legal & General. It paid £56.5m, entirely in equity, for the 60,000 sq ft property at a net initial yield of 7.5%.
Credit Suisse has been assessing its sale-and-leaseback options on all of its buildings in London’s Docklands for more than three years.
In May this year it instructed CB Richard Ellis to market 20 Columbus Courtyard in a process dubbed ‘Project Hunter’. The guide price was around £147m, reflecting an initial yield of 6.25%. It offered the building on a freehold or long-leasehold basis with a guaranteed 25-year lease to Credit Suisse Securities.
The tenant has two options to extend the lease for five years. The rent will be reviewed annually on a Retail Prices Index-linked increase with a ‘cap and collar’ maximum and minimum increase of 4% and 1.5%, respectively. The current rent is £37.50/sq ft.
Credit Suisse received 20 formal bids from parties attracted by the size of the property and the guaranteed rent rises.
The purchase and leaseback is thought to be part of M1’s long-term strategy to build a global portfolio of prime assets in large cities.
Moustapha El-Solh, chief executive of M1 Real Estate, said after the purchase of Times Place that, ‘although the London real estate market, like many cities around the world, is currently seeing one of its worst downturns, we believe that making investments in prime assets with strong fundamentals is a sound long-term strategy.’
M1’s portfolio includes investments in the US, Europe and the Middle East.
Credit Suisse is also considering the sale and leaseback of other buildings it owns in London’s Docklands. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, July 30, 2009
State of Arizona May Pursue Property Sale Leaseback in Bid to Raise up to $1 Billion
Arizona Republic - July 29, 2009
Call it a sign of desperate times: Legislators are considering selling the House and Senate buildings where they've conducted state business for more than 50 years.
Dozens of other state properties also may be sold as the state government faces its worst financial crisis in a generation, if not ever. The plan isn't to liquidate state assets, though.
Instead, officials hope to sell the properties and then lease them back over several years before assuming ownership again. The complex financial transaction would allow government services to continue without interruption while giving the state a fast infusion of as much as $735 million, according to Capitol projections.
For investors, the arrangement means long-term lease payments from a stable source.
Earlier this month, Republican Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed such sale/leaseback provisions along with most of the rest of a fiscal 2010 state budget plan sent to her by the Legislature.
But the provisions are expected to return as part of a GOP-led legislative budget proposal surfacing this week. Although Brewer spokesman Paul Senseman called sale/leaseback deals "one of the governor's least favorite options," he conceded the likelihood that they'll play a key role in any plan to close a state shortfall estimated at $3.4 billion.
State properties now being considered for sale and leaseback include the House and Senate buildings, the Phoenix and Tucson headquarters of the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the State Hospital and the state fairgrounds, according to a document obtained by The Arizona Republic. Some prison facilities also are under consideration.
In total, the list comprises 32 properties that, if built from the ground up, come with a combined replacement value in excess of $1 billion.
The properties were chosen based on attractiveness to investors, buildings the state would be unlikely to walk away from, such as prisons or other facilities that provide essential government services.
Only one state property thus far is targeted for outright sale: the state Agricultural Laboratory in Phoenix.
The state has conducted sale/leaseback deals in the past, though rarely.
This is different. Manos believes it would be the first time the state has sold and leased back state buildings with the intent of using the revenue to fund general operations rather than particular projects.
Under the most recent legislative proposal, the state would seek a series of lease arrangements spanning as much as 20 years. Deals that would generate the targeted $735 million in revenue would mean state lease payments totaling $60 million to $70 million a year, according to budget analysts. Sphere: Related Content
Call it a sign of desperate times: Legislators are considering selling the House and Senate buildings where they've conducted state business for more than 50 years.
Dozens of other state properties also may be sold as the state government faces its worst financial crisis in a generation, if not ever. The plan isn't to liquidate state assets, though.
Instead, officials hope to sell the properties and then lease them back over several years before assuming ownership again. The complex financial transaction would allow government services to continue without interruption while giving the state a fast infusion of as much as $735 million, according to Capitol projections.
For investors, the arrangement means long-term lease payments from a stable source.
Earlier this month, Republican Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed such sale/leaseback provisions along with most of the rest of a fiscal 2010 state budget plan sent to her by the Legislature.
But the provisions are expected to return as part of a GOP-led legislative budget proposal surfacing this week. Although Brewer spokesman Paul Senseman called sale/leaseback deals "one of the governor's least favorite options," he conceded the likelihood that they'll play a key role in any plan to close a state shortfall estimated at $3.4 billion.
State properties now being considered for sale and leaseback include the House and Senate buildings, the Phoenix and Tucson headquarters of the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the State Hospital and the state fairgrounds, according to a document obtained by The Arizona Republic. Some prison facilities also are under consideration.
In total, the list comprises 32 properties that, if built from the ground up, come with a combined replacement value in excess of $1 billion.
The properties were chosen based on attractiveness to investors, buildings the state would be unlikely to walk away from, such as prisons or other facilities that provide essential government services.
Only one state property thus far is targeted for outright sale: the state Agricultural Laboratory in Phoenix.
The state has conducted sale/leaseback deals in the past, though rarely.
This is different. Manos believes it would be the first time the state has sold and leased back state buildings with the intent of using the revenue to fund general operations rather than particular projects.
Under the most recent legislative proposal, the state would seek a series of lease arrangements spanning as much as 20 years. Deals that would generate the targeted $735 million in revenue would mean state lease payments totaling $60 million to $70 million a year, according to budget analysts. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Tesco Completes EUR 63 Million Sale Leaseback of Logistics Portfolio in Hungary
Property Week - July 28, 2009
Investment firm WP Carey has provided €63m ($90m) in alternative long-term finance through the sale and leaseback of Tesco’s logistics portfolio in Hungary. The finance was provided by two publicly held non-traded REITs, CPA:16-Global and CPA:17-Global, owned by WP Carey. The transaction is a part of the supermarket chains' ongoing program to release value from its property portfolio. It is WP Carey’s first investment deal in Hungary. Tesco was represented by Cushman & Wakefield. WP Carey was advised by King Sturge. Sphere: Related Content
Investment firm WP Carey has provided €63m ($90m) in alternative long-term finance through the sale and leaseback of Tesco’s logistics portfolio in Hungary. The finance was provided by two publicly held non-traded REITs, CPA:16-Global and CPA:17-Global, owned by WP Carey. The transaction is a part of the supermarket chains' ongoing program to release value from its property portfolio. It is WP Carey’s first investment deal in Hungary. Tesco was represented by Cushman & Wakefield. WP Carey was advised by King Sturge. Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, July 19, 2009
J.P. Morgan Seeking Sale Leaseback of 23 Building Portfolio in U.S.
Real Estate Finance & Investment - July 17, 2009
Houlihan Lokey has launched the sale of a 23 office buildings totaling 7.1 million square feet on behalf of J.P. Morgan. The portfolio, the largest single offering of office buildings so far this year, includes the 2.2 million-square-foot One Chase Manhattan Plaza and the 1.1 million-square-foot 4 New York Plaza in Manhattan. Also offered is a 865,000-square-foot condominium interest in 45-story Chase Center Seattle and 712 Main St., a 35-story 794,000-square-foot art deco tower in Houston. The bank will consider offers for the whole portfolio, regional pools or single assets.
J.P. Morgan plans to lease back about 60% of the space, including seven buildings that are fully leased to the bank. An investor familiar with the offering speculated the sale may be a move to reorganize the bank's investments following its acquisitions of Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual.
Market players said it would be difficult to assess the portfolio's value like 'throwing darts,' as one put it given uncertainty about the rent rolls, the seller's motivation, whether J.P. Morgan will offer seller financing and a lack of recent comparable sales. Sphere: Related Content
Houlihan Lokey has launched the sale of a 23 office buildings totaling 7.1 million square feet on behalf of J.P. Morgan. The portfolio, the largest single offering of office buildings so far this year, includes the 2.2 million-square-foot One Chase Manhattan Plaza and the 1.1 million-square-foot 4 New York Plaza in Manhattan. Also offered is a 865,000-square-foot condominium interest in 45-story Chase Center Seattle and 712 Main St., a 35-story 794,000-square-foot art deco tower in Houston. The bank will consider offers for the whole portfolio, regional pools or single assets.
J.P. Morgan plans to lease back about 60% of the space, including seven buildings that are fully leased to the bank. An investor familiar with the offering speculated the sale may be a move to reorganize the bank's investments following its acquisitions of Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual.
Market players said it would be difficult to assess the portfolio's value like 'throwing darts,' as one put it given uncertainty about the rent rolls, the seller's motivation, whether J.P. Morgan will offer seller financing and a lack of recent comparable sales. Sphere: Related Content
RaceTrac Seeking Sale Leaseback of 16 Gas & Convenience Stores in Six States
CSP Daily News - July 17, 2009
RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. said it is continuing "aggressive" growth plans by launching a sale-leaseback program on a select portion of its retail fueling station/convenience store portfolio. RaceTrac has engaged CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. (CBRE) as its exclusive capital markets advisor for this initiative. As reported in a CSP Daily News Flash, the initial offering of 16 gas station/convenience stores in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas is expected to generate in excess of $42 million.
In 2008, RaceTrac generated in excess of $7.5 billion in annual revenues through the operation of more than 530 retail gas/c-stores in 12 southeastern states. RaceTrac has been steadily growing since its inception 75 years ago and is currently ranked as the 56th largest privately held U.S. company by Forbes based on annual revenues
Atlanta-based RaceTrac said that it intends to reinvest the sale-leaseback proceeds in its retail development pipeline and to take advantage of current buying opportunities. Ownership of a RaceTrac store is an opportunity that has never been made available to the public in the company's operating history, it said.
James Mitchell and Sean McConnell of CBRE's Global Corporate Services unit will be lead points of contact for the portfolio offering. Commenting on the new relationship, Mitchell said, "CBRE's national platform matched well with RaceTrac's desire for global reach and strong capital market relationships; we are excited to be taking a package of such well-located assets to market."
McConnell added, "The RaceTrac sale-leaseback investment couples newly constructed retail product and single tenant net leases secured by a high credit regional fuel marketing brand. Given the current turbulent climate, we are very bullish on the opportunity to steward such a stable retail investment opportunity to market."
The assets will be available in bulk or on an individual basis.
Prospective investors are invited to contact CBRE at 407-404-5000 or http:/www.cbre.com/racetracportfolio/ Sphere: Related Content
RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. said it is continuing "aggressive" growth plans by launching a sale-leaseback program on a select portion of its retail fueling station/convenience store portfolio. RaceTrac has engaged CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. (CBRE) as its exclusive capital markets advisor for this initiative. As reported in a CSP Daily News Flash, the initial offering of 16 gas station/convenience stores in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas is expected to generate in excess of $42 million.
In 2008, RaceTrac generated in excess of $7.5 billion in annual revenues through the operation of more than 530 retail gas/c-stores in 12 southeastern states. RaceTrac has been steadily growing since its inception 75 years ago and is currently ranked as the 56th largest privately held U.S. company by Forbes based on annual revenues
Atlanta-based RaceTrac said that it intends to reinvest the sale-leaseback proceeds in its retail development pipeline and to take advantage of current buying opportunities. Ownership of a RaceTrac store is an opportunity that has never been made available to the public in the company's operating history, it said.
James Mitchell and Sean McConnell of CBRE's Global Corporate Services unit will be lead points of contact for the portfolio offering. Commenting on the new relationship, Mitchell said, "CBRE's national platform matched well with RaceTrac's desire for global reach and strong capital market relationships; we are excited to be taking a package of such well-located assets to market."
McConnell added, "The RaceTrac sale-leaseback investment couples newly constructed retail product and single tenant net leases secured by a high credit regional fuel marketing brand. Given the current turbulent climate, we are very bullish on the opportunity to steward such a stable retail investment opportunity to market."
The assets will be available in bulk or on an individual basis.
Prospective investors are invited to contact CBRE at 407-404-5000 or http:/www.cbre.com/racetracportfolio/ Sphere: Related Content
First Hotels Completes EUR 41 Million Sale Leaseback of Hotel in Gothenburg
PropertyEU - July 17, 2009
German open-ended fund manager Deka Immobilien has bought a hotel in the Swedish city of Gothenburg for the equivalent of around EUR 41 mln. Located above Gothenburg's central station, one of the main railway junctions in Scandinavia, First Hotel G was acquired for Deka's WestInvest ImmoValue open-ended mutual property fund for institutional investors.
The property comprises total lettable space of around 13,600 m2 and is fully let to First Hotels for a term of 25 years. The 300-room First Hotel G is among the largest and most modern hotels in Gothenburg.
The purchase was implemented as part of a sale-and-lease-back agreement. The vendor was the Norwegian company Host Hoteleiendom, which owns 21 other hotel properties in Scandinavia all let to First Hotels. Sphere: Related Content
German open-ended fund manager Deka Immobilien has bought a hotel in the Swedish city of Gothenburg for the equivalent of around EUR 41 mln. Located above Gothenburg's central station, one of the main railway junctions in Scandinavia, First Hotel G was acquired for Deka's WestInvest ImmoValue open-ended mutual property fund for institutional investors.
The property comprises total lettable space of around 13,600 m2 and is fully let to First Hotels for a term of 25 years. The 300-room First Hotel G is among the largest and most modern hotels in Gothenburg.
The purchase was implemented as part of a sale-and-lease-back agreement. The vendor was the Norwegian company Host Hoteleiendom, which owns 21 other hotel properties in Scandinavia all let to First Hotels. Sphere: Related Content
Credit Suisse Nearing £147 Million Sale Leaseback of Canary Wharf HQ
Property Week - July 17, 2009
More than 15 bidders are vying to carry out a purchase and leaseback of Credit Suisse Bank’s 20 Columbus Courtyard in London’s Canary Wharf.
CB Richard Ellis is marketing the 258,314 sq ft property for around £147m at an initial yield of 6.25%, on a freehold or long-leasehold basis with a guaranteed 25-year lease to Credit Suisse Securities. There is a ‘cap and collar’ maximum and minimum rental increase of 4% and 1.5%. A shortlist of around five bidders will be drawn up this week. Sphere: Related Content
More than 15 bidders are vying to carry out a purchase and leaseback of Credit Suisse Bank’s 20 Columbus Courtyard in London’s Canary Wharf.
CB Richard Ellis is marketing the 258,314 sq ft property for around £147m at an initial yield of 6.25%, on a freehold or long-leasehold basis with a guaranteed 25-year lease to Credit Suisse Securities. There is a ‘cap and collar’ maximum and minimum rental increase of 4% and 1.5%. A shortlist of around five bidders will be drawn up this week. Sphere: Related Content
Co-operative Group Nears £40 Million Sale Leaseback of 20 UK Grocery Stores
Property Week - July 17, 2009
Threadneedle and LaSalle Investment Management are the final two bidders for a purchase and leaseback of 20 Co-operative Group stores. The pair are awaiting a decision that was expected at the end of this week. The transaction would comprise the sale of 20 Somerfield and Co-Op branded stores for £35m-£40m.
The Co-op would lease the stores back for 25 years on inflation-linked rents.
Threadneedle and LaSalle are thought to have made the final shortlist from the eight initial bids. The sale follows the Co-op’s £1.6bn acquisition of the Somerfield supermarket chain in March this year.
Jones Lang Lasalle advises Co-operative. All parties declined to comment. Sphere: Related Content
Threadneedle and LaSalle Investment Management are the final two bidders for a purchase and leaseback of 20 Co-operative Group stores. The pair are awaiting a decision that was expected at the end of this week. The transaction would comprise the sale of 20 Somerfield and Co-Op branded stores for £35m-£40m.
The Co-op would lease the stores back for 25 years on inflation-linked rents.
Threadneedle and LaSalle are thought to have made the final shortlist from the eight initial bids. The sale follows the Co-op’s £1.6bn acquisition of the Somerfield supermarket chain in March this year.
Jones Lang Lasalle advises Co-operative. All parties declined to comment. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, July 17, 2009
Sale-Leaseback Sticker Shock
Wall Street Journal - July 15, 2009
Demand for corporate sale-leaseback real-estate transactions is picking up across the U.S. as companies seek a fast way to raise cash to ride out the recession. But a scarcity of buyers and low bids mean fewer deals are actually getting done.
Sale-leaseback transactions -- where a company sells its office building, plant or other property and then leases it back from the new owner -- is an alternative form of financing that some companies turn to when traditional financing, such as bank loans, are harder to obtain. During the first five months of this year, the value of U.S. sale-leaseback transactions declined to $853 million, compared with nearly $3 billion in the year-earlier period, according to Real Capital Analytics, which tracks deals greater than $5 million.
