Invest Hamburg 1Q2019

The market for investments in commercial properties in Hamburg made a rather slow start to the year 2019. By the close of the 1st quarter 21 transactions had been completed for a total value of some €460m. Compared with the 1st quarter of the record-breaking year 2018, the result has contracted by some 65 %. Although, as Grossmann & Berger had predicted at the end of 2018, there remained an ongoing demand for suitable investment properties, the market was dominated by shortages. “The rather slow start to 2019 is the consequence of last year’s record result. A large number of big-ticket sales were made in 2018, leaving behind a much-reduced choice of properties and depressing the volume traded in the first quarter,” remarks Axel Steinbrinker, managing director of Grossmann & Berger, member of German Property Partners (GPP).
 
Market details:

• In the 1st quarter of 2019 office properties accounted for transactions totalling €245m and 53 % of the market, thus remaining the most sought-after class of asset, ahead of sites for commercial building development (31 %.)
• Unlike prior years, the majority of transactions, 75 % of the total, were priced below the €100m mark. Only one trade priced at over €100m was posted in the 1st quarter.
• The market was driven by single property trades, which made up 88 % of the total. Portfolio transactions played a minor role, contributing 12 % to the overall result.
• It would appear that yields have bottomed out for the moment. The prime net yield on office properties stabilized at 2.80 %, the level reached at the end of the prior year.
• It is unlikely that 2019 will be able to match the exceptional figures posted in 2018. Grossmann & Berger is expecting a final volume of transactions for the year of €4.0bn to €4.5bn.

 
Investment market | Hamburg | 1st quarter 2019

Hamburg investment market	2019/Q1
Transaction volume [€ millions]	460
against prior yr [%]	-65
Take-up in CBD [%]	45
Proportion of international investors[%]	18
Prime net yield, office [%]	2.80
against prior yr [percentage points]	-0.10
Prime net yield, commercial buildings [%]	2.70
against prior yr [percentage points]	-0.20
Prime net yield, logistics [%]	4.50
against prior yr [percentage points]	0.30
Strongest asset class	Offices
Strongest asset class [%]	53
Source: Grossmann & Berger GmbH

 
 
Selected transactions | investments in Hamburg | 1st quarter 2019

Project/property Street no.	Sub-market	Asset class	Buyer/investor	Vendor	Purchase price* [approx. €m]
Building site, Großer Burstah 3	City	Plot of land	Gator Beteiligungs-verwaltungs GmbH	Commerz Real (for HausInvest fund)	100
Jacobsen Haus / formerly Vattenfall HQ, Überseering 12	City	Offices	Matrix Immobilien	Vattenfall Europe GmbH (HEW)	60
Development site, City highrises, Klosterwall 6-8	City	Plot of land	Aug. Prien	The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg	35
Lindner Hotel Am Michel	City	Hotel	Institutional investors	Lloyd FondsAG	34
*The purchase prices stated are based on publicly available data, where none is available an estimate is made; new transactions or those occurring in the quarter dealt with in this report are highlighted. Source: Grossmann & Berger GmbH

 
 
















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