Swedish residential specialist Heimstaden has acquired two build-to-rent projects in Warsaw, Poland, from the French developer and contractor, Eiffage, who also will act as the general contractor.
The projects were purchased for €65 mln by Heimstaden's subsidiary, Heimstaden Bostad, using existing funds.
Located in the sub-markets of Praga Pólnoc and Sluzewiec, the schemes include approximately 640 residential units across 24,363 m2, with additional commercial units (2,117 m2) and parking spaces.
The total annual gross rental income for the two projects is estimated to be €5 mln at completion. Construction will start in early 2021, with completion expected in Q1 2022 and Q1 2023.
In 2019, Heimstaden Bostad announced it would expand its strategy to include other European markets in addition to Scandinavia, including Central and Eastern European markets with favourable macroeconomic fundamentals and residential trends.
'This latest acquisition is in line with our strategy of expanding Heimstaden Bostad to European markets with strong macroeconomic prospects and attractive housing market dynamics. The Polish residential market is strong and stable, and with expected continued household growth in the major cities, we are convinced that these new homes will be well received in the market,' said Christian Fladeland, co-chief investment officer of Heimstaden.
Heimstaden Bostad will seek further investment opportunities in the Polish market, both in existing properties and additional build-to-rent projects. The company said it would also establish in-house operations in Poland in 2021 to boost its customer services.
'As we are entering Poland with an evergreen perspective, we will build up high-quality in-house operations, which will deliver friendly and sustainable homes, and we look forward to presenting our customer centred business model to our future Polish customers,' said Patrik Hall, CEO of Heimstaden.
Heimstaden Bostad AB was advised by Dentons (legal), Deloitte (tax), Arcadis (technical), Leach & Partners (operations) and CBRE (commercial) on the transaction.
Savills advised Eiffage.