Part of the drop in transaction value reflects lower real-estate values, but the biggest issue is that buyers and sellers are so far apart on price that many transactions fizzle when sellers walk away. Just 63 deals were completed between January and May, compared with 174 in the first five months of 2008, according to Real Capital Analytics. Sphere: Related Content
Demand for corporate sale-leaseback real-estate transactions is picking up across the U.S. as companies seek a fast way to raise cash to ride out the recession. But a scarcity of buyers and low bids mean fewer deals are actually getting done.
Sale-leaseback transactions -- where a company sells its office building, plant or other property and then leases it back from the new owner -- is an alternative form of financing that some companies turn to when traditional financing, such as bank loans, are harder to obtain. During the first five months of this year, the value of U.S. sale-leaseback transactions declined to $853 million, compared with nearly $3 billion in the year-earlier period, according to Real Capital Analytics, which tracks deals greater than $5 million.
Part of the drop in transaction value reflects lower real-estate values, but the biggest issue is that buyers and sellers are so far apart on price that many transactions fizzle when sellers walk away. Just 63 deals were completed between January and May, compared with 174 in the first five months of 2008, according to Real Capital Analytics. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, July 16, 2009
PIC Seeking Sale Leaseback of Five Hypermarkets in Romania
Ziarul Financiar - July 14, 2009
Ilie Penescu, co-owner of the Pic hypermarket chain, wants to secure liquidity by selling the fixed assets of the retailer under a sell and lease back contract, which allows the company to continue its retail operations as a lessee in the current locations. 'We want to sell the assets of the Pic chain to investors and then lease them back.
We have sent letters of intent to investment funds, banks and real estate developers,' said Ilie Penescu. He resorted to financial consultants from the BCR and from investment bank BAC Investment for this project. The chain has five hypermarkets which last year posted 100-120 million euros in sales. In 2007, the Pic stores in Craiova and Braila were appraised at 140 million RON (42 million euros) when they were brought as a contribution to the share capital of the group controlled by the Penescu brothers. Sphere: Related Content
Ilie Penescu, co-owner of the Pic hypermarket chain, wants to secure liquidity by selling the fixed assets of the retailer under a sell and lease back contract, which allows the company to continue its retail operations as a lessee in the current locations. 'We want to sell the assets of the Pic chain to investors and then lease them back.
We have sent letters of intent to investment funds, banks and real estate developers,' said Ilie Penescu. He resorted to financial consultants from the BCR and from investment bank BAC Investment for this project. The chain has five hypermarkets which last year posted 100-120 million euros in sales. In 2007, the Pic stores in Craiova and Braila were appraised at 140 million RON (42 million euros) when they were brought as a contribution to the share capital of the group controlled by the Penescu brothers. Sphere: Related Content
Novant Health Completes Sale Leaseback of 12 North Carolina Health Care Facilities
Winston Salem Journal - July 14, 2009
Novant Health said yesterday that it has sold 12 office buildings in Forsyth County, which it will lease back from the new owners.
CGRE Holdings, a private investment group, acquired the buildings; CGRE and Novant agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
'The transition will be seamless and the people who work or visit these locations will not notice any changes,' said Dean Swindle, the chief financial officer and president of ambulatory services with Novant.
'The proceeds from the sale will be used to help finance capital projects important to our communities such as the construction of community hospitals already under way, renovations, new outpatient facilities, medical technology and equipment.'
Novant Health is a not-for-profit organization and, as a result, the sold properties or a portion of the properties had been tax-exempt.
Under new ownership, these properties will return to the property tax base, where Novant estimated they would provide about $300,000 in annual tax revenues. Sphere: Related Content
Novant Health said yesterday that it has sold 12 office buildings in Forsyth County, which it will lease back from the new owners.
CGRE Holdings, a private investment group, acquired the buildings; CGRE and Novant agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
'The transition will be seamless and the people who work or visit these locations will not notice any changes,' said Dean Swindle, the chief financial officer and president of ambulatory services with Novant.
'The proceeds from the sale will be used to help finance capital projects important to our communities such as the construction of community hospitals already under way, renovations, new outpatient facilities, medical technology and equipment.'
Novant Health is a not-for-profit organization and, as a result, the sold properties or a portion of the properties had been tax-exempt.
Under new ownership, these properties will return to the property tax base, where Novant estimated they would provide about $300,000 in annual tax revenues. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Wolseley Seeking £150m Sale Leaseback of Several UK Trade Centres?
Estates Gazette reports that Wolseley, the FTSE 100 building supplier, is investigating a £150m sale-and-leaseback of several of its UK trade centres.
Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, July 04, 2009
Cracker Barrel Closes $58 Million Sale Leaseback of Retail Distribution Center and 14 Restaurants
Trading Markets - July 1, 2009
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (CBRL) announced the closing of the sale-leaseback of its retail distribution center and fourteen of its store locations, with a fifteenth expected to close on or before July 31st. The transactions are expected to produce aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $57.6 million, consisting of $12.4 million relating to the distribution center and slightly more than $3 million for each of the 15 store locations. Sphere: Related Content
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (CBRL) announced the closing of the sale-leaseback of its retail distribution center and fourteen of its store locations, with a fifteenth expected to close on or before July 31st. The transactions are expected to produce aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $57.6 million, consisting of $12.4 million relating to the distribution center and slightly more than $3 million for each of the 15 store locations. Sphere: Related Content
Legend Healthcare Announces $55.5 Million Sale Leaseback of Four Skilled Nursing Facilities in TX
SEC Edgar Web Site - June 30,2009
National Health Investors, Inc. (NYSE:NHI) announced today a $55.5 million purchase/leaseback transaction involving four Texas skilled nursing facilities with 595 beds owned by affiliates of Legend Healthcare, LLC, a privately-owned company (“Legend”). The average age of the facilities is 5 years. Legend is currently a lease customer of NHI and specializes in the operation of transitional care and skilled nursing facilities. Three of the four facilities were purchased by NHI on June 30, 2009, for a total of $39.7 million, with the fourth facility expected to be purchased by NHI for $15.8 million no later than August 1, 2009. The purchases are funded from NHI’s accumulated cash liquidity. The four facilities are being leased to Legend over 15 years at an initial lease rate of 10% plus annual increases. Legend has the option after 7 years to purchase the facilities. Sphere: Related Content
National Health Investors, Inc. (NYSE:NHI) announced today a $55.5 million purchase/leaseback transaction involving four Texas skilled nursing facilities with 595 beds owned by affiliates of Legend Healthcare, LLC, a privately-owned company (“Legend”). The average age of the facilities is 5 years. Legend is currently a lease customer of NHI and specializes in the operation of transitional care and skilled nursing facilities. Three of the four facilities were purchased by NHI on June 30, 2009, for a total of $39.7 million, with the fourth facility expected to be purchased by NHI for $15.8 million no later than August 1, 2009. The purchases are funded from NHI’s accumulated cash liquidity. The four facilities are being leased to Legend over 15 years at an initial lease rate of 10% plus annual increases. Legend has the option after 7 years to purchase the facilities. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, June 29, 2009
CVS Caremark Completes $480 Million Sale Leaseback of 122 Drug Stores Across US
Standard & Poor's - June 26, 2009
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today assigned its BBB+ rating to CVS Caremark’s $478.8 million 8.353% pass-through certificates due 2031. The certificates are secured by mortgage loans totaling approximately $478.8 million, encompassing 122 drug stores leased to subsidiaries of CVS Caremark Corp. (BBB+).
The rating reflects the credit quality of CVS Caremark Corp., which unconditionally guarantees the tenant's lease obligations. The transaction was evaluated as a credit-tenant loan and is dependent on the credit rating on CVS Caremark Corp. Any change in the rating on CVS Caremark Corp. will result in a change in the rating on the pass-through certificates. Sphere: Related Content
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today assigned its BBB+ rating to CVS Caremark’s $478.8 million 8.353% pass-through certificates due 2031. The certificates are secured by mortgage loans totaling approximately $478.8 million, encompassing 122 drug stores leased to subsidiaries of CVS Caremark Corp. (BBB+).
The rating reflects the credit quality of CVS Caremark Corp., which unconditionally guarantees the tenant's lease obligations. The transaction was evaluated as a credit-tenant loan and is dependent on the credit rating on CVS Caremark Corp. Any change in the rating on CVS Caremark Corp. will result in a change in the rating on the pass-through certificates. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, June 26, 2009
WP Carey Mulls Sharia Compliant Sale Leaseback Fund
Reuters - June 23, 2009
U.S. real estate financing company W.P. Carey (WPC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is mulling a plan to launch an Islamic compliant fund, a plan first spawned in 1997, as part of its global fundraising efforts, its president said on Tuesday.
Edward LaPuma told the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit the company had set up an Islamic-compliant fund in the late 1990s, which had attracted interest in the Middle East. The company eventually abandoned the launch because the amount of money committed outweighed the opportunities available in the market at that time, LaPuma said. However, as the volume of exciting deals carved out of the deep property market correction continues to grow, LaPuma said a new fund launch was now a much more appealing prospect.
"I think there is a possibility (to launch the fund), and the possibility is better than 50-50," he said. The firm, which has about $600 million in cash, is looking to raise $1 billion to fully exploit a wealth of new market opportunities. Inflows from U.S. investors remain healthy, but the firm is keen to broaden its capital base, LaPuma said, and bolster the $2 million to $3 million generated each day from wealth management companies.
Islamic finance avoids sectors such as alcohol, pornography and weapons, which it regards as forbidden. It also rules out unnecessary risk-taking and demands low leverage. W.P. Carey's business model, which specializes in sale and lease-back activities, potentially conforms to the Islamic principle that demands business transactions be backed or based by tangible assets, such as real estate.
The fund idea proposed in 1997 would have deployed the investors' cash in the U.S., although a new fund would deploy cash in other countries, LaPuma said.
"The Middle East is an area we would like to be, governments are solvent and companies there are very financially stable companies. So for our business are a lot of opportunities," he said. W.P. Carey, however, would be selective in its acquisitions. "The Middle East seems to be getting lumped together as a group, which does a disservice to the region because there certainly are areas that would be much more interesting than ours.
"One thing I have on my agenda is to spend more time trying to understand those various markets and being able to drill down to country level," LaPuma said. Sphere: Related Content
U.S. real estate financing company W.P. Carey (WPC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is mulling a plan to launch an Islamic compliant fund, a plan first spawned in 1997, as part of its global fundraising efforts, its president said on Tuesday.
Edward LaPuma told the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit the company had set up an Islamic-compliant fund in the late 1990s, which had attracted interest in the Middle East. The company eventually abandoned the launch because the amount of money committed outweighed the opportunities available in the market at that time, LaPuma said. However, as the volume of exciting deals carved out of the deep property market correction continues to grow, LaPuma said a new fund launch was now a much more appealing prospect.
"I think there is a possibility (to launch the fund), and the possibility is better than 50-50," he said. The firm, which has about $600 million in cash, is looking to raise $1 billion to fully exploit a wealth of new market opportunities. Inflows from U.S. investors remain healthy, but the firm is keen to broaden its capital base, LaPuma said, and bolster the $2 million to $3 million generated each day from wealth management companies.
Islamic finance avoids sectors such as alcohol, pornography and weapons, which it regards as forbidden. It also rules out unnecessary risk-taking and demands low leverage. W.P. Carey's business model, which specializes in sale and lease-back activities, potentially conforms to the Islamic principle that demands business transactions be backed or based by tangible assets, such as real estate.
The fund idea proposed in 1997 would have deployed the investors' cash in the U.S., although a new fund would deploy cash in other countries, LaPuma said.
"The Middle East is an area we would like to be, governments are solvent and companies there are very financially stable companies. So for our business are a lot of opportunities," he said. W.P. Carey, however, would be selective in its acquisitions. "The Middle East seems to be getting lumped together as a group, which does a disservice to the region because there certainly are areas that would be much more interesting than ours.
"One thing I have on my agenda is to spend more time trying to understand those various markets and being able to drill down to country level," LaPuma said. Sphere: Related Content
WP Carey Seeks to Raise $1 Billion to Pursue Sale Leaseback Deals in Europe and Emerging Markets Worldwide
Reuters - June 23, 2009
U.S. real estate financing firm W.P. Carey (WPC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is looking to raise $1 billion of capital to fund its expansion into European and emerging property markets, its president and international transactions head told Reuters.
"We have many more opportunities outside the U.S. ... I would like to see us do $500 million of deals in Europe in 2009 and that is very realistic," Edward LaPuma told the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit on Tuesday.
"I'd like to do $1 billion but we're doing a lot of all-equity deals at the moment and that really puts a ceiling on things," he said, adding the firm has about $600 million of cash on deposit.
The fundraising plans represent the firm's first active cash call since 2006-2007, when it stopped seeing investment opportunities that were worth splashing out on.
LaPuma said the plans were devised to fully exploit an impending $10 billion to $12 billion wave of real estate disposals from European corporate occupiers, who were considering cashing out of their property as traditional sources of capital dried up.
"I don't know how many large principals shut down fundraising in those years, but if you didn't you had to put the money to work and a lot of deals were done in that period that didn't make a lot of sense," LaPuma said.
"But in today's market, we are seeing more deals than I have seen in the last 15 years. Companies are really being forced to consider financing alternatives," he said. The "sale-and-leaseback" specialist, which in March sealed a $225 million deal to buy and lease back part of the Manhattan headquarters of the New York Times newspaper (NYT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), is also scouting opportunities in Brazil, the Middle East, India and China, where LaPuma hoped to conclude the firm's debut deal soon.
"We have been trying to do a deal there (in China) for some time but it is complicated. More people who go there lose money than make money," he said.
"Before the end of the year we will target a few other places we want to be in," LaPuma added, citing Southeast Asia as another particular region of interest.
WP Carey, which has offices in New York, Amsterdam, London and Shanghai, recently closed a $25 million deal in Malaysia, will finalize a $30 million deal in London and a $100 million deal in Hungary in the next week, LaPuma said.
PORTFOLIO SHIFT
The firm, which holds 70 percent of its $10 billion to $11 billion portfolio in the United States, expects its exposure to Europe and emerging markets to rise to 50 percent from 30 percent in the future.
In the meantime, LaPuma said the team was striving to deflect losses inflicted by the biggest banking and property sector meltdowns seen for generations in its core U.S. market.
"We take on corporate credit risk, and as companies are having a more difficult time, we have seen our corporate default risk increase by probably around 400 percent since the beginning of last year," LaPuma said.
"But we have done a good job to manage this, we still have a vacancy rate of around 1 percent across all our funds," he said.
LaPuma said he expected a slow recovery for the U.S. commercial real estate market, largely because of the colossal burden of real estate mortgages weighing on bank balance sheets.
"The last real estate bubble was really developer driven and then they didn't have users for the property. This time there are users for the property, but people paid too much," he said.
"I think you're probably less than halfway through (the U.S. slump) but I don't think it will get a lot worse, I just don't think the recovery will come that quickly." Sphere: Related Content
U.S. real estate financing firm W.P. Carey (WPC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is looking to raise $1 billion of capital to fund its expansion into European and emerging property markets, its president and international transactions head told Reuters.
"We have many more opportunities outside the U.S. ... I would like to see us do $500 million of deals in Europe in 2009 and that is very realistic," Edward LaPuma told the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit on Tuesday.
"I'd like to do $1 billion but we're doing a lot of all-equity deals at the moment and that really puts a ceiling on things," he said, adding the firm has about $600 million of cash on deposit.
The fundraising plans represent the firm's first active cash call since 2006-2007, when it stopped seeing investment opportunities that were worth splashing out on.
LaPuma said the plans were devised to fully exploit an impending $10 billion to $12 billion wave of real estate disposals from European corporate occupiers, who were considering cashing out of their property as traditional sources of capital dried up.
"I don't know how many large principals shut down fundraising in those years, but if you didn't you had to put the money to work and a lot of deals were done in that period that didn't make a lot of sense," LaPuma said.
"But in today's market, we are seeing more deals than I have seen in the last 15 years. Companies are really being forced to consider financing alternatives," he said. The "sale-and-leaseback" specialist, which in March sealed a $225 million deal to buy and lease back part of the Manhattan headquarters of the New York Times newspaper (NYT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), is also scouting opportunities in Brazil, the Middle East, India and China, where LaPuma hoped to conclude the firm's debut deal soon.
"We have been trying to do a deal there (in China) for some time but it is complicated. More people who go there lose money than make money," he said.
"Before the end of the year we will target a few other places we want to be in," LaPuma added, citing Southeast Asia as another particular region of interest.
