Valad Europe ("Valad"), a pan-European multi-let real estate investment management business and a part of Valad Property Group, has been appointed by Kefren Properties IX AB ("Kefren") as investment manager of its 480 million real estate portfolio in Sweden for a term of five years.
The Kefren portfolio comprises approximately 150 properties totaling more than 827,000 m² of lettable area. The portfolio consists of predominantly office assets, and also includes warehouse and retail space, with tenants including Ericsson, Volvo and SKF.
Ole Vagner, Chairman of Kefren, said: "We wanted an investment manager with a strong presence in the Nordic region and the right resources to work through all the complex issues of this large portfolio."
Valad has four asset management offices in Sweden, as well as offices in Helsinki and Copenhagen, with a total of 50 people. Including the Kefren portfolio Valad will manage a total of around 2.5 million m² of property with a value of approximately 1.6 billion, across the Nordic region.
Michael Bruhn, Valad's Head of Nordics, said: "Our priority for this portfolio will be to protect and increase rental income, reduce void levels, reduce running costs, execute capital improvement projects and prepare for a progressive disposal program."
Marty McCarthy, CEO of Valad Europe, commented: "This appointment represents a further step in Valad's strategy of working alongside financial and investment partners to provide the necessary skills to work through real estate portfolios with which they are associated. In addition, when appropriate we have the capability to introduce equity capital. The appointment is for a term of five years, subject to certain termination rights in specified circumstances."
Valad Europe currently manages 15 pan-European funds which own 5 billion of real estate on behalf of 60 institutional investors, which includes its recent appointment as manager for European Commercial Real Estate Limited ("ECRE"), formerly known as Kenmore Europe Limited. ECRE's 250 million portfolio comprises 53 properties spread across the Nordic region, Germany, and the Netherlands. Valad was selected for management of the fund's assets due to its extensive coverage across these three regions and its local asset management capabilities.
Source: Tavistock Communications
