Three vacant office properties traded this week with new owners planning to convert the space to residential or hospitality use. 

In Rome, the former Monte dei Paschi di Siena office building at Via del Corso 232 was sold by Ardian and DeaCapital in a €123m deal. New landlords plan to transform the vacant office building into a 5-star luxury hotel. In Copenhagen Nordic private equity firm Slättö has bought the Halmtorvet square property with the intention to redevelop the obsolete offices into a 169 room apart-hotel. In Sesto San Giovanni, near Milan, the Casati IV fund managed by Castello Sgr snapped up a 25,000m2 office complex to convert it to student residences. 

Obsolete offices are being repurposed across Europe to help deal with acute housing shortages. According to recent data from advisor JLL, the 250m sqft of vacant office space in Europe’s top 35 cities could provide up to 500,000 homes. 

While being the end game in this week’s office transactions, the living sector also dominated overall deal activity with the largest transaction being Nuveen Real Estate and GSA completing the €538m acquisition of the YouFirst Campus Portfolio student residence portfolio in France. 

Three hotels also changed hands, with Ibervalles and ARD-ID splashing €125m in the Miragem Cascais hotel in Portugal and Diorit Private Equity Fund and BDPST Group picking up the Marriott Budapest hotel from CPI for €115m. In Verona, Italy, PGIM Real Estate, Dekus, HNH Hospitality picked up the Hotel Leon D’oro for an undisclosed amount. 

Also this week, Greycoat appointed Savills and Knight Frank to sell a City of London riverside office block for £140m, or a net initial yield of 9.78%. The investment comprises two contiguous buildings: Vintners Place and Thames House, extending to 274,175sqft 60% of the floorspace is currently multi-let to 11 tenants. 

Recently completed deals       
Asset Asset type Location Buyer Vendor Size Price (mln) Key facts
YouFirst Campus Portfolio living France Nuveen Real Estate (on behalf of TIAA) and GSA Gecina 22 assets €538 The portfolio generates net rent after operating platform costs of €20.8m in 2024.
Retail park portfolio retail London ICG Real Estate M7 360,000sqft £136.5 (€160) The deal was made on behalf of ICGRE’s Strategic Real Estate II Fund and secured at an attractive initial yield.
Miragem Cascais hotel Cascais, Portugal Ibervalles and ARD-ID NA 87 rooms €125 The property will be completely redeveloped.
Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena office office Rome Corso Gestioni Alberghiere and Talia Gestioni Alberghiere Dea Capital Real Estate, Ardian 11,000m2 €123 The asset will be converted into a luxury hotel.
Budapest Mariott hotel hotel Budapest Diorit Private Equity Fund and BDPST Group CPI 27,600m2 €115 Marriott International will continue to operate the hotel, originally opened as Hotel Duna InterContinental in 1969.
The Peel Centre retail Bracknell, UK Hines Global Income Trust LandSec 168,000sqft £49 (€57) Tenants in the retail park include Home Bargains, Tapi Carpets, Consol Suncentre and Pets At Home.
Halmtorvet square office Copenhagen Slättö Commercial Real Estate Denmark 169 rooms €27 The property will undergo a complete renovation and conversion from obsolete offices to a 169 room apart-hotel.
Resi development platform corporate Berlin Arrow Global Group Ziegert €1.3b development value NA The acquisition allows Arrow Germany to invest in multiple real estate projects, including high-end residential developments with a gross development value of €450m.
Three assets self storage UK Harrison Street Pacific Investments 138,000sqf NA The acquisition is part of a new £150m (€178m) self storage investment JV.
Care home portfolio living UK Franklin Templeton LDC Care Homes 32 assets NA The portfolio offers 1,500 beds across the UK.
Project Fascinatio living Capelle aan den Ijssel, The Netherlands International Campus Groep Caenen Capital Fund, White House Development and ROM 342 apartments NA Construction is scheduled to begin at the end of August 2025, with completion of the PBSA facility expected by summer 2027.
Two assets logistics Frankfurt and Dusseldorf Greykite’s Lagerhome, Troveinvest NA 48,000m2 NA Troveinvest plans to unlock value-add potential in the portfolio through active leasing and accretive capital expenditure.
Last-mile logistics asset logistics Savigny-le-Temple, France ESR Europe Barings 22,000m2 NA The logistics facility marks the fifth property added to Project Jasmine, the firm’s French urban logistics aggregation initiative launched in 2023.
Smedekær residential property living Copenhagen PenSam Alma Property Partners and AG Gruppen 200 apartments NA The deal represents PenSam’s second recent acquisition from Alma Property Partners and AG Gruppen.
Hotel Leon D’Oro hotel Verona PGIM Real Estate, Dekus, HNH Hospitality Lef Holding srl NA NA The property will be completely redeveloped.
Former office building office Sesto San Giovanni, Italy Casati IV fund managed by Castello ARECneprix 25,000m2 NA The property will be converted to student residences.

 

Recently completed loans    
Lender(s) Borrower(s) Asset(s) Loan Size (mln) Key facts
Bond investors Heimstaden Bostad Unsecured €500 The notes have a maturity of 5.25 years with a coupon of 3.75%.
Barclays and others Tritax Big Box REIT Unsecured £400 (€470) The new facility has an initial five-year term that may be extended to a maximum of seven years with the consent of the lender.
Lloyds Bank, RBS International and Banco Santander, L&G industrial property fund Company portfolio £400 (€470) The three-year refinancing facility expires in 2028.
BNP Paribas, ABN AMRO, HSBC Sirius Portfolio €150 The RCF has two one-year extension options and incorporates accordions allowing it to be upsized by up to an additional €100m. The Facility carries a margin of 120bps over short term EURIBOR.
J&T GTC Galeria Północna in Warsaw €84 The loan has a term of 5 years and will be repaid based on a 24-year amortisation repayment profile.
NIB Atrium Ljungberg Söderhallarna mall in Stockholm €77 The facility will finance the redevelopment of the mall.
Aldermore Ace Student Living PBSA in Southampton, Exeter, Plymouth, Winchester and Falmouth. £37 (€43) The loan supports the refinancing and strategic development of the firm’s student accommodation portfolio.
Future Growth Capital Pocket Living 149-home north London development £24.5 (€29) The facility has a term of 2 years.

 

Funds on the market   
Firm Fund Strategy Details
Stoneweg Stoneweg Icona European data-centre fund (IDC Fund) Investing in European data centres The fund has received a €50m commitment from Singapore-listed Stoneweg European Stapled Trust.