WP Carey, which has offices in New York, Amsterdam, London and Shanghai, recently closed a $25 million deal in Malaysia, will finalize a $30 million deal in London and a $100 million deal in Hungary in the next week, LaPuma said.
PORTFOLIO SHIFT
The firm, which holds 70 percent of its $10 billion to $11 billion portfolio in the United States, expects its exposure to Europe and emerging markets to rise to 50 percent from 30 percent in the future.
In the meantime, LaPuma said the team was striving to deflect losses inflicted by the biggest banking and property sector meltdowns seen for generations in its core U.S. market.
"We take on corporate credit risk, and as companies are having a more difficult time, we have seen our corporate default risk increase by probably around 400 percent since the beginning of last year," LaPuma said.
"But we have done a good job to manage this, we still have a vacancy rate of around 1 percent across all our funds," he said.
LaPuma said he expected a slow recovery for the U.S. commercial real estate market, largely because of the colossal burden of real estate mortgages weighing on bank balance sheets.
"The last real estate bubble was really developer driven and then they didn't have users for the property. This time there are users for the property, but people paid too much," he said.
"I think you're probably less than halfway through (the U.S. slump) but I don't think it will get a lot worse, I just don't think the recovery will come that quickly." Sphere: Related Content
Monday, June 22, 2009
AIB Seeking EUR 20 Million Sale Leaseback of Seven Bank Branches in Ireland
Independent - June 17, 2009
AIB is seeking to raise a further €20m from its real estate portfolio through the sale and leaseback of seven prominent branches around the country.
The bank has instructed CB Richard Ellis to sell its branches in Swords, Navan, Dundalk, Monaghan, Kells, Castleblaney and Maynooth on a sale and leaseback basis.
AIB has unlocked over €1bn in shareholder equity for its core business activities since the sale of AIB Bankcentre in Ballsbridge in 2005/2006 and it has sold 40 branches.
The latest tranche follows on from the recent sale of three branches in Dublin, Naas and Mullingar. All the branches will have 20 year leases with AIB and a break option in year 15. The initial rents will be subject to upward only reviews at five year intervals.
"Since the programme started yields have moved out significantly," Colm Luddy of CBRE comments.
Demand
"However, demand in the investment market is for long leases to strong covenants and these investments will offer investors good value and very secure income."
The Navan AIB premises is expected to make €5m and off a rent of €335,000 will yield 6.5pc. The Dundalk branch will be rented at €239,000 and is valued at €3.4m again yielding 6.5pc.
Swords is expected to make €3.4m too and off a rent of €248,000 will provide in excess of 6.5pc. Maynooth will have a similar yield off a rent of €235,000 and a €3.33m. price.
The Monaghan branch will be leased at a rent of €200,000 and is expected to sell for in excess of €2.7m yielding in excess of 6.5pc as well.
Castleblaney will have an initial rent of €86,000 and is expected to achieve in excess of €1m, yielding over 7pc. The Kells property will offer a similar yield with a rent of €84,000 and a price in the order of €1m.
Another AIB branch in Cork City has been for sale for some months. Sphere: Related Content
AIB is seeking to raise a further €20m from its real estate portfolio through the sale and leaseback of seven prominent branches around the country.
The bank has instructed CB Richard Ellis to sell its branches in Swords, Navan, Dundalk, Monaghan, Kells, Castleblaney and Maynooth on a sale and leaseback basis.
AIB has unlocked over €1bn in shareholder equity for its core business activities since the sale of AIB Bankcentre in Ballsbridge in 2005/2006 and it has sold 40 branches.
The latest tranche follows on from the recent sale of three branches in Dublin, Naas and Mullingar. All the branches will have 20 year leases with AIB and a break option in year 15. The initial rents will be subject to upward only reviews at five year intervals.
"Since the programme started yields have moved out significantly," Colm Luddy of CBRE comments.
Demand
"However, demand in the investment market is for long leases to strong covenants and these investments will offer investors good value and very secure income."
The Navan AIB premises is expected to make €5m and off a rent of €335,000 will yield 6.5pc. The Dundalk branch will be rented at €239,000 and is valued at €3.4m again yielding 6.5pc.
Swords is expected to make €3.4m too and off a rent of €248,000 will provide in excess of 6.5pc. Maynooth will have a similar yield off a rent of €235,000 and a €3.33m. price.
The Monaghan branch will be leased at a rent of €200,000 and is expected to sell for in excess of €2.7m yielding in excess of 6.5pc as well.
Castleblaney will have an initial rent of €86,000 and is expected to achieve in excess of €1m, yielding over 7pc. The Kells property will offer a similar yield with a rent of €84,000 and a price in the order of €1m.
Another AIB branch in Cork City has been for sale for some months. Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Xerox Seeking Sale Leaseback of US Properties
Democrat and Chronicle - June 19, 2009
Xerox Corp. is looking to sell the 29-story, 850,000-square-foot Xerox Square building on South Clinton Avenue as well as the adjacent auditorium, its Jefferson Road facility in Henrietta and a building at its manufacturing and research campus in Webster.
Xerox hasn't set an asking price for the tower.
The sales represent the latest step in a strategy the company has pursued for two years of shedding excess space and moving into leased facilities.
About 1,500 people work at Xerox Square, a significant part of the company's 7,000-member local work force. Xerox doesn't plan to move the employees from the building but instead is pursuing a lease-back arrangement in which it would rent the building from a new owner, said spokesman Bill McKee.
"There's no intention to leave the Square," McKee said. "Xerox is committed to downtown Rochester."
The auditorium, which is serving as a venue for the Rochester International Jazz Festival, might be sold as part of Xerox Square or separately, McKee said. Along with the purchase of Xerox Square comes its underground parking garage.
Lease-back arrangements are common in corporate real estate. Companies typically decide that the money they get from the sale can provide a higher return than the added cost of having a landlord, said Larry Glazer, CEO of Rochester-based real estate development company Buckingham Properties.
"It gives them working capital to pay off debt or invest in and grow the company," said Glazer, who isn't involved in the current sales.
Xerox in 2007 sold its headquarters building in Stamford, Conn., and moved to leased space in nearby Norwalk. And in the past year it moved operations in Paris and Mexico City to leased facilities and relocated about 200 workers from leased space at Linden Oaks Office Park to Xerox Square.
Brokering the downtown sale is real estate giant Cushman & Wakefield, based in New York City. Xerox is handling the sale of the 440,000-square-foot Henrietta facility and Building 205 at the Webster campus.
The Jefferson Road site houses 1,250 workers and is used primarily for engineering work. Those workers likely would be moved to the Webster campus, McKee said.
Building 205 in Webster contains office space. Work done there would be moved to other Xerox properties. Sphere: Related Content
Xerox Corp. is looking to sell the 29-story, 850,000-square-foot Xerox Square building on South Clinton Avenue as well as the adjacent auditorium, its Jefferson Road facility in Henrietta and a building at its manufacturing and research campus in Webster.
Xerox hasn't set an asking price for the tower.
The sales represent the latest step in a strategy the company has pursued for two years of shedding excess space and moving into leased facilities.
About 1,500 people work at Xerox Square, a significant part of the company's 7,000-member local work force. Xerox doesn't plan to move the employees from the building but instead is pursuing a lease-back arrangement in which it would rent the building from a new owner, said spokesman Bill McKee.
"There's no intention to leave the Square," McKee said. "Xerox is committed to downtown Rochester."
The auditorium, which is serving as a venue for the Rochester International Jazz Festival, might be sold as part of Xerox Square or separately, McKee said. Along with the purchase of Xerox Square comes its underground parking garage.
Lease-back arrangements are common in corporate real estate. Companies typically decide that the money they get from the sale can provide a higher return than the added cost of having a landlord, said Larry Glazer, CEO of Rochester-based real estate development company Buckingham Properties.
"It gives them working capital to pay off debt or invest in and grow the company," said Glazer, who isn't involved in the current sales.
Xerox in 2007 sold its headquarters building in Stamford, Conn., and moved to leased space in nearby Norwalk. And in the past year it moved operations in Paris and Mexico City to leased facilities and relocated about 200 workers from leased space at Linden Oaks Office Park to Xerox Square.
Brokering the downtown sale is real estate giant Cushman & Wakefield, based in New York City. Xerox is handling the sale of the 440,000-square-foot Henrietta facility and Building 205 at the Webster campus.
The Jefferson Road site houses 1,250 workers and is used primarily for engineering work. Those workers likely would be moved to the Webster campus, McKee said.
Building 205 in Webster contains office space. Work done there would be moved to other Xerox properties. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Rising Public Debt Encouraging Sales of Government Property Assets
CB Richard Ellis EU Web Site - June 18, 2009
Rising public debt levels in response to the global banking crisis and recession appear to be encouraging a new wave of government property sales across Europe, according to new research from CB Richard Ellis (CBRE). CBRE has today released a new report, Governments Turn to Property Sales?, which considers the scope for sales of government property and reviews asset disposal plans in a number of major markets including France, Germany, Greece and the UK.
The report follows the announcement by the UK Government that it is to sell up to £20 billion of commercial property and related assets during the next 10 years while generating a further £5 billion in annual operating cost savings. With other governments also developing similar plans, the report analyses the investor appeal of such assets in the current market and considers the potential for these dispositions to become a more powerful global trend in the coming 12 months.
Nick Axford, Head of EMEA Research and Consulting, CBRE, said: “Most governments across the world are seeing a deterioration in public finances as they battle with the impact of the recession and the banking crisis. Many governments are running large deficits and incurring debt to finance bank and other company bailouts. With concerns being expressed about the depth of investor appetite for government bonds, selling off real estate could be a means of raising much needed capital.”
John Wilson, Head of Corporate Strategies, CB Richard Ellis, said: “Without a doubt, the global recession has had an acute effect on governments, as tax receipts have fallen but spending on stimulus plans, social welfare and bailouts has sky-rocketed. With investor demand for vacant property currently more limited and prices at low levels relative to historic norms, sales of surplus property could be harder to achieve. Yet sale and leasebacks of good quality occupied stock could be attractive to investors whilst also raising substantial amounts for governments.”
The volume of government property sales has risen rapidly in recent years. Almost €16 billion of government property was sold from 2006-08 across Europe. This compares to almost €4 billion sold from 2003-05. Current financial conditions are expected to continue to drive this trend.
This approach by governments recognises the fact that overall investor appetite for sale and leasebacks has been growing. In 2004, the European sale and leaseback market totalled just €6.7 billion largely through a small number of large deals. By 2007 that total had risen to €46 billion and comprised more than 670 separate transactions, boosting the proportion of occupier real estate disposals in the European investment market (including government and corporate sales) to nearly 20 per cent in 2007 compared to 6 per cent in 2004. Part of this growth was due to rising property values. However, in 2008 - a year of significantly reduced investment turnover and a fall of around 13 per cent in average commercial property values - sale and leasebacks still totalled over €22 billion and maintained a 19 per cent share of the total European investment market.
Mr. Wilson continued: “The current financial climate may actually enhance the opportunity for governments to sell and leaseback assets. With active investors remaining highly risk-averse and with demand focused on prime property in liquid transparent markets, public authorities are often the ideal candidate to offer long, secure income streams from quality covenants. Reduced stock in the market provides further opportunity to convert these assets at the moment. For investors who fear the prospect of rising government bond yields and/or a higher level of inflation in the years ahead, a building let to the state on a long lease has attributes similar to index-linked government bond, with the benefit of owning a real asset at the end of the lease.
Sale and leasebacks only form one part of any government’s strategy. Attention will be focussed not only on operational office space, but also on infrastructure and public service facilities such as schools, hospitals and student accommodation. Investment appetite for these public investment opportunities is mixed. In the current environment, many active investors are focusing on the quality of tenants and length and security of income streams above all other considerations. From this perspective, state sale and leasebacks may be viewed relatively favourably by the market. Other investors are more cautious of government-backed assets that will have less arbitrage over time being a less volatile investment.
“The longer the recession holds across Europe, the more we will see government assets being offered to the market to help bolster public finances,” Mr. Wilson concluded. Sphere: Related Content
Rising public debt levels in response to the global banking crisis and recession appear to be encouraging a new wave of government property sales across Europe, according to new research from CB Richard Ellis (CBRE). CBRE has today released a new report, Governments Turn to Property Sales?, which considers the scope for sales of government property and reviews asset disposal plans in a number of major markets including France, Germany, Greece and the UK.
The report follows the announcement by the UK Government that it is to sell up to £20 billion of commercial property and related assets during the next 10 years while generating a further £5 billion in annual operating cost savings. With other governments also developing similar plans, the report analyses the investor appeal of such assets in the current market and considers the potential for these dispositions to become a more powerful global trend in the coming 12 months.
Nick Axford, Head of EMEA Research and Consulting, CBRE, said: “Most governments across the world are seeing a deterioration in public finances as they battle with the impact of the recession and the banking crisis. Many governments are running large deficits and incurring debt to finance bank and other company bailouts. With concerns being expressed about the depth of investor appetite for government bonds, selling off real estate could be a means of raising much needed capital.”
John Wilson, Head of Corporate Strategies, CB Richard Ellis, said: “Without a doubt, the global recession has had an acute effect on governments, as tax receipts have fallen but spending on stimulus plans, social welfare and bailouts has sky-rocketed. With investor demand for vacant property currently more limited and prices at low levels relative to historic norms, sales of surplus property could be harder to achieve. Yet sale and leasebacks of good quality occupied stock could be attractive to investors whilst also raising substantial amounts for governments.”
The volume of government property sales has risen rapidly in recent years. Almost €16 billion of government property was sold from 2006-08 across Europe. This compares to almost €4 billion sold from 2003-05. Current financial conditions are expected to continue to drive this trend.
This approach by governments recognises the fact that overall investor appetite for sale and leasebacks has been growing. In 2004, the European sale and leaseback market totalled just €6.7 billion largely through a small number of large deals. By 2007 that total had risen to €46 billion and comprised more than 670 separate transactions, boosting the proportion of occupier real estate disposals in the European investment market (including government and corporate sales) to nearly 20 per cent in 2007 compared to 6 per cent in 2004. Part of this growth was due to rising property values. However, in 2008 - a year of significantly reduced investment turnover and a fall of around 13 per cent in average commercial property values - sale and leasebacks still totalled over €22 billion and maintained a 19 per cent share of the total European investment market.
Mr. Wilson continued: “The current financial climate may actually enhance the opportunity for governments to sell and leaseback assets. With active investors remaining highly risk-averse and with demand focused on prime property in liquid transparent markets, public authorities are often the ideal candidate to offer long, secure income streams from quality covenants. Reduced stock in the market provides further opportunity to convert these assets at the moment. For investors who fear the prospect of rising government bond yields and/or a higher level of inflation in the years ahead, a building let to the state on a long lease has attributes similar to index-linked government bond, with the benefit of owning a real asset at the end of the lease.
Sale and leasebacks only form one part of any government’s strategy. Attention will be focussed not only on operational office space, but also on infrastructure and public service facilities such as schools, hospitals and student accommodation. Investment appetite for these public investment opportunities is mixed. In the current environment, many active investors are focusing on the quality of tenants and length and security of income streams above all other considerations. From this perspective, state sale and leasebacks may be viewed relatively favourably by the market. Other investors are more cautious of government-backed assets that will have less arbitrage over time being a less volatile investment.
“The longer the recession holds across Europe, the more we will see government assets being offered to the market to help bolster public finances,” Mr. Wilson concluded. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, June 19, 2009
Tesco Completes £458 Million Sale Leaseback: Deal Financed by First European CMBS in Two Years
Property Week - June 17, 2009
Tesco has sold £458m of its properties, financed by the first property securitisation for two years.
The supermarket giant has carried out a £458m sale-and-leaseback transaction as part of its £5bn programme of property disposals that it began in 2006.
Arranged by Goldman Sachs, the issue represents a ‘true-sale securitisation’ of two loans, secured by 12 supermarkets and two distribution properties let on long-term leases guaranteed by Tesco. Rental uplifts are fixed at 2.5-5% for the first five years and are RPI-linked afterwards.
The sale of £430.65m of commercial mortgaged back securities (CMBS), issued by a special purpose vehicle Tesco Property Finance 1, was three times oversubscribed.
Investors were 85% from the UK and 15% from continental Europe and Asia. 85% of the investors were from the pension, insurance and asset management world and 10% were banks, including private banks.
Tesco had so far completed about £2.2bn of sale and leasebacks.
The bonds are fully credit-linked to Tesco’s corporate rating, which is currently A-. They will amortise fully by their 30-year maturity, leaving no residual risk to investors. Sphere: Related Content
Tesco has sold £458m of its properties, financed by the first property securitisation for two years.
The supermarket giant has carried out a £458m sale-and-leaseback transaction as part of its £5bn programme of property disposals that it began in 2006.
