HIH Invest Real Estate has acquired 14 properties in Germany worth €630m for a new residential real estate fund created with the housing arm of Vonovia.
HIH Invest, which owns a majority interest in the fund on behalf of a club of institutional investors, said it will act as asset manager and fund manager, while Vonovia will handle the property management.
HIH Invest said Vonovia sold 11 of the fund’s 14 property developments and new-build structures comprising 113,500sqm of residential and 13,500sqm of commercial floor area.
The properties are located in Berlin, Hamburg, Leipzig, Halle/Saale, Dresden, Königs Wusterhausen, Böblingen and Offenbach.
Felix Meyen, managing director at HIH Invest, said: “All properties come with excellent specification, most of them featuring parquetry, underfloor heating and floor-length windows. They meet the German energy standards KfW 55, KfW 55 EE and EnEV or else are being prepared for a DGNB Gold certification.
“The underground car parks of the buildings are equipped with electric vehicle parking and charging stations. For us, this meant a unique opportunity to buy into a diversified, energy-efficient new-build portfolio in eight fast-growing cities.”
Alexander Eggert, managing director of HIH Invest, said: “With the newly launched fund, we have succeeded in expanding our portfolio with a strategically strong product even in this challenging market environment.
“The German rental property market is a promising asset class. Residential investments are noticeably less susceptible to fluctuations in value and offer growing cash flows.”
Carsten Demmler, managing director at HIH Invest, said: “We are very glad to be able to open up a highly attractive investment opportunity with an excellent risk-return ratio for our institutional investors.
“As Germany’s biggest housing company with holdings of more than 543,000 apartments and approximately €84bn in real estate assets, this DAX-listed conglomerate brings plenty of experience in housing construction to the table. The fund represents the first stage in our further collaboration with Vonovia and institutional investors.”
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