Nuveen Real Estate has completed two acquisitions in Spain with the aim of capitalising on the structural megatrends affecting the European property market. The acquisitions comprise two properties built for rental in Madrid and Tarragona.
The fund manager has also acquired a building in France specifically built for students and shared accommodation in the Batignolles district of Paris, comprising 100 fully furnished studio flats. The company stated in a press release that all three properties were 100% occupied at the time of acquisition.
These transactions increase the strategy’s exposure to the residential sector to approximately 6% of the portfolio, the company reported.
“These acquisitions are not isolated transactions, but represent a deliberate positioning of the portfolio in line with the areas where we see the strongest long-term structural demand. Increasing our allocation to the residential sector, in cities with strong demographic and economic fundamentals, is fundamental to our strategy for the future”, said Andy Rich, Fund Manager of the European Cities strategy (Nuveen Real Estate’s flagship pan-European strategy).
Angela Goodings, Head of Research for Europe at Nuveen Real Estate, stated that, “Madrid remains one of the most dynamic residential markets in Europe. Its robust economic activity attracts large numbers of people to the city, whilst the declining affordability of home ownership is driving up demand for rentals. The low level of market regulation encourages investors to expand the housing stock.”
Last July, Nuveen was the seller in a major transaction in the ‘living’ segment, offloading a residential complex comprising more than 500 rental homes in Madrid’s Cuatro Vientos neighbourhood, which was purchased by Hines. This is a project developed under the Stay build-to-rent (BTR) platform, with a total built area of 42,021 sqm and 531 one-, two- and three-bedroom homes. Investment in the project amounted to €120 million.