Arranged by Goldman Sachs, the issue represents a ‘true-sale securitisation’ of two loans, secured by 12 supermarkets and two distribution properties let on long-term leases guaranteed by Tesco. Rental uplifts are fixed at 2.5-5% for the first five years and are RPI-linked afterwards.
The sale of £430.65m of commercial mortgaged back securities (CMBS), issued by a special purpose vehicle Tesco Property Finance 1, was three times oversubscribed.
Investors were 85% from the UK and 15% from continental Europe and Asia. 85% of the investors were from the pension, insurance and asset management world and 10% were banks, including private banks.
Tesco had so far completed about £2.2bn of sale and leasebacks.
The bonds are fully credit-linked to Tesco’s corporate rating, which is currently A-. They will amortise fully by their 30-year maturity, leaving no residual risk to investors. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Claire's Seeking $21 Million Sale Leaseback of HQ in Suburban Chicago
Crain's Chicago Real Estate Daily - June 15, 2009
Teen jewelry and accessories retailer Claire’s Stores Inc. is offering a sale/leaseback of its corporate headquarters and U.S. distribution center in Hoffman Estates.
The 527,661-square-foot building near the intersection of Interstate 90 and Barrington Road has an asking price of $21.1 million, and Claire’s would enter into a 15-year lease with annual rent of $2.1 million, according to a marketing flier by CB Richard Ellis Inc.
“We’re not in the real estate business, so we’re exploring this,” says J. Per Brodin, the company’s chief financial officer. “If we can get this done with attractive economics, it’s something we’d consider. If we can’t with economic terms that we think are attractive, we won’t do it.”
Sale/leaseback deals are gaining popularity these days as companies look to raise cash by selling real estate to cope with the recession. Mr. Brodin says the company doesn’t own any other big properties.
Real estate executives say investment firms are able to land financing for such deals because they’re seen as less risky than speculative projects or unleased buildings.
In this case, investors would be betting that Claire’s, which was taken private by Apollo Management L.P. in May 2007, will be able to survive the battered retail climate and remain at 2400 W. Central Road. The company’s chief executive, its buyers and other executives are based in the building. About 20% of the property is office, according to CB Richard Ellis' flier.
Claire’s, which has more than 3,000 stores worldwide, with most of those in U.S. malls, had revenue of $1.4 billion last year. The company reported a first-quarter loss this year of $29 million compared with a loss of $35.6 million in the year-ago period.
Marketing of the 28-acre property began last week, says Robert Brennan, a CB Richard Ellis senior vice-president who is handling the assignment. He says they’ve already gotten some interest, despite the moribund investment sales market and frozen capital markets that has made financing hard to come by.
“We think that we should have some success even though there are a lot of headwinds,” Mr. Brennan says. Sphere: Related Content
Teen jewelry and accessories retailer Claire’s Stores Inc. is offering a sale/leaseback of its corporate headquarters and U.S. distribution center in Hoffman Estates.
The 527,661-square-foot building near the intersection of Interstate 90 and Barrington Road has an asking price of $21.1 million, and Claire’s would enter into a 15-year lease with annual rent of $2.1 million, according to a marketing flier by CB Richard Ellis Inc.
“We’re not in the real estate business, so we’re exploring this,” says J. Per Brodin, the company’s chief financial officer. “If we can get this done with attractive economics, it’s something we’d consider. If we can’t with economic terms that we think are attractive, we won’t do it.”
Sale/leaseback deals are gaining popularity these days as companies look to raise cash by selling real estate to cope with the recession. Mr. Brodin says the company doesn’t own any other big properties.
Real estate executives say investment firms are able to land financing for such deals because they’re seen as less risky than speculative projects or unleased buildings.
In this case, investors would be betting that Claire’s, which was taken private by Apollo Management L.P. in May 2007, will be able to survive the battered retail climate and remain at 2400 W. Central Road. The company’s chief executive, its buyers and other executives are based in the building. About 20% of the property is office, according to CB Richard Ellis' flier.
Claire’s, which has more than 3,000 stores worldwide, with most of those in U.S. malls, had revenue of $1.4 billion last year. The company reported a first-quarter loss this year of $29 million compared with a loss of $35.6 million in the year-ago period.
Marketing of the 28-acre property began last week, says Robert Brennan, a CB Richard Ellis senior vice-president who is handling the assignment. He says they’ve already gotten some interest, despite the moribund investment sales market and frozen capital markets that has made financing hard to come by.
“We think that we should have some success even though there are a lot of headwinds,” Mr. Brennan says. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Lloyds Banking Group Mulls Sale Leaseback of UK Bank Branch Portfolio
Reuters / The Guardian - June 10, 2009
Lloyds Banking Group has hired real estate brokers CB Richard Ellis and Jones Lang LaSalle to review its property estate in a move that could spark a welter of balance-sheet boosting sales.
Lloyds, which on Tuesday said it would shut its Cheltenham & Gloucester unit, has appointed the duo to flush out opportunities for property disposals or sale-and-leasebacks, two people familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
Lloyds intends to save up to 1.5 billion pounds ($2.46 billion) annually from its takeover of HBOS earlier this year.
CBRE will advise on a possible consolidation of the banks' eight biggest regional offices, including properties in London, Birmingham and Manchester, while Jones Lang LaSalle will focus on unlocking cash from the retail branch network nationwide, the sources said.
The property review is in line with strategy laid out at the time of the HBOS deal, when Lloyds said it would conduct a detailed assessment of its brands and the future size and shape of the combined entity.
Talks between the banks and its new advisors were described by one source as at "a very early stage" and it was not yet possible to say exactly what assets might be sold or estimate how much the lender could raise from a sales programme.
It is not yet known when the first properties could come to market, but some may be offloaded close to the bottom of an intense two-year British real estate market slump to boost the banks' cash reserves before the end of the year.
UK commercial property prices in Britain have fallen by an average of 44 percent since the market peaked in June 2007, data from CBRE shows.
Lloyds said the 164-branch network of Cheltenham & Gloucester, which specialises in mortgages and savings, would be closed in November. Sphere: Related Content
Lloyds Banking Group has hired real estate brokers CB Richard Ellis and Jones Lang LaSalle to review its property estate in a move that could spark a welter of balance-sheet boosting sales.
Lloyds, which on Tuesday said it would shut its Cheltenham & Gloucester unit, has appointed the duo to flush out opportunities for property disposals or sale-and-leasebacks, two people familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
Lloyds intends to save up to 1.5 billion pounds ($2.46 billion) annually from its takeover of HBOS earlier this year.
CBRE will advise on a possible consolidation of the banks' eight biggest regional offices, including properties in London, Birmingham and Manchester, while Jones Lang LaSalle will focus on unlocking cash from the retail branch network nationwide, the sources said.
The property review is in line with strategy laid out at the time of the HBOS deal, when Lloyds said it would conduct a detailed assessment of its brands and the future size and shape of the combined entity.
Talks between the banks and its new advisors were described by one source as at "a very early stage" and it was not yet possible to say exactly what assets might be sold or estimate how much the lender could raise from a sales programme.
It is not yet known when the first properties could come to market, but some may be offloaded close to the bottom of an intense two-year British real estate market slump to boost the banks' cash reserves before the end of the year.
UK commercial property prices in Britain have fallen by an average of 44 percent since the market peaked in June 2007, data from CBRE shows.
Lloyds said the 164-branch network of Cheltenham & Gloucester, which specialises in mortgages and savings, would be closed in November. Sphere: Related Content
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Banco Pastor Completes EUR 104 Million Sale Leaseback of Property Portfolio in Spain
PropertyEU - June 7, 2009
Spain's Banco Pastor said it has made a profit of almost EUR 40 mln through the sale of property assets for a total of EUR 104 mln. In a statement to the Spanish market regulator CNMV on Friday, the bank said that 41 office buidlings and bank branches were sold in a sale-and-leaseback transaction to a number of investors. The portfolio includes its main headquarters in Madrid's Paseo de Recoletos and Barcelona's Paseo de Gracia.
The operation is part of a plan announced in March by the bank to raise up to EUR 230 mln via the sale of 160 office assets, out of a total of 650 Banco Pastor owns in the country. The properties will be leased back on a 20-year rental term.
Aguirre Newman is advising the company in the sale process. Sphere: Related Content
Spain's Banco Pastor said it has made a profit of almost EUR 40 mln through the sale of property assets for a total of EUR 104 mln. In a statement to the Spanish market regulator CNMV on Friday, the bank said that 41 office buidlings and bank branches were sold in a sale-and-leaseback transaction to a number of investors. The portfolio includes its main headquarters in Madrid's Paseo de Recoletos and Barcelona's Paseo de Gracia.
The operation is part of a plan announced in March by the bank to raise up to EUR 230 mln via the sale of 160 office assets, out of a total of 650 Banco Pastor owns in the country. The properties will be leased back on a 20-year rental term.
Aguirre Newman is advising the company in the sale process. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, June 08, 2009
Fisher& Paykel Appliances Agrees to $70 Million Sale Leaseback of Auckland Facilities
TVNZ - June 5, 2009
Fisher & Paykel Appliances Ltd has an unconditional agreement to sell and lease back its 14.4ha East Tamaki site and is continuing to market its Cleveland, Brisbane, site.
The site in East Tamaki in Auckland is the company's largest property sale.
The company did not disclose the sale price but market speculation has been around $70 million. The agreement is conditional on due diligence and finance.
The buyer is Direct Property Fund.
The sale and lease back of the campus, covering 14.4ha and over 62,000 sq m of office and manufacturing facilities, is part of the company's global manufacturing strategy.
"We are delighted to be able to reach an agreement suitable to both parties, subject to due diligence and finance," said managing director John Bongard.
The agreement is conditional until August 2009.
Fisher & Paykel Appliances is raising capital and selling assets to reduce debt. It earlier sold its Mosgiel site to Fonterra.
Fonterra plans to build a new 45,000 tonne drystore and a 17,000 tonne coolstore on the former 16.45ha Fisher & Paykel site. Sphere: Related Content
Fisher & Paykel Appliances Ltd has an unconditional agreement to sell and lease back its 14.4ha East Tamaki site and is continuing to market its Cleveland, Brisbane, site.
The site in East Tamaki in Auckland is the company's largest property sale.
The company did not disclose the sale price but market speculation has been around $70 million. The agreement is conditional on due diligence and finance.
The buyer is Direct Property Fund.
The sale and lease back of the campus, covering 14.4ha and over 62,000 sq m of office and manufacturing facilities, is part of the company's global manufacturing strategy.
"We are delighted to be able to reach an agreement suitable to both parties, subject to due diligence and finance," said managing director John Bongard.
The agreement is conditional until August 2009.
Fisher & Paykel Appliances is raising capital and selling assets to reduce debt. It earlier sold its Mosgiel site to Fonterra.
Fonterra plans to build a new 45,000 tonne drystore and a 17,000 tonne coolstore on the former 16.45ha Fisher & Paykel site. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, June 06, 2009
Banco Pastor Agrees to EUR 75 Million Sale Leaseback of Madrid HQ
Reuters - June 4, 2009
Spain's Banco Pastor (PAS.MC) has agreed the sale of its Madrid headquarters to the Garcia Baquero family, known for their eponymous Spanish cheeses, sources said on Wednesday.
"Banco Pastor has sold its Madrid headquarters. The buyer is the Garcia Baquero family," one of the sources said.
Another source said the operation, which included a building in the center of Barcelona, was sealed at about 75 million euros ($106.3 million).
The bank put 160 of its 650 offices up for sale last March to shore up funds against soaring bad loans as Spain's decade-long property boom came to an abrupt end.
Pastor hoped to fetch 230 million euros for the lot. The Madrid headquarters were the bank's crown jewel.
Pastor's financial director Gloria Hernandez has said the bank's office leaseback programme was very advanced and could be closed this month. Sphere: Related Content
Spain's Banco Pastor (PAS.MC) has agreed the sale of its Madrid headquarters to the Garcia Baquero family, known for their eponymous Spanish cheeses, sources said on Wednesday.
"Banco Pastor has sold its Madrid headquarters. The buyer is the Garcia Baquero family," one of the sources said.
Another source said the operation, which included a building in the center of Barcelona, was sealed at about 75 million euros ($106.3 million).
The bank put 160 of its 650 offices up for sale last March to shore up funds against soaring bad loans as Spain's decade-long property boom came to an abrupt end.
Pastor hoped to fetch 230 million euros for the lot. The Madrid headquarters were the bank's crown jewel.
Pastor's financial director Gloria Hernandez has said the bank's office leaseback programme was very advanced and could be closed this month. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Citigroup Agrees to Sale Leaseback of Italian HQ in Milan
Reuters - June 2, 2009
Citigroup Inc (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research) will sell its Italian private banking operations and headquarters as part of the troubled U.S. bank's restructuring, a spokesman said on Tuesday.
Citigroup, the biggest foreign bank in Italy, will keep open its corporate lending unit with its 400 employees, he said, confirming a report in Il Sole 24 Ore business newspaper.
He declined to comment on the newspaper's report that the bank would sell its Italian credit card unit and close the consumer credit operations.
'We are basically focusing on the corporate business in Italy and the sale of the private bank is part of this refocusing,' he said.
Il Sole 24 Ore said Citigroup was completing the sale of the private banking unit with its 600 million euro portfolio to Spain's Banco Santander SA (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research). The private banking unit has 27 employees.
The spokesman declined to comment on Santander. Citigroup has sought to sell the unit but no deal has been agreed, he said.
The bank will sell its Milan headquarters building but will lease it back, the spokesman said. Citing unconfirmed rumours, Il Sole 24 Ore said Italy's Prima SGR and the Hines Real Estate Investment Trust Inc would buy it. Prima is a joint venture between Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA (BMPS.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) and the Clessidra fund launched last month.
Citigroup has racked up more than $90 billion in credit losses and writedowns since 2007. It has taken about $45 billion from the U.S. government's Trouble Asset Relief Program. Sphere: Related Content
Citigroup Inc (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research) will sell its Italian private banking operations and headquarters as part of the troubled U.S. bank's restructuring, a spokesman said on Tuesday.
Citigroup, the biggest foreign bank in Italy, will keep open its corporate lending unit with its 400 employees, he said, confirming a report in Il Sole 24 Ore business newspaper.
He declined to comment on the newspaper's report that the bank would sell its Italian credit card unit and close the consumer credit operations.
'We are basically focusing on the corporate business in Italy and the sale of the private bank is part of this refocusing,' he said.
Il Sole 24 Ore said Citigroup was completing the sale of the private banking unit with its 600 million euro portfolio to Spain's Banco Santander SA (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research). The private banking unit has 27 employees.
The spokesman declined to comment on Santander. Citigroup has sought to sell the unit but no deal has been agreed, he said.
The bank will sell its Milan headquarters building but will lease it back, the spokesman said. Citing unconfirmed rumours, Il Sole 24 Ore said Italy's Prima SGR and the Hines Real Estate Investment Trust Inc would buy it. Prima is a joint venture between Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA (BMPS.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) and the Clessidra fund launched last month.
Citigroup has racked up more than $90 billion in credit losses and writedowns since 2007. It has taken about $45 billion from the U.S. government's Trouble Asset Relief Program. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, June 01, 2009
Home Depot Distribution Facility in California's Central Valley Sold
Nasdaq / PRNewswire - May 28, 2009
US Industrial REIT III, an affiliate of USAA Real Estate Company, announced the recent acquisition of a 657,600-square- foot Class A bulk distribution facility occupied by specialty retailer, Home Depot USA, Inc. in Tracy, California on a 15 year lease for an undisclosed sum.
The Home Depot, Inc., founded in 1978, specializes in building materials, home improvement supplies as well as lawn and garden products retailed from 2,200 stores in the United States. The Tracy facility, a Rapid Deployment Center (" RDC"), is part of the company's 2008-2009 conversion from de-centralized to regional distribution and will service approximately 100 stores initially, with the capacity to serve up to 150 stores.
"This acquisition provides great opportunity for our investors to gain an asset that is 100% leased by the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer," says Pat Duncan, chairman and CEO of USAA Real Estate Company. " Seeking high quality tenants in strategic industrially-prosperous locations continues to build successful investment relationships."
Completed in December 2008, the Home Depot RDC facility utilizes state-of-the- art tri-load design and other upgrades including more than 400 secured and lighted trailer positions. Its central and accessible location off I-205, neighboring the San Francisco/Oakland Bay area within fast-growing San Joaquin County, serves Northern California and the Pacific Northwest regions. The property is well located near five major highways, two transcontinental railroads and two international airports.
