Deutsche Asset Management has acquired an office property in Rotterdam from German fund manager Commerz Real for €75.6 mln, PropertyEU has learned.

blaak 31 in rotterdam

Blaak 31 in Rotterdam

The property at Blaak 31 had belonged to the open-ended real estate fund hausInvest since 2008.

Based on the current annual rent, this results in a gross yield of 7%. 'We are in the process of streamlining our Holland portfolio and have utilised the strong demand for properties in premium locations in order to attain a very good outcome for our investors,' said Mario Schüttauf, a fund manager at hausInvest.

The 11-storey asset is let to law firm Loyens & Loeff and was acquired on behalf of one of Deutsche AM’s funds. It is located in the centre of Rotterdam next to the Markthal in the Laurens quarter, around 10 minutes drive from Rotterdam - The Hague Airport.

The acquisition marks the German company’s return to the Dutch market following a long absence. Market watchers expect it to become more active in the Netherlands in the coming months.

Rubens Capital has been hired to manage the property and Deutsche AM, the investment arm of Deutsche Bank, was advised on the transaction by CBRE. Deutsche AM's other Dutch holdings include Huis Azië (House Asia) in Amsterdam, Carrefour in Leiden, Zilveren Toren (Silver Tower) in Amsterdam and Eurogate in Rotterdam.

Separately, Commerz Real said it has acquired a student and apartment building in Bonn for around €30.3 mln for its special property fund CR Institutional Smart Living Fund. The purchase was structured as a forward funding deal. The vendor is Cologne-based project developer Kreer Projekte.

The residential complex is located in the Weststadt district which borders on the city centre and is due for completion at the beginning of 2019. It will encompass a rentable area of 5,380 m2 with 288 apartments, 116 underground car parking spaces and 304 bicycle stands.

In the course of the transaction support was provided by  CBRE (transaction consulting) and PWC (tax advice), with the law firm Houthoff Buruma providing legal advice.