Allianz Real Estate has increased its London exposure via its first office equity investment in the city, acquiring a 75% interest in a three-building portfolio owned by British Land, who will retain the remaining 25% as part of a joint venture.
The purchase price was £401 mln (€450 mln).
The three assets – 10 Portman Square, Marble Arch House and York House – are located in Marylebone in London‘s West End. Constructed between 2007 and 2014, the fully let, 29,000 m2 portfolio offers contemporary design in line with tenant requirements. The buildings are BREEAM certified and fulfil the CRREM benchmark.
This acquisition is the latest in building out Allianz‘s exposure to the UK and Ireland, and London in particular. The firm has constructed a £4.3 bn footprint in both equity and financing transactions, across multiple sectors.
Annette Kroeger, CEO Region North & Central Europe at Allianz Real Estate, said: ‘Adding offices to our already established logistics, residential and student accommodation platforms rounds out our UK equity portfolio, augmenting the fantastic work executed by our European Debt team.’
Allianz opened an office in London in June 2019.
Recent UK deals include, on the equity side, a £260 mln develop-to-core logistics venture with AEW; a £260 mln, 21.5% stake in the Door residential investment vehicle; and a £350 mln investment in Chapter‘s student accommodation expansion program; and, on the debt side, a £400 mln refinancing of Lazari‘s five-office portfolio.
‘Our conviction in London as an investment destination continues to grow. We will continue to look for opportunities to expand across all our current platforms. As long-term investors, we focus on the more resilient sectors and assets, particularly those which are fit to meet future tenant requirements around user experience and wellbeing, innovation, flexibility and ESG. Our focus will be on diversified core, manage-to-core and develop-to-core strategies within London,’ added Kari Pitkin, head of Business Development for Europe at Allianz Real Estate.
