Several large portfolio transactions are in the final stages of being concluded in Ireland and more big-ticket packages are set to hit the market.

Several large portfolio transactions are in the final stages of being concluded in Ireland and more big-ticket packages are set to hit the market.

CBRE is expected to name the successful bidder for the Crystal Collection of regional hotels within the next few days. The portfolio comprises assets in the counties of Kerry, Cork, Limerick, Laois, Kildare and Meath and went on the market for an indication price in excess of €35 mln. Investors were given the option to buy individual assets or the entire portfolio.

The market has also seen a fair bout of cherry-picking. In February it emerged that German fund manager Union Investment Real Estate is buying two office buildings, occupied by Facebook in Dublin. They are the prize assets in the wider 33,000 m2 Dublin office portfolio, Tara Collection, which was marketed by JLL and CBRE on behalf of NAMA with a guide price of €266 mln.

Union Investment is believed to have won out against domestic insurer Irish Life and US investors JP Morgan and Hines with a bid of €233 mln, reflecting a yield of around 4%. This compares with Dublin office yields of 7-8% in 2012 when NAMA started to sell distressed assets in 2012.

The properties at 4 & 5 Grand Canal Square in Dublin 4 were designed by Daniel Libeskind and are rented to Facebook on 15-year leases. Both building offer over 11,000 m2 of leaseable area. A third property, 2 Grand Canal Square, was sold to Irish Life last summer. The three assets were developed by Chartered Land.

The other Tara Collection assets are much smaller: 1 Grand Parade (2,900 m2), Alexander House (5,200 m2) and 86-88 Leeson Street Lower (1,500 m2).

Regional shopping centres
JLL is set to complete the sale of the Cornerstone Portfolio of six regional shopping centres shortly. The distressed portfolio was brought to the market by JLL on behalf of the receiver, Grant Thornton. The indication price of €115 mln reflects an initial yield of 7.3%.

The 66,000 m2 portfolio features shopping centres in the counties of Westmeath, Kilkenny, Wexford, Tipperary, Galway and Dublin. The portfolio, including 150 apartments and 3,200 parking spaces generates an annual rent roll of €8.8 mln.

'This portfolio will appeal to Irish and International investors seeking to capitalise on Ireland’s recovery story, supported by strong initial yields and the potential for new lettings and rental growth,' said John Moran, Managing Director and head of investment at JLL.

CBRE reported that investors agreed to acquire 25 hotels for a total of €500 mln during Q1 2015, a higher number of assets than in the whole of 2014. Paul Collins, CBRE Ireland's executive director for hotels: '63 hotel sales concluded in Ireland in 2014, totalling over €341.7 mln, compared to 33 hotel sales totalling €160 mln in 2013. It is phenomenal to consider that as a result of continued deleveraging efforts, the volume of Irish hotel sales concluded in the first three months of 2015 totalled more than €500 mln. We expect 2015 to be the busiest year on record for hotel transactions in Ireland.'

NAMA is expected to bring a range of portfolios to the market in coming months, according to Marie Hunt, head of research at CBRE Ireland. These will likely include a Dublin CBD office portfolio, a suburban office portfolio and a large multi-family residential package. 'As one complete, they have the next one ready to go,' she said.

To read about the largest deals completed in Q1, see Starwood REIT and Union claim half of €1b Irish investment