The US Industrial REIT III portfolio, totaling $1 billion, consists of large scale bulk industrial properties across the continental United States. USAA Real Estate is a subsidiary of USAA, a leading financial services company, serving military families since 1922. Sphere: Related Content
US Industrial REIT III, an affiliate of USAA Real Estate Company, announced the recent acquisition of a 657,600-square- foot Class A bulk distribution facility occupied by specialty retailer, Home Depot USA, Inc. in Tracy, California on a 15 year lease for an undisclosed sum.
The Home Depot, Inc., founded in 1978, specializes in building materials, home improvement supplies as well as lawn and garden products retailed from 2,200 stores in the United States. The Tracy facility, a Rapid Deployment Center (" RDC"), is part of the company's 2008-2009 conversion from de-centralized to regional distribution and will service approximately 100 stores initially, with the capacity to serve up to 150 stores.
"This acquisition provides great opportunity for our investors to gain an asset that is 100% leased by the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer," says Pat Duncan, chairman and CEO of USAA Real Estate Company. " Seeking high quality tenants in strategic industrially-prosperous locations continues to build successful investment relationships."
Completed in December 2008, the Home Depot RDC facility utilizes state-of-the- art tri-load design and other upgrades including more than 400 secured and lighted trailer positions. Its central and accessible location off I-205, neighboring the San Francisco/Oakland Bay area within fast-growing San Joaquin County, serves Northern California and the Pacific Northwest regions. The property is well located near five major highways, two transcontinental railroads and two international airports.
The US Industrial REIT III portfolio, totaling $1 billion, consists of large scale bulk industrial properties across the continental United States. USAA Real Estate is a subsidiary of USAA, a leading financial services company, serving military families since 1922. Sphere: Related Content
Aurora Completes $40 Million Sale Leasback of Two Medical Office Buildings in Milwaukee
JSOnline - May 29, 2009
Aurora Health Care Inc. has sold two more medical office buildings to Santa Ana, Calif.-based Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT Inc. for just over $40 million, a move that raises additional cash for Wisconsin's largest health care provider.
An investors group affiliated with the real estate investment trust bought a 62,991-square-foot Aurora facility, at 3111 W. Rawson Ave., Franklin, for $19.8 million, according to documents filed with the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds.
The group also bought a 66,638-square-foot facility, at 12203 N. Corporate Parkway, Mequon, for $20.9 million, according to the Ozaukee County Register of Deeds.
In March, Aurora sold four other Milwaukee-area medical office buildings to Grubb & Ellis Healthcare, which is leasing the facilities back to Aurora. Those buildings, totaling 185,000 square feet, sold for around $34 million.
The sales are generating cash for Aurora, which is building two hospitals, in Grafton and Summit, costing $373 million, and which has been cutting back on expenses. Aurora has done sale-leaseback transactions on its facilities for several years, said spokesman Ron Irwin.
Aurora acquired the Franklin outpatient surgery center in December 2008, when it bought a stake in Associated Surgical and Medical Specialists, Irwin said.
The Mequon building, which houses doctors' offices, was acquired in January 2008 through Aurora's purchase of Advanced Health Care, Irwin said. Sphere: Related Content
Aurora Health Care Inc. has sold two more medical office buildings to Santa Ana, Calif.-based Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT Inc. for just over $40 million, a move that raises additional cash for Wisconsin's largest health care provider.
An investors group affiliated with the real estate investment trust bought a 62,991-square-foot Aurora facility, at 3111 W. Rawson Ave., Franklin, for $19.8 million, according to documents filed with the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds.
The group also bought a 66,638-square-foot facility, at 12203 N. Corporate Parkway, Mequon, for $20.9 million, according to the Ozaukee County Register of Deeds.
In March, Aurora sold four other Milwaukee-area medical office buildings to Grubb & Ellis Healthcare, which is leasing the facilities back to Aurora. Those buildings, totaling 185,000 square feet, sold for around $34 million.
The sales are generating cash for Aurora, which is building two hospitals, in Grafton and Summit, costing $373 million, and which has been cutting back on expenses. Aurora has done sale-leaseback transactions on its facilities for several years, said spokesman Ron Irwin.
Aurora acquired the Franklin outpatient surgery center in December 2008, when it bought a stake in Associated Surgical and Medical Specialists, Irwin said.
The Mequon building, which houses doctors' offices, was acquired in January 2008 through Aurora's purchase of Advanced Health Care, Irwin said. Sphere: Related Content
Banks Rush to Build Capital via Property Sale Leasebacks
Financial Times - May 28, 2009
Several billion pounds worth of European corporate property is expected to be sold in the next few months as businesses look to free capital from their property assets.
This week, Credit Suisse placed the first of its Canary Wharf buildings on the market following a lengthy review, and more companies are expected to follow, particularly in the financial services and retail sectors.
CB Richard Ellis, which has been instructed to sell 20 Columbus Courtyard for Credit Suisse, estimates that it has more than €4bn (£3.5bn) of sale and leasebacks alone set to hit the market this year in Europe. This includes the sale and leaseback of HSBC’s headquarters in London, Paris and New York.
Though the market is reaching its lowest point, many corporate owner-occupiers are motivated by the advantages of additional liquidity.
Many also hold properties at depreciated historic cost for accountancy purposes, meaning that selling now gives a financial boost even with a slump in values.
There are a number of sectors where leasebacks make sense, according to Matt Pullen, CBRE’s head of European global corporate services, as companies look to raise money without damaging businesses. “It is a strategic leveraging of business assets,” says Mr Pullen.
In a report last week, property intermediaries Cushman & Wakefield forecast that banks would increase sale and leasebacks to raise capital in the next year, particularly those that have received state cash injections. Selling real estate has a strong benefit for banks’ tier one capital ratio, a key measure of balance sheet strength.
Credit Suisse, among the better capitalised banks with a 14.1 per cent tier one ratio, appears under no pressure to raise capital.
Other banks, including UniCredit, HSBC and BBVA, have committed to releasing capital via European real estate schemes, said Cushman & Wakefield, and more would follow later this year.
Matthew Stone, head of Cushman & Wakefield’s occupier strategy team, said: “Most European banks need to raise cash but the traditional routes of equity or debt are now significantly more expensive.
“The major European real estate sale-and-leaseback programmes that have been launched are probably only the tip of the iceberg in 2009. Those banks now part-owned by national governments, in particular, offer excellent covenants.”
Going against the current has been Santander, which in an apparent sign of its relative strength last month bought the building occupied by its Abbey business in London from British Land. Some agents say other robust groups are starting to investigate the merits of buying the freeholds of their leased premises while prices look cheap.
Outside the banking sector, sale and leasebacks have been triggered by acute financial difficulties. In March, the New York Times raised $225m in deal with WP Carey in order to help pay off debt, for example.
Michael Evans, director at Jones Lang LaSalle, said sale and leasebacks in the retail sector were now likely to be a focus, given pricing in the sector.
Overall, recent sale-and-leaseback activity has been motivated by very different reasons from those that dominated at the peak of the property boom, when many groups, particularly in the retail, leisure and banking sectors, were keen to cash in on highly priced assets.
Then, a clutch of banks sold their London offices, according to King Sturge’s James Beckham. Deals struck in the boom years included Standard Chartered, Merrill Lynch, Citi and ABN Amro, as well as HSBC first time round.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle, European corporate property disposals have more than doubled over the past four years. Sphere: Related Content
Several billion pounds worth of European corporate property is expected to be sold in the next few months as businesses look to free capital from their property assets.
This week, Credit Suisse placed the first of its Canary Wharf buildings on the market following a lengthy review, and more companies are expected to follow, particularly in the financial services and retail sectors.
CB Richard Ellis, which has been instructed to sell 20 Columbus Courtyard for Credit Suisse, estimates that it has more than €4bn (£3.5bn) of sale and leasebacks alone set to hit the market this year in Europe. This includes the sale and leaseback of HSBC’s headquarters in London, Paris and New York.
Though the market is reaching its lowest point, many corporate owner-occupiers are motivated by the advantages of additional liquidity.
Many also hold properties at depreciated historic cost for accountancy purposes, meaning that selling now gives a financial boost even with a slump in values.
There are a number of sectors where leasebacks make sense, according to Matt Pullen, CBRE’s head of European global corporate services, as companies look to raise money without damaging businesses. “It is a strategic leveraging of business assets,” says Mr Pullen.
In a report last week, property intermediaries Cushman & Wakefield forecast that banks would increase sale and leasebacks to raise capital in the next year, particularly those that have received state cash injections. Selling real estate has a strong benefit for banks’ tier one capital ratio, a key measure of balance sheet strength.
Credit Suisse, among the better capitalised banks with a 14.1 per cent tier one ratio, appears under no pressure to raise capital.
Other banks, including UniCredit, HSBC and BBVA, have committed to releasing capital via European real estate schemes, said Cushman & Wakefield, and more would follow later this year.
Matthew Stone, head of Cushman & Wakefield’s occupier strategy team, said: “Most European banks need to raise cash but the traditional routes of equity or debt are now significantly more expensive.
“The major European real estate sale-and-leaseback programmes that have been launched are probably only the tip of the iceberg in 2009. Those banks now part-owned by national governments, in particular, offer excellent covenants.”
Going against the current has been Santander, which in an apparent sign of its relative strength last month bought the building occupied by its Abbey business in London from British Land. Some agents say other robust groups are starting to investigate the merits of buying the freeholds of their leased premises while prices look cheap.
Outside the banking sector, sale and leasebacks have been triggered by acute financial difficulties. In March, the New York Times raised $225m in deal with WP Carey in order to help pay off debt, for example.
Michael Evans, director at Jones Lang LaSalle, said sale and leasebacks in the retail sector were now likely to be a focus, given pricing in the sector.
Overall, recent sale-and-leaseback activity has been motivated by very different reasons from those that dominated at the peak of the property boom, when many groups, particularly in the retail, leisure and banking sectors, were keen to cash in on highly priced assets.
Then, a clutch of banks sold their London offices, according to King Sturge’s James Beckham. Deals struck in the boom years included Standard Chartered, Merrill Lynch, Citi and ABN Amro, as well as HSBC first time round.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle, European corporate property disposals have more than doubled over the past four years. Sphere: Related Content
Credit Suisse May Seek Sale Leaseback of Second Canary Wharf Tower
Property Week / Financial Times - May 29, 2009
Credit Suisse has begun a sale of its London property estate that could raise as much as £500m as part of a strategy to focus on core banking operations.
The investment bank this week instructed CB Richard Ellis to begin marketing the smaller of its two buildings in Canary Wharf, with indications that its tower at Cabot Square is also likely to be brought to the market before the end of the year.
In total, the sales of the two buildings – 20 Columbus Courtyard and 1 Cabot Square – could raise more than £500m, depending on the terms set by the bank on the length of its occupancy and rent.
The move comes as other banks and companies look to sell off non-core assets, with property advisers forecasting that several billion pounds of sale and leaseback deals will be completed in the next few months. Sphere: Related Content
Credit Suisse has begun a sale of its London property estate that could raise as much as £500m as part of a strategy to focus on core banking operations.
The investment bank this week instructed CB Richard Ellis to begin marketing the smaller of its two buildings in Canary Wharf, with indications that its tower at Cabot Square is also likely to be brought to the market before the end of the year.
In total, the sales of the two buildings – 20 Columbus Courtyard and 1 Cabot Square – could raise more than £500m, depending on the terms set by the bank on the length of its occupancy and rent.
The move comes as other banks and companies look to sell off non-core assets, with property advisers forecasting that several billion pounds of sale and leaseback deals will be completed in the next few months. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Mikeva Completes Sale Leaseback of Seven Nursing Homes in Finland
PropertyEU - May 25, 2009
Mikeva has sold seven residential care properties to Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company in a sale-and-leaseback transaction for an undisclosed amount. The care homes are located in Kaskinen, Kotka, Vaasa, Teuva, Oulu and Haukipudas.
Mikeva is one of the largest social care services providers in Finland with over 600 end-customers. All properties are under development and will be completed within the coming two years. The first of these properties will be completed in May 2009 in Kaskinen. Mikeva has signed long-term lease agreements with all the properties.
The total leasable area of the properties is approximately 13,500 m² accommodating approximately 300 customers when completed. The care homes offer residential services for mental health patients and the elderly.
Leimdörfer acted as financial adviser to Mikeva in the transaction. Sphere: Related Content
Mikeva has sold seven residential care properties to Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company in a sale-and-leaseback transaction for an undisclosed amount. The care homes are located in Kaskinen, Kotka, Vaasa, Teuva, Oulu and Haukipudas.
Mikeva is one of the largest social care services providers in Finland with over 600 end-customers. All properties are under development and will be completed within the coming two years. The first of these properties will be completed in May 2009 in Kaskinen. Mikeva has signed long-term lease agreements with all the properties.
The total leasable area of the properties is approximately 13,500 m² accommodating approximately 300 customers when completed. The care homes offer residential services for mental health patients and the elderly.
Leimdörfer acted as financial adviser to Mikeva in the transaction. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, May 18, 2009
Pfizer Completes Sale Leaseback of Industrial Facility in Germany
PropertyEU - May 14, 2009
German property investors Harder and Partners have bought pharmaceuticals firm Pfizer's premises in Karlsruhe for an undisclosed amount as part of a sale-and-leaseback deal which includes 200,000 m2 of industrial space and 90,000 m2 of derelict land. Pfizer will lease back the buildings and distribution space for an unspecified period.
The Pfizer site is located in the Hagsfeld industrial area of Karlsruhe. Sphere: Related Content
German property investors Harder and Partners have bought pharmaceuticals firm Pfizer's premises in Karlsruhe for an undisclosed amount as part of a sale-and-leaseback deal which includes 200,000 m2 of industrial space and 90,000 m2 of derelict land. Pfizer will lease back the buildings and distribution space for an unspecified period.
The Pfizer site is located in the Hagsfeld industrial area of Karlsruhe. Sphere: Related Content
NH Hotels Seeking EUR 300 Million Sale Leaseback of Hotel Portfolio
PropertyEU - May 15, 2009
Spanish hotel group NH Hoteles has unveiled plans to sell EUR 300 mln worth of hotel properties after its loss widened in the first quarter of 2009 to EUR 39.2 mln. The properties will continue to be operated through a sale-and-leaseback agreement or a management contract. The company also said it will seek to raise EUR 197 mln of fresh capital through the issue of 99 million of new shares with a value of EUR 2 per share.
The company currently owns 349 hotels across 22 countries worldwide and an additional 55 in its development pipeline. It has debt of around EUR 700 mln. Sphere: Related Content
Spanish hotel group NH Hoteles has unveiled plans to sell EUR 300 mln worth of hotel properties after its loss widened in the first quarter of 2009 to EUR 39.2 mln. The properties will continue to be operated through a sale-and-leaseback agreement or a management contract. The company also said it will seek to raise EUR 197 mln of fresh capital through the issue of 99 million of new shares with a value of EUR 2 per share.
The company currently owns 349 hotels across 22 countries worldwide and an additional 55 in its development pipeline. It has debt of around EUR 700 mln. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Caixa Catalunya Agrees to EUR 183 Million Sale Leaseback of 146 Bank Branches Across Spain
PropertyEU - May 14, 2009
Spanish bank Caixa Catalunya has sold 146 bank branches and office buildings across Spain to a number of investors including family-owned investment groups. The bank will lease the assets back for a rental term of 20 years, and retains an option to buy back the assets after this period. Caixa Catalunya said it is making a profit of some EUR 54 mln on the deal, which totals EUR 183 mln.
The crown jewel of the bank's portfolio, its Recoletos head office in Madrid, was sold to Spanish investor Via Celere for EUR 16 mln. The lender has a network of over 1,200 branches across Spain and hopes to sell off another 800 properties through a similar sale-and-leaseback deal in the coming months. Sphere: Related Content
Spanish bank Caixa Catalunya has sold 146 bank branches and office buildings across Spain to a number of investors including family-owned investment groups. The bank will lease the assets back for a rental term of 20 years, and retains an option to buy back the assets after this period. Caixa Catalunya said it is making a profit of some EUR 54 mln on the deal, which totals EUR 183 mln.
The crown jewel of the bank's portfolio, its Recoletos head office in Madrid, was sold to Spanish investor Via Celere for EUR 16 mln. The lender has a network of over 1,200 branches across Spain and hopes to sell off another 800 properties through a similar sale-and-leaseback deal in the coming months. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, May 15, 2009
Sale Leasebacks Brew Anew
Wall Street Journal - May 13, 2009
Corporate sale-and-lease-back deals came to a virtual halt in Europe in the first quarter as property investment dried up, but signs of life may be emerging as cash-strapped companies look for new sources of financing.
