French fund Primonial has closed the acquisition of the IN/OUT office building in Paris from SFL, the French subsidiary of the Colonial Group, for a price of €445 mln, or a yield of 3.7%.
The deal, which was anticipated by EuroProperty - PropertyEU's sister publication, was initially signed in July. It involves a 35,000 m2 office property, located in the Boulogne-Billancourt district in western Paris.
According to SFL, the deal volume represents a significant premium on the last valuation.
'This transaction highlights the success of the value creation strategy implemented by the Colonial Group and in this particular case executed by our French subsidiary SFL,' said Pere Viñolas, CEO of Colonial.
The building is 100% occupied by the OECD on a 12 year lease contract, inked in 2015 after a significant repositioning of the asset. SFL said that the submarket 'Croissant Ouest', where the asset is located, had reached yields below 4%.
'We have been able to capture maximum returns through the full real estate value chain, identifying first an opportunity of repositioning an asset, creating a quality product for the market, closing a long-term leasing agreement with a high solvency tenant, and signing the sale of the asset at the optimal timing for this asset,' said Juan José Brugera, chairman of Colonial and SFL.
Acquired in 2000 by SFL as part of a sale and leaseback transaction, the property was extensively remodelled between 2011 and 2013 after Thomson left the premises.
SFL was advised in the transaction by JLL and notary office Oudot, and Primonial REIM was advised by notary office Wargny Katz & Associés and law firm LPA-CGR.
