The occupational property industry has been on the upside both in terms of values and rents. Interest in acquiring quality real estate has grown in the "game", with the exception of REITs, which kept the commercial real estate market "live" (as far as possible) during the years of the financial crisis , and foreign private equity.
Real estate market executives estimate that mobility will continue in 2019. At the same time, however, they are concerned about the lack of new developments, an issue linked to the general course of the economy, since if there are no new businesses or the development of existing ones, if income and consumption are not increased, offices or shops.
According to what he said in a property-related discussion at the Delphi Economic Forum, the CEO of Ethniki Panayia AEEAP, Aris Karytinos, the Greek real estate market suffered the biggest fall from all eurozone markets, returns remain high for the reason this is a lot of foreign money. However, the head of the largest Greek REPA has also voiced doubts as to whether we will take off, as some of those who come to the real estate market think. They probably think suddenly there will be a very large increase in rents due to the growth of the economy. It's a bet that we all expect to come out. "
One of the most prominent developments that shows that the Greek real estate market has entered a new course was Alpha Bank 's recent ALFA -0.41 % for a portfolio of five properties that includes office space that has come to the bank by Babis Vovos International (BVIC), namely 95-97 Kifissias Avenue and 24 Kifissias Avenue in Maroussi and 1-3 Tzavella 1-3 in Halandri (a property leased to Vodafone), the building that houses AXA Insurance on Michalakopoul Street U-48 and commercial property on Highway (Transfiguration) with showroom.
In the initial phase of the process (non-binding offers), most of the AEDAP, National Panayia, Grivalia, Trastor and Orilina participated. None of them submitted a binding offer. In the final line of the tender procedure only investment funds were involved and the best price was given by the emerging Brook Lane investment fund in Greece at a price that seemed to have excited the seller. It was sold for about EUR 90 million, when at the end of 2018, when the process for selling the portfolio was launched, the estimate was for an overall valuation of these five properties in the region of EUR 75-80 million.
Information indicates that more and more investment funds are "looking for" the Greek market. The fund is the fund Dromeus Capital, for which its executives have stated that the goal is to invest in the Greek market the amount of 200 million euros in professional real estate that will be able to bring high returns.
It is noted that investment funds usually have a short investment horizon and do not work like REAPs, whose main objective is to develop healthy portfolios so that they distribute a satisfactory dividend to their shareholders and therefore a long-term perspective when buying a property.
The course of the Greek real estate market will depend to a large extent on whether the development of the old airport in Elliniko (and how fast) will proceed. Its design is such that in order to succeed the whole project should attract additional visitors to Attica. This will have an impact on the whole economy and, of course, on the real estate market as well.
In the equation "where the real estate is going to go", we have to count on the developments in technology, which lead to a significant change in the requirements of the users of a building. As Dimand Chief Executive Officer Dimitris Andriopoulos noted at Delphi Forum, "the technology parameter will create new needs in real estate that we have not yet seen. Who was speaking in 2012 about Airbnb and the property of the center? If he was discussing, he would have gone shopping in the years of the crisis. "
Awaiting significant developments in the REPA sector
At the same time as the mobility observed in commercial real estate, significant developments are taking place in the AEEAP market. The most important is the "loss" of Grivalia, which is known to be in the process of merging with Eurobank and will cease to be EEAP. Grivalia Properties was (and still is) the most basic way out for the small and medium-sized investor who wants to have a good income-dividend by investing in real estate.
Despite the fact that NAEAP is not only Grivalia, for different reasons, each of the other companies in the sector is scarcely dispersed, while the conditions prevailing in the Stock Exchange do not allow those companies that have been licensed as ADEPS to be admitted to the Athens Stock Exchange. without exhausting the relevant deadline (2 plus 2 years).
NBG -2,59 % με συμμετοχή 33% στην Πανγαία και στο πλαίσιο της συμφωνίας της το 2013 με την Invel (που κατέχει το 66%), εκτός απροόπτου θα αποχωρήσει από την ΑΕΕΑΠ. Το ποσοστό της θα εξαγοράσει η Invel, η οποία για τον λόγο αυτόν βρίσκεται σε διαδικασία εξασφάλισης μέρους του τιμήματος μέσω δανεισμού. Πληροφορίες αναφέρουν ότι το μεγαλύτερο τμήμα των περίπου 400 εκατ. ευρώ που θα απαιτηθούν για το ένα τρίτο του μετοχικού κεφαλαίου της Πανγαία θα είναι ίδια κεφάλαια της Invel, γεγονός που θα εκτιμηθεί ως έκφραση εμπιστοσύνης στην ΑΕΕΑΠ, αλλά και στην προοπτική της αγοράς γενικότερα. Να θυμίσουμε ότι η Invel επένδυσε στην Πανγαία το 2013, δηλαδή τα «πέτρινα χρόνια» του real estate.
PEIR -1.90 %with 39.4%, it is likely in the next period to choose to withdraw from its share capital by selling its percentage or part of it. Information suggests that it is already conducting discussions with potential investors. It is reminded that Trastor has invested the American Varde Partners.
According to Trastor's management, under the chief executive Tassos Kazino, "the occupational real estate industry, in which the company has its investment interest, showed upward trends both in rent and price rises, trends that are becoming stronger in quality and first-view real estate ".
As it adds, in its assessment of the results of 2018, "a dominant tendency and a determinant of the observed decline in the required returns is the concentration of rising private equity funds targeting the same investment product as REPAs, making the stock of institutional property investment characteristics (investment grade real estate) steadily declining. As a result, the dispersion of investment demand also on property requiring capital expenditure, which however provides remarkable short-term capital gains due to the lack of new product construction. Due to its liquidity and reinforcement by the formation of new companies, the AEEPP sector is expected to continue to be the main pillar of the domestic market's investment volume.
