Hines Pan-European Core Fund (HECF) has acquired Schlossstrasse 20, a retail property with ancillary office space in Berlin, from the German developer Sedlmayr-Investa Immobilien GmbH. The corner building, located in the Berlin borough of Steglitz, was completed in 2010 and comprises 6,250 square meters (67,274 sq. ft.) on six floors.
The retail part of the property is 100% leased to SportScheck, a major German sporting goods retailer, and serves as their Berlin flagship store. Hines Immobilien GmbH assisted in the acquisition process and will be responsible for asset management. Kemper’s Jones Lang LaSalle Retail GmbH acted in an advisory capacity.
“HECF is entering the Berlin market with the acquisition of this high-quality new building with solid tenancy, and we are pleased to add to the diversification of the existing HECF portfolio with a retail building,” says Christoph Reschke, co-managing director for Hines Germany Christoph Reschke.
“The Berlin market plays an important role for the expansion of Hines in Germany, be it for quality acquisitions, well-leased buildings or for new development projects,” adds Reschke.
Dr. Michael Hauf, managing director of Sedlmayr-Investa, says that the sale of this premium real estate asset proves that international investors trust in the stability and attractiveness of the Berlin market. “Well-situated, architecturally sophisticated project developments continue to be in demand irrespective of economic cycles.”
HECF is a Euro-denominated, Luxembourg-regulated Fonds Commun de Placement (FCP), managed by Hines, with the goal to acquire a geographically diverse portfolio of core commercial buildings across Europe.
Schlossstrasse 20 is the fund’s fourth investment in Germany. In addition to the building in Berlin, HECF has previously acquired the buildings Domkaskaden (Hamburg), Marienstrasse 15 (Frankfurt) and Campus E, Uptown München (Munich).
Houston-based Hines entered the European market in Berlin in 1991. In Germany, Hines has a total of 600,000 square meters (6.5 million sq. ft.) of projects completed or in the pipeline. Current projects include equity developments such as Postquartier at Lautenschlagerstrasse 17 in Stuttgart, high-profile development management projects around Germany and key asset management assignments such as the Sony Center in Berlin that was recently acquired by Hines on behalf of an Asian investor
With offices in 106 cities in 17 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $23.7 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world.
Munich-based Sedlmayr-Investa Immobilien GmbH is the joint project development company of Sedlmayer Grund und Immobilien KGaA (previously Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu KGaA) and Investa Projektentwicklungs- und Verwaltungs GmbH. The company focuses on commercial and residential property projects in German city centers.