The investor and asset manager M7 Real Estate has sold the Forte 9 office building at Avenida do Forte, in Carnaxide, to the real estate developer Lusoproa.
The Forte 9 building was previously known as the former premises of 'Cervejaria Lusitânia'. It has a total gross construction area of 3.500 square metres, distributed over 3 floors, in addition to 116 parking spaces in the basement. It also has an approved license, and will now be totally renovated by Lusoproa.
For Leonardo Peres, Managing Director of M7 Real Estate Portugal, "despite the context of some uncertainty in the markets, we saw an opportunity to crystallize value for our investors, taking advantage of the continued resilience of the Portuguese investment market, as well as the strong underlying fundamentals in the Carnaxide area".
The sale of this asset to Lusoproa "is in line with our business plan and follows the completion of our asset management strategy. This has allowed us to increase the leasable area, define a product and secure a licence to renovate the building, thus increasing the asset's liquidity".
Leonardo Peres is certain that "Portugal remains a key market for M7 and we have ambitions to continue to raise capital on behalf of our investors should the right opportunities arise."
Specialised in the residential market, Lusoproa is thus making its debut in the acquisition of office assets. Miguel Batista, from Lusoproa, identifies "a very well located asset, with characteristics that allow the development of a very interesting project, which will involve the total reconversion of the existing building into a building totally adapted to the current needs and demands of the market". According to the responsible, "this is an important investment for Lusoproa, to the extent that so far our investment strategy has passed mainly by the development of residential assets".
In this deal, CBRE acted on behalf of the owner, and was responsible for managing and concluding the sale process. José Hermozilha, Head of Investment Properties of CBRE Portugal, highlights that "this is an iconic building in the area of Carnaxide, with great visibility from Avenida do Forte, and with potential for repositioning by the new owner. Due to its characteristics and flexibility, we strongly believe in the success of an alternative use project".