Renault SA, the French car maker, is exploring the potential sale of property it owns and which is reported to be valued at as much as €1 billion ($1.36 billion). Eroski, a cooperative retail chain with more than 1,000 stores across Spain, is exploring the sale of as many as 150 supermarkets that could generate proceeds of as much as €300 million, according to people familiar with the matter.
"We are considering selling offices and commercial property as a sale-and-lease-back," says Renault spokeswoman Gita Roux. "Interest rates are high and it's hard to get credit, so property sales are part of a broader plan to improve our cash flow."
Ms. Roux wouldn't comment on how much Renault expects to raise through property sales, saying it depended on the price the company could achieve in the market.
Eroski is being advised by Cushman & Wakefield; neither Cushman nor Eroski would comment.
In a sale-and-lease-back arrangement the owner of a property -- typically a corporation or a government agency -- sells the property it is occupying and leases it back, usually on a long lease of 20 years or more. The advantage for the company selling is that it gets cash that it can reinvest in its business or use to lower debt, can stay in the property, and doesn't have to pay the money back.
As the recession grinds on and debt remains expensive and hard to come by, companies are again considering using their property to raise cash. But deals have been hard to do because of the lack of debt financing and the gap between what sellers hope to gain from a sale and what buyers are willing to pay.
Now, that buyer-seller gap is narrowing and there is also a greater willingness on the part of some buyers to pay with cash now with the hope of raising debt later.
One such buyer is W.P. Carey & Co., a New York investment group that in April paid cash for the space that New York Times Co. owns in its headquarters in midtown Manhattan. W.P. Carey is prepared to do similar all-cash deals in Europe.
"We're doing deals, but there is a premium to that because we're taking on the risk, hoping that we will later be able to get mortgage financing," says Edward LaPuma, head of W.P. Carey's international business.
In Europe, advisers on sale-and-lease-back transactions say chief financial officers from London to Lisbon have been comparing the costs of raising finance through issuing new shares, bonds or by turning their own property into cash.
With stock prices down, share issuance is expensive because investors, fearing stocks could keep falling, are demanding hefty discounts.
Bonds are costly because yield premiums over government paper have widened over the past year, and investors are shying away from corporate debt from all but the highest investment-grade issuers. Banks that used to issue mortgages with just 20% equity are now demanding as much 45%.
"If you're considering a sale-and-lease-back, it's not about where we are in the real-estate cycle," says Matthew Stone, head of occupier strategies for Europe, Middle East and Africa for Cushman & Wakefield. "It's about the need to raise capital and finding the least expensive way to do it."
A number of large deals were done last year. Caixa Galicia sold a portfolio valued at €250 million, said property consultants CB Richard Ellis. Banco Popular sold buildings in Madrid and Barcelona, raising €127 million. Banco Santander raised €4.4 billion with the sale of its Madrid headquarters, 1,152 branches and 10 individual buildings, and French bank BNP Paribas sold its Paris headquarters for €250 million.
With property investment down sharply, sale-and-lease-back deals screeched to a halt this year. But advisers are saying momentum could resume in the next few months.
CB Richard Ellis has deals in the works valued at more than €4.1 billion with clients in financial services, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, research and development and technology, and retail, says John Wilson, executive director of corporate services. That compares to about €3 billion during the same period last year, he says.
There is a flip side to the sale-and-lease-back scenario. Low property prices create an opportunity for companies or public administrations that have enough cash on hand to buy the buildings they occupy from cash-strapped landlords.
In December, London's Metropolitan Police bought New Scotland Yard from the British REIT Land Securities PLC. And in April, British Land Co. sold an office building on 2-3 Triton Square in London to the building's main tenant, Abbey National PLC.
"We are talking to a number of large corporations seeking to buy their buildings," says Matthew Richards, director of corporate capital markets at Jones Lang LaSalle in London. Sphere: Related Content
Corporate sale-and-lease-back deals came to a virtual halt in Europe in the first quarter as property investment dried up, but signs of life may be emerging as cash-strapped companies look for new sources of financing.
Renault SA, the French car maker, is exploring the potential sale of property it owns and which is reported to be valued at as much as €1 billion ($1.36 billion). Eroski, a cooperative retail chain with more than 1,000 stores across Spain, is exploring the sale of as many as 150 supermarkets that could generate proceeds of as much as €300 million, according to people familiar with the matter.
"We are considering selling offices and commercial property as a sale-and-lease-back," says Renault spokeswoman Gita Roux. "Interest rates are high and it's hard to get credit, so property sales are part of a broader plan to improve our cash flow."
Ms. Roux wouldn't comment on how much Renault expects to raise through property sales, saying it depended on the price the company could achieve in the market.
Eroski is being advised by Cushman & Wakefield; neither Cushman nor Eroski would comment.
In a sale-and-lease-back arrangement the owner of a property -- typically a corporation or a government agency -- sells the property it is occupying and leases it back, usually on a long lease of 20 years or more. The advantage for the company selling is that it gets cash that it can reinvest in its business or use to lower debt, can stay in the property, and doesn't have to pay the money back.
As the recession grinds on and debt remains expensive and hard to come by, companies are again considering using their property to raise cash. But deals have been hard to do because of the lack of debt financing and the gap between what sellers hope to gain from a sale and what buyers are willing to pay.
Now, that buyer-seller gap is narrowing and there is also a greater willingness on the part of some buyers to pay with cash now with the hope of raising debt later.
One such buyer is W.P. Carey & Co., a New York investment group that in April paid cash for the space that New York Times Co. owns in its headquarters in midtown Manhattan. W.P. Carey is prepared to do similar all-cash deals in Europe.
"We're doing deals, but there is a premium to that because we're taking on the risk, hoping that we will later be able to get mortgage financing," says Edward LaPuma, head of W.P. Carey's international business.
In Europe, advisers on sale-and-lease-back transactions say chief financial officers from London to Lisbon have been comparing the costs of raising finance through issuing new shares, bonds or by turning their own property into cash.
With stock prices down, share issuance is expensive because investors, fearing stocks could keep falling, are demanding hefty discounts.
Bonds are costly because yield premiums over government paper have widened over the past year, and investors are shying away from corporate debt from all but the highest investment-grade issuers. Banks that used to issue mortgages with just 20% equity are now demanding as much 45%.
"If you're considering a sale-and-lease-back, it's not about where we are in the real-estate cycle," says Matthew Stone, head of occupier strategies for Europe, Middle East and Africa for Cushman & Wakefield. "It's about the need to raise capital and finding the least expensive way to do it."
A number of large deals were done last year. Caixa Galicia sold a portfolio valued at €250 million, said property consultants CB Richard Ellis. Banco Popular sold buildings in Madrid and Barcelona, raising €127 million. Banco Santander raised €4.4 billion with the sale of its Madrid headquarters, 1,152 branches and 10 individual buildings, and French bank BNP Paribas sold its Paris headquarters for €250 million.
With property investment down sharply, sale-and-lease-back deals screeched to a halt this year. But advisers are saying momentum could resume in the next few months.
CB Richard Ellis has deals in the works valued at more than €4.1 billion with clients in financial services, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, research and development and technology, and retail, says John Wilson, executive director of corporate services. That compares to about €3 billion during the same period last year, he says.
There is a flip side to the sale-and-lease-back scenario. Low property prices create an opportunity for companies or public administrations that have enough cash on hand to buy the buildings they occupy from cash-strapped landlords.
In December, London's Metropolitan Police bought New Scotland Yard from the British REIT Land Securities PLC. And in April, British Land Co. sold an office building on 2-3 Triton Square in London to the building's main tenant, Abbey National PLC.
"We are talking to a number of large corporations seeking to buy their buildings," says Matthew Richards, director of corporate capital markets at Jones Lang LaSalle in London. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, May 11, 2009
Eroski Seeking EUR 300 Million Sale Leaseback of Supermarkets Across Spain
Property Week - May 8, 2009
Spanish retailer prepares sale and leaseback of up to 150 supermarkets.
Eroski is preparing to sell and lease back between 100 and 150 supermarkets, which could net the Spanish retailer more than €300m.
The supermarket operator is approaching a range of investors about the portfolio, which consists of ‘urban supermarkets’ in Spanish city centres.
It is thought that the portfolio, which does not include any hypermarkets, could be broken up into smaller lot sizes, which would be easier to finance and could attract a variety of buyers such as institutional and private investors.
The final lease terms that Eroski will offer to investors are likely to be long institutionally-friendly leases of between 20 and 25 years.
Large sale and leasebacks are becoming increasingly common in Spain as occupiers try to release equity from their property portfolio to create cash pools to carry out corporate acquisitions.
Eroski in particular is thought to be keen to raise cash to reduce its debt levels after the purchase of the Caprabo supermarket chain in 2007.
It also wants to raise funds in readiness of future acquisitions as it seeks to increase its market share in Spain. It is already one of the top three hypermarket operators in the country and the number one supermarket operator in the Catalunya region.
Any potential transaction with Eroski would be structured as a straight sale and leaseback rather than a joint venture partnership.
It already has one joint venture partnership with Sol Zakay’s Topland, which in November last year bought a 15-strong retail portfolio from Eroski in Spain’s biggest hypermarket sale-and-leaseback transaction. Eroski signed 25-year leases with fixed rental increases.
Topland paid €361m – a yield of around 6% – for the portfolio, comprising 13 hypermarkets and two shopping centres in the Basque area of Spain. It provided equity for 30% of the first purchase and the remaining 70% comes from a consortium of banks: La Caixa, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Banco De Sabadell, Banco Espanol De Credito, Banco De Vasconia and Caja Madrid.
The transaction with Topland was structured as the first phase of a potential three-part sale-and-leaseback agreement between the two parties, in which Topland would buy more than 50 Eroski properties.
Spain’s property market, which has been badly hit by the global financial crisis, has experienced a rapid repricing similar to that in the UK and is attracting investors who want to buy at the bottom of the market.
Cushman & Wakefield advised Eroski on its transaction with Topland and it is thought that Cushman has now been instructed to act for Eroski on an exclusive mandate.
All parties declined to comment. Sphere: Related Content
Spanish retailer prepares sale and leaseback of up to 150 supermarkets.
Eroski is preparing to sell and lease back between 100 and 150 supermarkets, which could net the Spanish retailer more than €300m.
The supermarket operator is approaching a range of investors about the portfolio, which consists of ‘urban supermarkets’ in Spanish city centres.
It is thought that the portfolio, which does not include any hypermarkets, could be broken up into smaller lot sizes, which would be easier to finance and could attract a variety of buyers such as institutional and private investors.
The final lease terms that Eroski will offer to investors are likely to be long institutionally-friendly leases of between 20 and 25 years.
Large sale and leasebacks are becoming increasingly common in Spain as occupiers try to release equity from their property portfolio to create cash pools to carry out corporate acquisitions.
Eroski in particular is thought to be keen to raise cash to reduce its debt levels after the purchase of the Caprabo supermarket chain in 2007.
It also wants to raise funds in readiness of future acquisitions as it seeks to increase its market share in Spain. It is already one of the top three hypermarket operators in the country and the number one supermarket operator in the Catalunya region.
Any potential transaction with Eroski would be structured as a straight sale and leaseback rather than a joint venture partnership.
It already has one joint venture partnership with Sol Zakay’s Topland, which in November last year bought a 15-strong retail portfolio from Eroski in Spain’s biggest hypermarket sale-and-leaseback transaction. Eroski signed 25-year leases with fixed rental increases.
Topland paid €361m – a yield of around 6% – for the portfolio, comprising 13 hypermarkets and two shopping centres in the Basque area of Spain. It provided equity for 30% of the first purchase and the remaining 70% comes from a consortium of banks: La Caixa, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Banco De Sabadell, Banco Espanol De Credito, Banco De Vasconia and Caja Madrid.
The transaction with Topland was structured as the first phase of a potential three-part sale-and-leaseback agreement between the two parties, in which Topland would buy more than 50 Eroski properties.
Spain’s property market, which has been badly hit by the global financial crisis, has experienced a rapid repricing similar to that in the UK and is attracting investors who want to buy at the bottom of the market.
Cushman & Wakefield advised Eroski on its transaction with Topland and it is thought that Cushman has now been instructed to act for Eroski on an exclusive mandate.
All parties declined to comment. Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Carrefour Seeking £1 Billion in Several Retail Store Sale Leaseback Transactions
Property Week - May 8, 2009
French supermarket giant Carrefour is preparing to sell a significant part of its property portfolio as it goes into expansion mode.
Carrefour Property, which controls nearly two-thirds of the retailer’s €14bn property portfolio, is preparing to sell properties in €200m and €500m lot sizes. The retailer said it would aim to sell the properties to investors in a long-term sale-and-leaseback transaction.
Carrefour has historically raised equity from its property portfolio and in 2008 planned to list its property arm on the stock exchange as a separate entity but plans were abandoned because of the downturn.
Sources said Carrefour is looking to raise at least €1bn from the strategy.
It is thought that Carrefour investors Colony Capital and Groupe Arnault are supportive of the plans. Sphere: Related Content
French supermarket giant Carrefour is preparing to sell a significant part of its property portfolio as it goes into expansion mode.
Carrefour Property, which controls nearly two-thirds of the retailer’s €14bn property portfolio, is preparing to sell properties in €200m and €500m lot sizes. The retailer said it would aim to sell the properties to investors in a long-term sale-and-leaseback transaction.
Carrefour has historically raised equity from its property portfolio and in 2008 planned to list its property arm on the stock exchange as a separate entity but plans were abandoned because of the downturn.
Sources said Carrefour is looking to raise at least €1bn from the strategy.
It is thought that Carrefour investors Colony Capital and Groupe Arnault are supportive of the plans. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, May 08, 2009
Credit Suisse Seeking £147 Million Sale Leaseback of Canary Wharf Tower
Property Week - May 6, 2009
Credit Suisse has instructed CB Richard Ellis to market the sale and leaseback of 20 Columbus Courtyard in Canary Wharf with a price tag of around £147m.
This equates to a yield of 6.25%, or around £37.50/sq ft. It will rent the building back for 25 years with an annual Retail Prices Index-linked rent, set with a ‘cap and collar’ of 4% and 1.5%. Sphere: Related Content
Credit Suisse has instructed CB Richard Ellis to market the sale and leaseback of 20 Columbus Courtyard in Canary Wharf with a price tag of around £147m.
This equates to a yield of 6.25%, or around £37.50/sq ft. It will rent the building back for 25 years with an annual Retail Prices Index-linked rent, set with a ‘cap and collar’ of 4% and 1.5%. Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, May 02, 2009
YRC Negotiates $351 Million Sale Leaseback of Trucking Facilities Across US
CoStar Group - April 29, 2009
YRC Inc. and USF Reddaway Inc., subsidiaries of YRC Worldwide Inc., continue to shed their ownership in trucking facilities across the country.
The two trucking transportation groups entered into another real estate sales contract with Estes Express Lines to sell and simultaneously lease back more trucking facilities throughout the United States.
The aggregate purchase price for the subject facilities is $32 million and initial annual lease payments would be $2.9 million in total.
The new Estes contracts are in addition to similar deals struck earlier this year for $122 million.
Separately, YRC, USF Holland Inc. and New Penn Motor Express Inc., also each YRC Worldwide subsidiaries agreed to sell and leaseback additional facilities to unidentified investors. The aggregate purchase price is $70 million and initial annual lease payments to be $6.1 million in total.
Both deals include a few facilities that were originally a part of another transaction with a different buyer.
Previously YRC and USF Reddaway also struck a deal to sell and leaseback facilities with NATMI Truck Terminals LLC. That deal was amended so that deals could be struck with the latest buyers. Originally to total $150.4 million, the amended deal will total $127 million, of which $111 million in deals closed in the first quarter of 2009.
The company expects to close on all of the new and remaining deals this quarter. Sphere: Related Content
YRC Inc. and USF Reddaway Inc., subsidiaries of YRC Worldwide Inc., continue to shed their ownership in trucking facilities across the country.
The two trucking transportation groups entered into another real estate sales contract with Estes Express Lines to sell and simultaneously lease back more trucking facilities throughout the United States.
The aggregate purchase price for the subject facilities is $32 million and initial annual lease payments would be $2.9 million in total.
The new Estes contracts are in addition to similar deals struck earlier this year for $122 million.
Separately, YRC, USF Holland Inc. and New Penn Motor Express Inc., also each YRC Worldwide subsidiaries agreed to sell and leaseback additional facilities to unidentified investors. The aggregate purchase price is $70 million and initial annual lease payments to be $6.1 million in total.
Both deals include a few facilities that were originally a part of another transaction with a different buyer.
