Avignon Capital has set up its first office in the Netherlands, in partnership with local property manager Vastestate, and plans to invest up to €400m in the market over the next two years.
The European property manager, which currently manages €200m of Dutch assets, said it intends to invest €300-400m over the next two years.
Avignon has been investing in the country over the past two years and established an on the ground presence with the hire of Jacco van Pelt in the first quarter of this year. The new office, in Rotterdam, will be run by senior executives Erwin Hebels, Floris Ledder, and Van Pelt.
The office will be responsible for the management of Avignon’s existing Dutch portfolio and will focus on sourcing value-add investments in locations including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. The sector focus will be offices, hotels, and retail/leisure.
Patrick Flaton, managing partner at Avignon Capital said rather than building a team from scratch, it made sense to partner with a like-minded local company with an already established team and in-depth knowledge of the market.
“The demand in the Dutch market has developed very strongly over the past few years and we are seeing increased competition to source the best deals,” Flaton said.
“Having a team on the ground will give us that competitive edge and access to more sought after off-market deals.”
Hebels said: “There is investor demand for more exposure in the Netherlands, a market with strong fundamentals and rental growth opportunities.
“We are seeing good investment opportunities across the key Dutch cities and this partnership with Avignon will unlock the equity requirements needed.”
