TIAA-CREF, Mfi snap up Berlin's Gropius Passagen

TIAA-CREF, the pension fund manager for teachers in the US, and German retail specialist Mfi have formed an 80-20 joint venture to acquire the Gropius Passagen shopping centre in Berlin. The asset was sold by German property investor WealthCap on behalf of its closed-end HFS Immobilien Deutschland 11 fund. The transaction price amounted to a total of EUR 341 mln.

German insurer Allianz Real Estate is believed to have provided debt for the deal.

At 93,200 m2, the property is the largest shopping centre in the German capital and features 150 stores, including anchor tenants Kaufland, Peek & Cloppenburg, H&M, Galeria Kaufhof, C&A, Douglas Group and a UCI Cinema. Constructed in 1967, Gropius Passagen has undergone several extensions and refurbishments. It includes more than 2,000 parking spaces.

'Gropius Passagen reflects TIAA-CREF’s ongoing strategy to develop a diversified real estate portfolio, including high-quality dominant shopping centres in markets benefiting from strong catchment areas,' said Aymeric Thibord, director, real estate investment, TIAA-CREF Asset Management UK Limited. 'We believe Gropius Passagen’s robust tenant mix and track record and Germany’s strong economic position within the eurozone, when paired with TIAA-CREF and Mfi’s active management, will help create value for our clients over the long term.'

This will be TIAA-CREF’s second partnership with Mfi. TIAA-CREF owns the Erlangen Arcaden shopping centre, a 30,000-m² mall with 100 stores that opened in 2007 in Erlangen, Germany. TIAA-CREF developed the centre in partnership with mfi, which continues to manage the property on behalf of TIAA-CREF.

The Gropius Passagen acquisition follows TIAA-CREF's purchase of the PEP Shopping Center in Munich from RREEF in late 2011.