Previously YRC and USF Reddaway also struck a deal to sell and leaseback facilities with NATMI Truck Terminals LLC. That deal was amended so that deals could be struck with the latest buyers. Originally to total $150.4 million, the amended deal will total $127 million, of which $111 million in deals closed in the first quarter of 2009.
The company expects to close on all of the new and remaining deals this quarter. Sphere: Related Content
Experian Agrees to $27 Million Sale Leaseback Office Building Near Chicago
Crain's Chicago Real Estate Daily - April 29, 2009
A New York investment firm has a contract to buy a northwest suburban office building from Experian PLC in a roughly $27-million sale/leaseback deal, in a bid by the credit reporting agency to raise cash and cut costs.
Credit reporting agency Experian has a contract to sell and lease back this building in Schaumburg.
The transaction could be one of the few deals to close this year in the suburban office market, which has come to nearly a standstill because of banks' tighter lending standards, sellers' reluctance to cut prices and buyers' concern about rising vacancy rates.
Experian owns a two-building complex totaling 296,000 square feet at 955 American Lane in Schaumburg. The company, which is advised by real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., has agreed to sell the larger of the two structures, an 189,000-square-foot building called the East Building, to U.S. Realty Advisors LLC, according to sources familiar with the transaction.
U.S. Realty last month formed a company called XP Property LLC, to hold title to the building, Illinois corporate records show. The price is about $27 million or $28 million, sources say. Experian has agreed to sign a long-term lease for the building, which was built in 1999, sources say.
Experian’s strong financial performance may have made the transaction attractive to U.S. Realty, a low-profile firm that specializes in single-tenant properties. Dublin, Ireland-based Experian’s revenue rose 18.6% to $4.1 billion during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, compared to the previous year. North America accounted for about half of the company’s revenue.
Jack Genende, U.S. Realty’s chief financial officer, and Grant Freeman, managing director in Jones Lang’s corporate capital markets group who is based in Southern California, declined to comment. A Schaumburg-based spokesman for Experian also declined to comment.
Meanwhile, the company is looking for tenants to lease space in its West Building, a 107,000-square-foot structure built in 1985, according to real estate data provider CoStar Group Inc. Experian plans to vacate that building. Sphere: Related Content
A New York investment firm has a contract to buy a northwest suburban office building from Experian PLC in a roughly $27-million sale/leaseback deal, in a bid by the credit reporting agency to raise cash and cut costs.
Credit reporting agency Experian has a contract to sell and lease back this building in Schaumburg.
The transaction could be one of the few deals to close this year in the suburban office market, which has come to nearly a standstill because of banks' tighter lending standards, sellers' reluctance to cut prices and buyers' concern about rising vacancy rates.
Experian owns a two-building complex totaling 296,000 square feet at 955 American Lane in Schaumburg. The company, which is advised by real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., has agreed to sell the larger of the two structures, an 189,000-square-foot building called the East Building, to U.S. Realty Advisors LLC, according to sources familiar with the transaction.
U.S. Realty last month formed a company called XP Property LLC, to hold title to the building, Illinois corporate records show. The price is about $27 million or $28 million, sources say. Experian has agreed to sign a long-term lease for the building, which was built in 1999, sources say.
Experian’s strong financial performance may have made the transaction attractive to U.S. Realty, a low-profile firm that specializes in single-tenant properties. Dublin, Ireland-based Experian’s revenue rose 18.6% to $4.1 billion during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, compared to the previous year. North America accounted for about half of the company’s revenue.
Jack Genende, U.S. Realty’s chief financial officer, and Grant Freeman, managing director in Jones Lang’s corporate capital markets group who is based in Southern California, declined to comment. A Schaumburg-based spokesman for Experian also declined to comment.
Meanwhile, the company is looking for tenants to lease space in its West Building, a 107,000-square-foot structure built in 1985, according to real estate data provider CoStar Group Inc. Experian plans to vacate that building. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, May 01, 2009
Burlington Coat Factory Seeking Sale Leaseback of Nine Stores Across US
Jones Lang LaSalle Web Site - April 28, 2009
Jones Lang LaSalle is currently marketing a 715,000-square-foot portfolio of retail assets for sale and leaseback by Burlington Coat Factory. Burlington Coat Factory will leaseback the nine properties, located in some of the strongest retail markets in the United States, for a minimum of 15 years. The properties are available for purchase either individually or as a portfolio.
Leading the Jones Lang LaSalle team on this assignment is Managing Director Bruce Westwood-Booth and Vice President Ben Herrig.
“These assets are strategically located in the strongest retail real estate markets in the country, and should appeal to a wide scope of national and international investors seeking to purchase well-established, high-quality retail locations providing long-term cash flow,” said Mr. Westwood-Booth.
This portfolio of nine retail assets includes a mix of regional mall anchor locations, power center/neighborhood anchor sites and stand alone stores. They are located in Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, Broward County, Northern New Jersey, Boston, Orlando and two locations in and around Phoenix. Burlington Coat Factory plans to enter into 15-year, absolute triple-net leases with two percent annual escalations at each location. All of the stores have been updated or renovated within the past few years and are strong performers for the company. Sphere: Related Content
Jones Lang LaSalle is currently marketing a 715,000-square-foot portfolio of retail assets for sale and leaseback by Burlington Coat Factory. Burlington Coat Factory will leaseback the nine properties, located in some of the strongest retail markets in the United States, for a minimum of 15 years. The properties are available for purchase either individually or as a portfolio.
Leading the Jones Lang LaSalle team on this assignment is Managing Director Bruce Westwood-Booth and Vice President Ben Herrig.
“These assets are strategically located in the strongest retail real estate markets in the country, and should appeal to a wide scope of national and international investors seeking to purchase well-established, high-quality retail locations providing long-term cash flow,” said Mr. Westwood-Booth.
This portfolio of nine retail assets includes a mix of regional mall anchor locations, power center/neighborhood anchor sites and stand alone stores. They are located in Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, Broward County, Northern New Jersey, Boston, Orlando and two locations in and around Phoenix. Burlington Coat Factory plans to enter into 15-year, absolute triple-net leases with two percent annual escalations at each location. All of the stores have been updated or renovated within the past few years and are strong performers for the company. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, April 17, 2009
Macaroni Grill Completes Sale Leaseback of 39 Restaurants
CoStar Group - April 15, 2009
In mid-December 2008, Dallas-based Cardinal Capital Partners, together with New York City-based Fortress Credit Corporation emerged as the buyer of a single-tenant portfolio of 39 Macaroni Grill restaurants, which are net leased for 20 years to Macaroni Grill's new private equity owner, Golden Gate Capital. The Cardinal-Fortress team specializes in corporate sale-leaseback transactions. In July 2008, the duo completed a sale-leaseback transaction with the new owner of Applebee's, acquiring 181 restaurants for $303 million. Sphere: Related Content
In mid-December 2008, Dallas-based Cardinal Capital Partners, together with New York City-based Fortress Credit Corporation emerged as the buyer of a single-tenant portfolio of 39 Macaroni Grill restaurants, which are net leased for 20 years to Macaroni Grill's new private equity owner, Golden Gate Capital. The Cardinal-Fortress team specializes in corporate sale-leaseback transactions. In July 2008, the duo completed a sale-leaseback transaction with the new owner of Applebee's, acquiring 181 restaurants for $303 million. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
HSBC Mulls $4 Billion Sale Leaseback of Properties in New York, London and Paris
Bloomberg - April 12, 2009
HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest bank, may sell three of its landmark office buildings, including the Canary Wharf world headquarters in London, to raise cash as it tries to avoid a bailout from the British government.
HSBC is gauging interest in its 45-story tower at 8 Canada Square in London, its Fifth Avenue skyscraper in New York, and its Paris offices on the Avenue des Champs Elysees, said Ruth Lavelle, a London-based spokeswoman for HSBC. The Sunday Times of London reported the potential sales earlier today at a combined asking price of 2.7 billion pounds ($3.96 billion). The newspaper didn’t include the source of its information and Lavelle, in an e-mail, said she couldn’t confirm a price.
The London-based bank is seeking to sell at a time when financing for commercial real estate is difficult and values are falling. In New York, transactions dropped 40 percent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, according to broker Cushman & Wakefield Inc., and U.K. values fell 29 percent in the 12 months through February, Investment Property Databank Ltd. said in a March 13 report.
“Despite the challenging environment, the properties can be moved if HSBC is willing to offer attractive lease-back and seller-financing terms to a prospective buyer,” Dan Fasulo, managing director of New York-based research firm Real Capital Analytics Inc., said in an e-mail message.
HSBC would probably lease the offices back from any buyer, the Times reported.
“The sale price will be predicated on the lease terms HSBC is willing to accept” to rent back the space, Fasulo said.
Share Sale
HSBC raised 12.5 billion pounds in the U.K.’s largest rights offer earlier this month. The bank needs cash to help counter the $15.5 billion pretax loss of its North American operation for 2008 and to add to the $53 billion it set aside during the past three years to cover bad loans. It has so far avoided taking U.K. government funding, unlike rivals Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc.
“As part of managing a significant global real estate portfolio HSBC is testing the market with three of its landmark property assets,” HSBC said in a statement. “HSBC constantly monitors the commercial property market carefully, making decisions based on what is most appropriate for the business and our stakeholders.”
Two years ago HSBC sold the Canary Wharf headquarters to Spanish developer Metrovacesa SA for 1.09 billion pounds in the first sale of a U.K. office building to top 1 billion pounds.
Bought It Back
HSBC then rented offices there at an annual rate of 43.5 million pounds. In December, it bought the building back from Metrovacesa for 838 million pounds, a profit of 250 million pounds. The bank built the tower in 2002.
The New York Times Co. struck a similar deal last month, agreeing to sell the space it occupies in its Manhattan headquarters for $225 million to W.P. Carey & Co., a New York- based real estate investment bank. The newspaper company will rent the building for 15 years from the new owner with an option to buy back its stake in 2019 for $250 million.
Manhattan office vacancy rates in March rose to their highest in more than five years, according to Los Angeles-based real estate services firm CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.
In London’s financial district, empty office space is also at a five-year high, according to NB Real Estate.
HSBC’s London headquarters accommodates about 8,000 workers and was designed by Norman Foster. The 29-story New York property, built in 1985, is at 452 Fifth Ave. between 39th and 40th streets and has 500,000 square feet, according to the Web site MrOfficeSpace.com. Sphere: Related Content
HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest bank, may sell three of its landmark office buildings, including the Canary Wharf world headquarters in London, to raise cash as it tries to avoid a bailout from the British government.
HSBC is gauging interest in its 45-story tower at 8 Canada Square in London, its Fifth Avenue skyscraper in New York, and its Paris offices on the Avenue des Champs Elysees, said Ruth Lavelle, a London-based spokeswoman for HSBC. The Sunday Times of London reported the potential sales earlier today at a combined asking price of 2.7 billion pounds ($3.96 billion). The newspaper didn’t include the source of its information and Lavelle, in an e-mail, said she couldn’t confirm a price.
The London-based bank is seeking to sell at a time when financing for commercial real estate is difficult and values are falling. In New York, transactions dropped 40 percent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, according to broker Cushman & Wakefield Inc., and U.K. values fell 29 percent in the 12 months through February, Investment Property Databank Ltd. said in a March 13 report.
“Despite the challenging environment, the properties can be moved if HSBC is willing to offer attractive lease-back and seller-financing terms to a prospective buyer,” Dan Fasulo, managing director of New York-based research firm Real Capital Analytics Inc., said in an e-mail message.
HSBC would probably lease the offices back from any buyer, the Times reported.
“The sale price will be predicated on the lease terms HSBC is willing to accept” to rent back the space, Fasulo said.
Share Sale
HSBC raised 12.5 billion pounds in the U.K.’s largest rights offer earlier this month. The bank needs cash to help counter the $15.5 billion pretax loss of its North American operation for 2008 and to add to the $53 billion it set aside during the past three years to cover bad loans. It has so far avoided taking U.K. government funding, unlike rivals Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc.
“As part of managing a significant global real estate portfolio HSBC is testing the market with three of its landmark property assets,” HSBC said in a statement. “HSBC constantly monitors the commercial property market carefully, making decisions based on what is most appropriate for the business and our stakeholders.”
Two years ago HSBC sold the Canary Wharf headquarters to Spanish developer Metrovacesa SA for 1.09 billion pounds in the first sale of a U.K. office building to top 1 billion pounds.
Bought It Back
HSBC then rented offices there at an annual rate of 43.5 million pounds. In December, it bought the building back from Metrovacesa for 838 million pounds, a profit of 250 million pounds. The bank built the tower in 2002.
The New York Times Co. struck a similar deal last month, agreeing to sell the space it occupies in its Manhattan headquarters for $225 million to W.P. Carey & Co., a New York- based real estate investment bank. The newspaper company will rent the building for 15 years from the new owner with an option to buy back its stake in 2019 for $250 million.
Manhattan office vacancy rates in March rose to their highest in more than five years, according to Los Angeles-based real estate services firm CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.
In London’s financial district, empty office space is also at a five-year high, according to NB Real Estate.
HSBC’s London headquarters accommodates about 8,000 workers and was designed by Norman Foster. The 29-story New York property, built in 1985, is at 452 Fifth Ave. between 39th and 40th streets and has 500,000 square feet, according to the Web site MrOfficeSpace.com. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
MPS Bank Seeking EUR 2.2 Billion Sale Leaseback of Bank Offices Across Italy
PropertyEU - April 6, 2009
Italy's Caltagirone Group is said to be the frontrunner in a bid to acquire the real estate assets that Monte Paschi di Siena bank put on the market last year, news agency Radiocor reported. The properties, worth a total of EUR 2.2 bn, are being sold in a sale and leaseback operation managed by Mediobanca. According to media reports, Mediobanca is working on the creation of a consortium of investors including Credit Suisse which would buy the bulk of the properties. Sphere: Related Content
Italy's Caltagirone Group is said to be the frontrunner in a bid to acquire the real estate assets that Monte Paschi di Siena bank put on the market last year, news agency Radiocor reported. The properties, worth a total of EUR 2.2 bn, are being sold in a sale and leaseback operation managed by Mediobanca. According to media reports, Mediobanca is working on the creation of a consortium of investors including Credit Suisse which would buy the bulk of the properties. Sphere: Related Content
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
DHL Agrees to EUR 30 Million Sale Leaseback of Three Benelux Distribution Centers
Property Week - April 2, 2009
Shareholders of closed-end real-estate investment company WDP have approved a proposal for the company to acquire three logistics sites from international courier DHL. The sites located in the axis between Breda in the Netherlands and Brussels have a total construction potential of 85,000 m2.
DHL will lease back the properties, making WDP the largest provider of real estate space to the firm in Belgium. WDP's shareholders also approved the issuance of 807,733 new shares at EUR 27.15 each to pay for the non-cash transaction.
The transaction will take the form of a merger and three partial de-mergers involving the new shares and the transfer of debt. This will result in a total investment value of EUR 29.7 mln for a gross initial return of 8.7%. Sphere: Related Content
Shareholders of closed-end real-estate investment company WDP have approved a proposal for the company to acquire three logistics sites from international courier DHL. The sites located in the axis between Breda in the Netherlands and Brussels have a total construction potential of 85,000 m2.
DHL will lease back the properties, making WDP the largest provider of real estate space to the firm in Belgium. WDP's shareholders also approved the issuance of 807,733 new shares at EUR 27.15 each to pay for the non-cash transaction.
The transaction will take the form of a merger and three partial de-mergers involving the new shares and the transfer of debt. This will result in a total investment value of EUR 29.7 mln for a gross initial return of 8.7%. Sphere: Related Content
Monday, April 06, 2009
Kesko Completes EUR 50 Million Sale Leaseback of Retail Stores in Finland
IPE - April 3, 2009
The Kesko Pension Fund has bought four retail properties for €50m in a sale and leaseback deal with Finnish trading company Kesko Group.
The €400m Finnish pension fund has purchased a total of 26,000 square metres of store space in Finland, including the K-citimarket in Helsinki, K-rauta Lielahti in Tampere, interests in the K-supermarket Nekala and K-citymarket properties in Tampere.
The pension fund currently allocates 40% to real estate and invests mainly in Finnish trading centres.
Velko Savela, the pension fund’s executive vice president, said the real estate portfolio returned around 8% last year but saw very few transactions.
Savela said the fund held off from making new investments in 2008 and sold very few properties, but is currently considering increasing its allocation to real estate slightly.
The latest deal does not involve any changes in the stores’ operations and all properties have been leased back to Kesko’s parent company for a further 10-15 years.
Kesko Group said it gained around €19m from the transaction, once debt had been added, and said the sale was designed to boost the firm’s liquidity and improve its use.
