Institutional property manager Bouwinvest has been awarded a total of €92.5 mln in new mandates from four domestic pension schemes for its €2.6 bn Dutch Residential Fund, the largest unleveraged fund for housing assets in the Netherlands.
Institutional property manager Bouwinvest has been awarded a total of €92.5 mln in new mandates from four domestic pension schemes for its €2.6 bn Dutch Residential Fund, the largest unleveraged fund for housing assets in the Netherlands.
Three of the Dutch pension funds are new investors in the residential fund and the fourth has extended its existing mandate by a further €20 mln.
Pensioenfonds Fysiotherapeuten (physiotherapists’ pension fund) invested €25 mln and Pensioenfonds PNO Media (media industry pension fund) invested €40 mln. Both were advised by Grontmij Capital Consultants.
Pensioenfonds COOP (COOP pension fund) invested €7.5 mln and was advised by Zanders Treasury & Finance Solutions.
In addition, Bedrijfstakpensioenfonds voor de Zoetwarenindustrie (confectionary industry pension fund) added €20 mln to its existing €30 mln investment in the residential fund, made last year. Altis Invetment Management advised the pension fund.
Dick van Hal, CEO of Bouwinvest, said: 'In the space of a year Bouwinvest has attracted five new institutional investors into our Dutch Residential Fund to co-invest alongside our parent company bpf Bouw, the construction workers pension fund. This reflects both the quality of the assets in the fund -- where we target a 6.0% return for a very low risk -- and a sea change in investors’ perception towards the residential market in the Netherlands. Housing prices have turned a corner after five years of declines and moves by the Dutch government to liberalise the rental market are providing a more level playing field for investors.'
Alongside renewed interest from domestic institutional investors, the Dutch residential market also emerged as one of Europe’s hottest real estate investment sectors last year as foreign investors ploughed more than €1.5 bn into rental housing in the Netherlands in 2014, according to some estimates.
Bouwinvest Real Estate Investment Management (REIM) is specialised in managing real estate portfolios for institutional investors. The firm has €6.1 bn of assets under management.
For more indepth information on the Dutch residential property market, go to our investment briefing section and our YouTube channel for interviews with Bouwinvest CEO Dick van Hal
