Austrian real estate investor-developer Immofinanz has sold a historical inner city office building in Vienna to a private asset management firm.

Austrian real estate investor-developer Immofinanz has sold a historical inner city office building in Vienna to a private asset management firm.

The property was built in 1718 as the Batthyány Palace and is located at Bankgasse 2 in the first district. The EUR 22 mln sale price for this property with over 3,300 m2 of rentable space exceeds the carrying amount by more than 30%.

'Vienna is currently experiencing an increase in the demand for prime properties at central locations, and selling prices are consequently attractive. In this case the offering price was significantly higher than the carrying amount, and we were happy to take advantage of this opportunity', commented CEO Eduard Zehetner.

'The transaction also represents another positive outcome of our coming to terms with the past, since the property was part of the agreements related to the so-called IBAG bond,' he added.

Immofinanz decided in 2010-11 to embark on a EUR 2.5 bn sell-off of assets to strengthen its core portfolio. The company operates in Germany, Austria, five countries in Central and Eastern Europe and Russia. It has a EUR 8.7 bn portfolio of standing properties.