At 31 December 2008, Kesko owned one million square metres of properties and had 2.9 million square metres of properties leased in Finland and neighbouring Nordic countries. Sphere: Related Content
The Kesko Pension Fund has bought four retail properties for €50m in a sale and leaseback deal with Finnish trading company Kesko Group.
The €400m Finnish pension fund has purchased a total of 26,000 square metres of store space in Finland, including the K-citimarket in Helsinki, K-rauta Lielahti in Tampere, interests in the K-supermarket Nekala and K-citymarket properties in Tampere.
The pension fund currently allocates 40% to real estate and invests mainly in Finnish trading centres.
Velko Savela, the pension fund’s executive vice president, said the real estate portfolio returned around 8% last year but saw very few transactions.
Savela said the fund held off from making new investments in 2008 and sold very few properties, but is currently considering increasing its allocation to real estate slightly.
The latest deal does not involve any changes in the stores’ operations and all properties have been leased back to Kesko’s parent company for a further 10-15 years.
Kesko Group said it gained around €19m from the transaction, once debt had been added, and said the sale was designed to boost the firm’s liquidity and improve its use.
At 31 December 2008, Kesko owned one million square metres of properties and had 2.9 million square metres of properties leased in Finland and neighbouring Nordic countries. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Ford Mulls £100 Million Sale Leaseback of Over 100 Auto Showrooms Across Europe
Property Week - March 30, 2009
Ford, the car giant led by chief executive Alan Mulally, is looking to sell off 100 to 120 showrooms across Europe.
Agents have been invited to pitch to run a sale-and-leaseback of properties in the UK, France and Germany. It is understood that Ford's management hopes to raise around £100m by selling the properties to landlords, which would then rent them back to the car maker. (Independent On Sunday) Sphere: Related Content
Ford, the car giant led by chief executive Alan Mulally, is looking to sell off 100 to 120 showrooms across Europe.
Agents have been invited to pitch to run a sale-and-leaseback of properties in the UK, France and Germany. It is understood that Ford's management hopes to raise around £100m by selling the properties to landlords, which would then rent them back to the car maker. (Independent On Sunday) Sphere: Related Content
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Banco Sabadell Completes EUR 35.7 Million Sale Leaseback of Madrid HQ
Cushman & Wakefield Web Site - March 26, 2009
Banco Sabadell, one of Spain’s main financial institutions, has today announced the sale of its head office in Madrid in a deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield (C&W), real estate consultants for comprehensive services. The total value of the deal came to €35.7 million.
The deal has been made on a sale and leaseback basis, which comprises the sale of the asset and its subsequent leasing by the seller. This type of deal is extremely common for institutions that wish to gain liquidity from their real estate assets. Cushman & Wakefield has recently been involved in several transactions of this nature, such as the sale of Danone’s head office in Barcelona (more than €50 million) and the sale of 12 hypermarkets owned by the distribution chain Eroski (€361 million), both in 2008.
Oriol Barrachina, Managing Partner of Cushman & Wakefield in Barcelona, commented “This deal demonstrates that although there has been a significant decrease in activity in the investment market, there is still a strong interest in deals that involve a good location, a good tenant and a good contractual term”.
The Sabadell building is located at number 71 Calle Serrano in Madrid’s Barrio de Salamanca, one of the city’s most elite districts, which not only acts as a residential area but also houses the headquarters of various financial institutions and numerous high end fashion boutiques.
With nine floors above ground, two below ground and 76 car parking spaces, the building has a constructed area of 6,800m2 and a GLA (gross leasable area) of 4,616m2. The property, which has excellent public transport links, is in an optimum condition after having undergone comprehensive renovations in 2008.
The purchaser is Metroinvest (Metrópolis and La Caixa-Banca Privada.) Sphere: Related Content
Banco Sabadell, one of Spain’s main financial institutions, has today announced the sale of its head office in Madrid in a deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield (C&W), real estate consultants for comprehensive services. The total value of the deal came to €35.7 million.
The deal has been made on a sale and leaseback basis, which comprises the sale of the asset and its subsequent leasing by the seller. This type of deal is extremely common for institutions that wish to gain liquidity from their real estate assets. Cushman & Wakefield has recently been involved in several transactions of this nature, such as the sale of Danone’s head office in Barcelona (more than €50 million) and the sale of 12 hypermarkets owned by the distribution chain Eroski (€361 million), both in 2008.
Oriol Barrachina, Managing Partner of Cushman & Wakefield in Barcelona, commented “This deal demonstrates that although there has been a significant decrease in activity in the investment market, there is still a strong interest in deals that involve a good location, a good tenant and a good contractual term”.
The Sabadell building is located at number 71 Calle Serrano in Madrid’s Barrio de Salamanca, one of the city’s most elite districts, which not only acts as a residential area but also houses the headquarters of various financial institutions and numerous high end fashion boutiques.
With nine floors above ground, two below ground and 76 car parking spaces, the building has a constructed area of 6,800m2 and a GLA (gross leasable area) of 4,616m2. The property, which has excellent public transport links, is in an optimum condition after having undergone comprehensive renovations in 2008.
The purchaser is Metroinvest (Metrópolis and La Caixa-Banca Privada.) Sphere: Related Content
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Standard Chartered Offices in London Offered for £200 Million
Property Week - March 21, 2009
Vincent Tchenguiz is under offer to buy the Standard Chartered building on Basinghall Avenue in the City of London for £200m in his first UK commercial property deal since the middle of last year.
Tchenguiz’s Consensus Group is thought to have agreed to buy the 200,000 sq ft building at 1 Basinghall Avenue from a Middle Eastern consortium. The building is let to Standard Chartered on a 20 year lease that began in 2007 and which pays an annual rent of around £10m a year.
Standard Chartered originally bought the site from The City of London Unit Trust (CLOUT), the unit trust managed by Schroders and advised by Pillar Property, at the end of 2005 for around £120m.
It then soon after carried out a £170m sale and leaseback with Irish group Sloane Capital, the property investment vehicle for horse racing tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus and Limerick property investor Aidan Brooks.
Sloan Capital sold it to the Middle Eastern consortium for £207m. HSH Nordbank provided debt finance to the Middle Eastern consortium. It is thought HSH Nordbank, which has a change of control clause in its debt agreement, could potentially transfer the debt to Tchenguiz under revised terms.
A spokesman for Consensus Business Group declined to comment.
The last UK commercial purchase by Tchenguiz was in May last year when Rainlodge, ultimately owned by the Tchenguiz family trust and advised by Consensus Business Group, bought a student hall in Leeds for £10.6m from Unite, reflecting a net initial yield of 5.7%.
Consensus has also sold a number of major assets in the UK in the past two years, notably selling Shell-Mex House in the West End for £490m to American private equity firm Westbrook. Sphere: Related Content
Vincent Tchenguiz is under offer to buy the Standard Chartered building on Basinghall Avenue in the City of London for £200m in his first UK commercial property deal since the middle of last year.
Tchenguiz’s Consensus Group is thought to have agreed to buy the 200,000 sq ft building at 1 Basinghall Avenue from a Middle Eastern consortium. The building is let to Standard Chartered on a 20 year lease that began in 2007 and which pays an annual rent of around £10m a year.
Standard Chartered originally bought the site from The City of London Unit Trust (CLOUT), the unit trust managed by Schroders and advised by Pillar Property, at the end of 2005 for around £120m.
It then soon after carried out a £170m sale and leaseback with Irish group Sloane Capital, the property investment vehicle for horse racing tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus and Limerick property investor Aidan Brooks.
Sloan Capital sold it to the Middle Eastern consortium for £207m. HSH Nordbank provided debt finance to the Middle Eastern consortium. It is thought HSH Nordbank, which has a change of control clause in its debt agreement, could potentially transfer the debt to Tchenguiz under revised terms.
A spokesman for Consensus Business Group declined to comment.
The last UK commercial purchase by Tchenguiz was in May last year when Rainlodge, ultimately owned by the Tchenguiz family trust and advised by Consensus Business Group, bought a student hall in Leeds for £10.6m from Unite, reflecting a net initial yield of 5.7%.
Consensus has also sold a number of major assets in the UK in the past two years, notably selling Shell-Mex House in the West End for £490m to American private equity firm Westbrook. Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Caixa Catalunya Completes EUR 110 Million Sale Leaseback of 120 Bank Branches in Spain
Spanish News - March 18, 2009
In December, Caixa Catalunya announced that it would sell 824 branches of its 1200 commercial premises in Spain in an effort to raise cash.
On Tuesday, the Spanish savings bank has confirmed that it has sold 120 of the branches through a sale and leaseback agreement raising 110 million euros. The sale has been carried out solely through its private banking customers in an effort to offer them a valuable investment with low risk and guaranteed retrun.
Caixa Catalunya says it is offering a 6 – 6.5 per cent return on investment by paying a rent for the sold premises. The global return is estimated to be at 8.5% if the future increase of rents is considered.
The formula sale and leasback is something that is currently being highly used by Spanish banks. Banco Pastor another Spanish bank announced last week it hopes to raise 230 million euros for the sale and leaseback of 160 of its 650 branches in Spain. Sphere: Related Content
In December, Caixa Catalunya announced that it would sell 824 branches of its 1200 commercial premises in Spain in an effort to raise cash.
On Tuesday, the Spanish savings bank has confirmed that it has sold 120 of the branches through a sale and leaseback agreement raising 110 million euros. The sale has been carried out solely through its private banking customers in an effort to offer them a valuable investment with low risk and guaranteed retrun.
Caixa Catalunya says it is offering a 6 – 6.5 per cent return on investment by paying a rent for the sold premises. The global return is estimated to be at 8.5% if the future increase of rents is considered.
The formula sale and leasback is something that is currently being highly used by Spanish banks. Banco Pastor another Spanish bank announced last week it hopes to raise 230 million euros for the sale and leaseback of 160 of its 650 branches in Spain. Sphere: Related Content
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
RBS to Review Global Property Portfolio
Property Week - March 13, 2009
The Royal Bank of Scotland is embarking on a review of its vast operational property estate.
The beleaguered bank, which is majority owned by the UK government, is reviewing its global property contracts and is seeking consultants to advise on how it can save money and increase efficiency on its global property portfolio.
RBS, which owns global brands such as ABN Amro and NatWest, is likely to look to rationalise its estate as it cuts jobs.
It may even hive off certain elements of its business into a ‘non-core’ function.
In its 2008 results, the bank, which has cut at least 3,000 jobs, made a loss of £24.1bn – the biggest in British corporate history.
Chief executive Stephen Hester, formerly of British Land, is now looking to save costs in all parts of the business.
An RBS spokeswoman said: ‘We are constantly looking at our global property to ensure we have the optimal structure in place and that our property assets remain relevant to the needs of our businesses.
‘We have building blocks in place for a five-year strategy to restore the company to strength and our property assets will be given careful strategic thought by the new board.’
RBS’s latest results show that it spent around £1.7bn on maintaining its own property in 2008, up from £1.5bn in 2007, because it invested in developing its corporate banking branch network.
t is thought that Juliet Filose, who joined the RBS property team under director of group property Barry Varcoe last year, is leading the search and has appointed consultancy Corporate Property Advisers (CPA) to help select the new advisory team.
CPA was unavailable to comment.
The new contract is likely to take the form of an ‘integrated services’ contract, where one firm or a small group of firms cover all the necessary services across global property.
It is likely to begin with transactions management and lease advisory, and move on to other functions such as facilities management at a later date.
RBS has traditionally been ahead of the curve in managing its property costs and realising value. For example, it completed a sale and leaseback on £750m of its UK property to Telereal and Prupim at the end of 2007.
At present, DTZ and Grubb & Ellis advise RBS on a global basis and NB Real Estate, GVA Grimley and Drivers Jonas provide management advice in the UK. Sphere: Related Content
The Royal Bank of Scotland is embarking on a review of its vast operational property estate.
The beleaguered bank, which is majority owned by the UK government, is reviewing its global property contracts and is seeking consultants to advise on how it can save money and increase efficiency on its global property portfolio.
RBS, which owns global brands such as ABN Amro and NatWest, is likely to look to rationalise its estate as it cuts jobs.
It may even hive off certain elements of its business into a ‘non-core’ function.
In its 2008 results, the bank, which has cut at least 3,000 jobs, made a loss of £24.1bn – the biggest in British corporate history.
Chief executive Stephen Hester, formerly of British Land, is now looking to save costs in all parts of the business.
An RBS spokeswoman said: ‘We are constantly looking at our global property to ensure we have the optimal structure in place and that our property assets remain relevant to the needs of our businesses.
‘We have building blocks in place for a five-year strategy to restore the company to strength and our property assets will be given careful strategic thought by the new board.’
RBS’s latest results show that it spent around £1.7bn on maintaining its own property in 2008, up from £1.5bn in 2007, because it invested in developing its corporate banking branch network.
t is thought that Juliet Filose, who joined the RBS property team under director of group property Barry Varcoe last year, is leading the search and has appointed consultancy Corporate Property Advisers (CPA) to help select the new advisory team.
CPA was unavailable to comment.
The new contract is likely to take the form of an ‘integrated services’ contract, where one firm or a small group of firms cover all the necessary services across global property.
It is likely to begin with transactions management and lease advisory, and move on to other functions such as facilities management at a later date.
RBS has traditionally been ahead of the curve in managing its property costs and realising value. For example, it completed a sale and leaseback on £750m of its UK property to Telereal and Prupim at the end of 2007.
At present, DTZ and Grubb & Ellis advise RBS on a global basis and NB Real Estate, GVA Grimley and Drivers Jonas provide management advice in the UK. Sphere: Related Content
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Greek Government Planing EUR 800 Milion Sale Leaseback of Public Properties
PropertyEU - March 13, 2009
The Greek government plans to generate around EUR 800 mln from the sale and leaseback of 33 public properties over the next two years, following approval of the disposal programme by the parliamentary privatisation committee last week. The properties total 272,000 m2 and mainly house government ministries, tax departments and police stations.
Two pilot bids of between EUR 100 mln and EUR 200 mln will be held during 2009, while the rest will be completed by 2010 with parallel bids for packages of properties in the region of EUR 100 mln to EUR 150 mln each.
The government will guarantee the leaseback for a period of around 20 years with an option to extend the lease further or even purchase back the property at an agreed price.
Emporiki Bank, UniCredit and CBRE-Atria advised the government on the disposal programme, which is similar to state sale-and-leaseback schemes under way in Italy, Germany and Belgium. Sphere: Related Content
The Greek government plans to generate around EUR 800 mln from the sale and leaseback of 33 public properties over the next two years, following approval of the disposal programme by the parliamentary privatisation committee last week. The properties total 272,000 m2 and mainly house government ministries, tax departments and police stations.
Two pilot bids of between EUR 100 mln and EUR 200 mln will be held during 2009, while the rest will be completed by 2010 with parallel bids for packages of properties in the region of EUR 100 mln to EUR 150 mln each.
The government will guarantee the leaseback for a period of around 20 years with an option to extend the lease further or even purchase back the property at an agreed price.
Emporiki Bank, UniCredit and CBRE-Atria advised the government on the disposal programme, which is similar to state sale-and-leaseback schemes under way in Italy, Germany and Belgium. Sphere: Related Content
Friday, March 13, 2009
Banco Pastor Seeking EUR 230 Million Sale Leaseback of 160 Bank Branches in Spain
Forexdaily.org.ru / Dow Jones - March 12, 2009
Spain's Banco Pastor SA (PAS.MC) said Thursday it is planning the sale and leaseback of 25% of its branch office network, allowing the regional bank to raise approximately EUR230 million.
In a press release, Pastor said it hired consultancy Aguirre Newman for the sale of 160 of its 650 branch offices.
Many of Spain's top banks have already sold, or are in the process of selling, part or all of their branch networks, in an effort to bolster their capital bases. The sector is facing a sharp increase in loan defaults and slowing loan growth, amid an intensifying economic downturn in Spain.
Pastor said it was planning to sell off the real estate in 52 packages to local investors. Sphere: Related Content
Spain's Banco Pastor SA (PAS.MC) said Thursday it is planning the sale and leaseback of 25% of its branch office network, allowing the regional bank to raise approximately EUR230 million.
In a press release, Pastor said it hired consultancy Aguirre Newman for the sale of 160 of its 650 branch offices.
Many of Spain's top banks have already sold, or are in the process of selling, part or all of their branch networks, in an effort to bolster their capital bases. The sector is facing a sharp increase in loan defaults and slowing loan growth, amid an intensifying economic downturn in Spain.
Pastor said it was planning to sell off the real estate in 52 packages to local investors. Sphere: Related Content
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