REAL ESTATE - Property investment and management company Rodamco Europe has sold its building Robeco house in Rotterdam, to increase its focus on shopping centres, it announced.

Robeco House - one of Rodamco’s flagship buildings - has been acquired by KanAm Grundinvest for an amount of approximately €75m.

According to Rodamco, the transaction amount is amply above the latest book value. It did not disclose the book profit. The net initial yield is 5.3%, it added.

The Robeco house consist of a gross lettable area 19,000 m2 of office space and a 185 underground parking spaces. It has been leased until 2016 to asset manager Robeco, a part of the Rabobank Group.

"The sale is in line with Rodamco Europe’s policy to divest non-core investments and to increase its focus on "high-quality retail, primarily dominant shopping centres in key European cities" which are 94% of its assets.

The transfer of ownership will be effective as of 25 June 2007, Rodamco indicated.

Rotterdam-based Rodamco Europe is both investor and manager of its shopping centres in its home regions: the Netherlands, Belgium, the Nordic countries, Franse, Spain and Central Europe.

With €10bn of assets, Rodamco is Europe’s largest listed property investment and management company in the retail sector in Europe.

Germany-based KanAm Grundinvest is an independent investor in office buildings, shopping centres and hotels. Its assets total €6.9bn.