GOEFs to release €21b of assets for sale by 2017

German open-ended funds (GOEFs) in liquidation are set to release €21 bn of commercial real estate on to the market by 2017, DTZ has forecast.

More sales are expected to take place in Germany and the Netherlands this year, the adviser said.

A total of 14 GOEFs are now in liquidation, and four others are frozen and could liquidate by 2014.

DTZ said forced sales by GOEFs between 2014 and 2017 are expected to reach record levels in Europe.

The adviser has published an updated report revealing the impact of the current liquidation of GOEFs and the subsequent impact on capital values of commercial property in the affected regions.

In 2012, assets sold by GOEFs in liquidation process or frozen accounted for €3.4 bn through 27 deals, of the European component of their portfolio. Most of these sales were concentrated in France (41%) and the UK (31%) where funds benefited from favourable market conditions and attractive pricing.

Surprisingly, GOEFs have been quiet in their domestic market which accounted only for 20% of the assets sold in 2012.

Funds with an end date in 2013 were less active than expected in 2012, with €1.7 bn of assets still to sell in their portfolio. More activity from these funds is therefore expected in the course of 2013 with sales anticipated in a wide range of European countries, including Germany and the Netherlands.

By size, European assets make up the majority of their portfolio with 6.5 million m2 to be sold between now and 2017. Assets held by GOEFs in liquidation are predominantly located in Germany (2.1 million or 33% of leasable space total volume) and in Benelux (1.3 million or 19%). Southern Europe ranks third, with GOEFs accounting for 1.1 million of m2.