III-investments launches new funds for German investor

German fund manager iii-investments announced on Monday the launch of new real estate special funds for a German institutional investor with investment target Europe.

'In the last two years, we have been mandated by institutional investors such as insurance companies, pension funds and pension schemes with asset management mandates for a total amount of more than EUR 1 bn. This proves that investors have a high confidence in our long-term experience in national and international real estate asset and portfolio management,' Reinhard Mattern, managing director of iii-investments, said.

Based on a continuous risk return analysis of up to 50 European real estate markets the fund concentrates on a core and core+ strategy. Investment targets are new and existing properties with a focus on prime office and retail locations. The target investment volume is EUR 400 mln with a maximum debt ratio of 50%. The acquisition team is already analysing properties in France and Belgium.

'Considering the current price level the CBD of Paris is attractive, mainly due to our expectations of rental growth within the next few years,' said head of research Stefan Janotta.

'Lyon and Marseille in France as well as Brussels in Belgium are also on our acquisition list. In contrast to the CBD of Paris these markets benefit from a higher initial yield level. In relation to the government bond yields of the respective countries and their rental growth prospects these markets offer attractive investment opportunities.'

iii-investments is the real estate investment company of HypoVereinsbank which belongs to UniCredit Group and is one of the leading companies for real estate special funds in Germany. The value of the assets under management amounts to nearly EUR 5 bn, invested in 13 European countries.