Investment Property in Dublin
The Irish listed Real Estate Investment Trust Green REIT, has made a move to buy five big Dublin City Centre properties in an off-market transaction from Danske Bank for €23 million, this deal is expected to close in the very near future. After this transaction, it will leave the fund with €86 million of equity leftover and available for investment. It has the potential to raise up to €161 million of debt finance which will see the group look to close in on a more active market in 2014.
Interim Results
The interim results of the fund which were released yesterday, stated that it has raised a total of €310 million in capital and invested some €214 million of equity to date. In 2013, it invested €191 million at an initial yield of 9 per cent, and since then,a further €23 million has been contracted. This €23 million investment consists of five properties with a total rent roll of €1.4 million, along with significant redevelopment potential. Their Dublin 2 portfolio comprises of five properties in two locations, in Molesworth Street and Ormond Quay. Four of the five properties are located at 30-33 Molesworth Street, Dublin 2, in Dublin City Centre and are currently occupied by seven tenants paying “relatively low rents”. The Ormond Building which is situated adjacent to the Four Courts, is the fifth property in the expanding Portfolio. Over 50% per cent of the rental income comes from Dublin City Council with 11 years unexpired on the lease. The remainder of the income is dominated by barristers’ chambers.
The fund’s net asset value stood at €299.7million, or 96.7 cent per share, as of December 31st 2013. It reported a passing rent of € 17.3 million last year.
“More opportunities to come” – Gary Kennedy
Gary Kennedy – Green REIT
The chairman of Green REIT, Gary Kennedy, says that the company still has the financial capacity to take advantage of further attractive investment opportunities.
“The effective deployment of further capital will grow the size of our portfolio, enhance our income stream and drive shareholder returns”.
The property investment company was established last July and was the first REIT to establish in Ireland, following the introduction of REIT legislation, and it is also listed on the Irish Stock Exchange.
Earlier this month the fund was selected as the preferred bidder, along with US real estate giant Kennedy Wilson, to buy the Central Park development in Leopardstown, South Dublin, for €310 million. In late 2013 Green REIT acquired a property on Mount Street, Dublin 2 for € 6.35 million.