German property company Immofinanz has acquired a 50% stake in a project in Cologne in a joint venture with the German developer Frankonia. The project consists of several office buildings with a total area of 140,000 m2, including the 47,000 m[sup]2[/sup] underground parking lot.

German property company Immofinanz has acquired a 50% stake in a project in Cologne in a joint venture with the German developer Frankonia. The project consists of several office buildings with a total area of 140,000 m2, including the 47,000 m2 underground parking lot.

The buildings are the corporate headquarters of the German insurance firm Gerling until the end of 2008. Thereafter, Immofinanz plans to modernise the existing buildings to increase the total space to 155,000 m2.

Following the refurbishment, approximately half of the space will be occupied by offices, and the rest will house a hotel, 140 apartments, restaurants, an underground parking lot as well as a small amount of retail space. The project costs, including purchase price and construction charges, are expected to be about EUR 380 mln, the company said in a press release.

The first phase of construction is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2011, and the second at the beginning of 2013. 'The purchase of the Gerling headquarters is our largest single activity in Germany', Immofinanz’ceo Karl Petrikovics said. The company holds an option to buy out the remaining 50% share from Frankonia.

Immofinanz has a German portfolio of 81 properties with a total of 1.13 million m2 of floor space. The properties are widely diversified and cover different market segments: housing, offices, retail, logistics and hotels.