Fully let office building in sought-after sub-market Polanco acquired for Unilmmo: Global Union Investment continues to expand its international real estate fund portfolio in the Americas. The company has acquired the Corporativo Dos Patios office building in Mexico City for its open ended real estate fund Unilmmo: Global. The building was completed in 2012 and is fully let. This investment marks Union Investment’s first acquisition in Latin America since 2008. “Since our market entry over eleven years ago, Mexico City has been a central plank of our international investment strategy. We are delighted to be acquiring Dos Patios as the perfect addition to our high-quality Mexico portfolio. We intend to exploit the stable economic conditions in Mexico to invest a further 250 to 300 million in this market over the medium term,” said Martin Bruehl, Member of the Management Board at Hamburg-based Union Investment Real Estate GmbH. The transaction was handled out of the Union Investment office in New York City. Savills advised Union Investment on the transaction. With total assets worth approximately EUR 2.5 billion, Unilmmo: Global already holds four office properties in Mexico. “The new acquisition comprises 28,739 sq m of rental space, of which 95 per cent is office space and 5 per cent retail. It highlights our strategy of broadening the fund’s portfolio in Mexico City,” said Martin Bruehl. Union Investment is acquiring the property, which has been awarded Gold LEED Core & Shell certification, directly from listed project developer Grupo Gigante Immobiliare. The purchase price is around USD 117.5 million. Offering 1,370 underground parking spaces, the Class A Dos Patios building is centrally located in the heart of Mexico City’s business district in Polanco. After Santa Fe, this is the second-largest sub-market in the Mexican capital, with a good balance of mixed-use commercial space, high-quality residential properties and numerous cultural facilities, earning it a reputation as currently the most sought-after location in downtown Mexico City. “The excellent location and building quality – thanks to the two patios for which it is named, the property has an unparalleled amount of natural light, as well as unique views into and out of the building – make this a compelling investment, as does the outstanding quality of the tenant mix,” said Martin Bruehl. Tenants on long-term leases include companies with very strong credit ratings, such as anchor tenant Siemens Immobiliare, energy services provider Schlumberger and Grupo Gigante. With actively managed assets of around EUR 31 billion, Union Investment is one of Europe’s leading real estate investment managers. It currently holds seven properties in Mexico in its open-ended real estate funds, worth approx. USD 465 million. As the first German investment manager to enter the Mexican market, Union Investment started off by acquiring a stake in Torre Mayor, which at 225 metres is the tallest office building in South America. Since market entry, Union Investment has also disposed of five properties at a profit in Mexico as part of its active asset management policy. Most recently, the Tamayo 100 office building in Monterrey and the Parque Industrial Technologico II commercial and logistics property in Guadalajara were both sold for more than the latest expert valuation. Source link

Established Alpine locations need to adapt to attract ‘Generation Y’ St Moritz, Val d’Isere and Verbier top the Savills Alpine Resorts Price League  Austria resorts still offer value for money  Weak sterling post EU-referendum means Swiss Alpine property is 8.6% more expensive to buy and Austrian Alpine property 7.8% With the baby boomer demographic at the upper end of the skiing age, more needs to be done to attract the millennial generation says Savills World Research and Alpine Homes in the Alpine Property Market Report launched today. Generation Y, shaped by technology but often time poor and burdened by student debt, need a ski experience relevant to them and resorts are having to realign their offering. Many resorts now offer free wifi on the slopes and certain resorts are moving away from the traditional rustic look of hotels and lodgings, preferred by the boomer generation, towards a more contemporary flavour.  Winter X-Games type parks and music festivals, such as Snowbombing in Mayrhofen, are becoming a permanent fixture at many resorts. Real estate investors would do well to seek out property in the established, accessible resorts with a diverse non-ski offer. Paul Tostevin, associate director, Savills World Research, said, “Skier numbers in the west are at a high plateau, or, in some markets, in decline. The most resilient Alpine resorts will be those that are able to diversify their demand base. This means attracting new, younger visitors – for a variety of activities – and tapping into growing Asian ski markets. “The prime resorts in the Alps have a key advantage, an established reputation as a destination for the world’s wealthy. Few global rivals have the cachet of the premier Swiss, French and Austrian destinations. We expect more demand from the newly rich from emerging markets as they seek out the ‘right’ places to be seen.” With prices broadly static in resorts across the region, international buyers and sellers have found any profit or losses dictated by currency movements. In the wake of the UK’s EU-Referendum and the weakening of sterling, Swiss Alpine property has become 8.6% more costly to sterling buyers, while French and Austrian Alpine homes have become 7.6% more expensive. Dollar dominated buyers are in a marginally stronger position than in May of this year. SwitzerlandSt Moritz remains the most expensive resort in Switzerland, and indeed the Alps, at €21,200psm (CHF23,000psm). Verbier follows at €16,800psm (CHF18,000psm) however, in the medium term, we expect to see upward pressure on prices due to the Lex Weber law putting a cap on the stock available to buy.  