Civitas Investment Management has marked its entry into Germany with the acquisition of €300m worth of elderly care and assisted living homes from Deutsche Wohnen.
The specialist community-based care real estate investor, investing on behalf of the Civitas European Social Infrastructure Fund, has acquired the operating company Katharinenhof’s 26 properties, located mainly in Berlin and Hamburg.
Civitas said it is also entering into lease agreements for the 3,000-plus bed portfolio with care operator Alloheim, which will acquire Katharinenhof and continue to provide care and support for the residents.
Civitas European Social Infrastructure Fund was established in 2022 and invests in support and care-based community housing, education and healthcare facilities across a selection of major Western European markets.
The acquisition of the Katharinenhof care property portfolio marks Civitas’ second investment in Europe. This follows the €50m acquisition of a Swedish supported social housing operator and its underlying assets in 2022.
The latest investment lifts the firm’s total European capital commitment to over €450m, Civitas said, adding that it is actively seeking to expand across major Western European markets in social infrastructure assets, aiming to deploy €1bn in the short term.
Nikolay Velev, the head of Europe, Civitas Investment Management, said: “This investment is particularly important for Civitas, marking our entry into the German market and significantly expanding our European presence, where in the short to medium term we are seeking to deploy up to €1bn into investments in high-quality assets and locations with strong operators.”
Tom Rietz, managing director, Alloheim Group, said: “We are delighted to expand our footprint with the acquisition of a high-profile operator such as Katharinenhof and to enter into a new long-term partnership with Civitas with whom we share a common commitment to providing best in class care, support and suitable accommodation for the later living community.
“We look forward to expanding further our relationship with bolt-on acquisitions.”
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