Real estate investors in Ireland are expected to spend approximately EUR 8 bn on commercial property assets in Europe this year. Half of the transactions are already under way, according to Henry Cleary, head of real estate at Barclays Bank Ireland. Speaking at the bank's recent European real estate seminar, Cleary said Irish investors will spend approximately EUR 4.4 bn in the UK and the other EUR 3.5 bn in continental Europe, mainly Germany, France Belgium and Sweden.
Real estate investors in Ireland are expected to spend approximately EUR 8 bn on commercial property assets in Europe this year. Half of the transactions are already under way, according to Henry Cleary, head of real estate at Barclays Bank Ireland. Speaking at the bank's recent European real estate seminar, Cleary said Irish investors will spend approximately EUR 4.4 bn in the UK and the other EUR 3.5 bn in continental Europe, mainly Germany, France Belgium and Sweden.
'Irish investors have been increasingly looking at property investments in continental Europe because of the lack of stock available in Ireland and the UK. Other attractions include the higher yields available in Europe, and the availability of attractive investment opportunities in large cities such as Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Munich and Berlin,' Cleary said.
Noting Irish investors have become more sophisticated, Cleary cautioned that investors still need to be conscious of the different fiscal, legal and properties issues in the various markets.