The final existing planning permissions are being built out and this will be the last season that off-plan apartments will be available for overseas buyers.  In future, some smaller resorts may see increased demand as overseas buyers, with restricted budgets, are pushed further a field. Verbier’s neighbour, La Tzoumaz offers good accessibility to the Four Valleys and more affordable property at around €4,600psm (CHF5,000psm). Nendaz too may attract overseas interest, an international school opens here soon and it has recently added the Four Valleys Hotel and Spa to its village centre. AustriaRising later on the international stage, Austria still offers value for money compared to its Swiss and French counterparts. Austrian resorts are generally at lower altitude with shorter ski seasons and readily market themselves as a year round destination in turn attracting a diverse visitor base. Kitzbuhel tops the Alpine Resorts Price League when it comes to Austrian resorts yet is half the price of its Swiss counterparts. The popular resorts of Solden, Mayrhofen and Zell am See are also some of the most affordable with prices around €6,000 psm. FranceDemand for prime French Alpine property has traditionally been driven by the British. British buyers benefitted from a weak euro in 2015 and were particularly active in the market. This currency advantage has since been eroded and the impact on sterling buyer volumes remain to be seen. Euro-dominated buyers, notably the Dutch and Belgians, continue to rise in importance. Val d’Isere is the most expensive French resort at €18,000psm (although Courchevel 1850 taken on its own is pricier still) whilst Tignes, La Plagne and Flaine come in at under €7,000psm. Jeremy Rollason, managing director, Savills Alpine Homes, said, “Luckily for developers, UK buyers do not dominate the Alpine property market in the same way that they might have done a decade ago. We are seeing a greater diversity of buyer nationalities across the Alps, with Belgians, Dutch and Chinese particularly active, in addition to domestic buyers. UK buyers however could have been hit harder by currency swings and are slowly returning to the market post-Brexit.” Please click here for a copy of the latest report. For more information contact Savills Alpine Homes on + 44(0) 20 7016 3740 or Savills World Research on tel: +44 (0)20 7016 3883 or visit www.savills.com Source link

Book Course HSL is to run a 1 day course on Construction – Managing Health Risks in Construction Seminar. 5 October 2016 As a construction worker you are 100 times more likely to die from ill health caused by your work than through an accident. However, there is a tendency to focus on immediate likelihood of harm rather than the things that kill workers slowly. Deaths in construction workers caused by a cumulative exposure to health risks over many years are completely preventable, yet do we do enough to recognise and act upon the known risk factors? This seminar will provide a unique opportunity to influence the type of support required by the industry to effect a change on health risk management. Common health risks in the construction sector, their prevention and early identification (respiratory, skin, HAVs, noise) Practical Occupational Hygiene updates and a ‘Hands On’ session Approaches to identifying and dealing with stress and mental health issues in the construction sector The new Health Risk Management Maturity Engagement Toolkit and how this can help your business You will also have access to the broad range of HSL experts including medical and health expertise, hygienists, behavioural scientists and psychologists Who Should Attend This seminar will be of interest to employers and contractors of construction workers, health and safety managers and others with responsibilities for health under Construction Design and Management Regulations. Book to attend this seminar if you want to take control of health risks to your workers and be involved in setting direction for industry support in this area.   Venue The seminar will be held at the Health & Safety Laboratory in the spa town of Buxton. Buxton is in the heart of the Peak District and has good links to mainline train stations and Manchester International Airport. Cost The cost of this seminar is £450 per person (includes notes, lunch and refreshments). Take a look at this VIDEO HERE by the Health in Construction Leadership Group – it reinforces the key message of treating health with the same importance as safety: in an industry that, to date, has tended to ‘shout about safety but whisper about health’. Book Course For further information email: training@hsl.gsi.gov.uk or contact the Training & Conferences Unit at HSL directly on +44 (0)1298 218806. Back to Health and Safety Seminars Back to the top Source link