Commercial real estate investment activity in Western Europe dropped by 9% over the first nine months of 2012 compared to same period in 2011 and continues to slow, property adviser BNP Paribas Real Estate (BNPPRE) said.
Central Paris, Central London, Berlin and Munich were exceptions to this declining trend, turning in good performances, BNPPRE said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Investors have expressed increased interest in European real estate debt funds, according to INREV’s recent Debt Fund Survey, with a majority citing the risk/return characteristics of real estate debt funds as one of the main attractions.
The survey suggests that a lack of certainty around the lending capability of banks and a growing funding gap have created opportunities for other players to enter the commercial real estate lending market, fuelling investor interest in debt funds as a viable, addition to their existing real estate investment portfolios………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A majority of the major office markets worldwide are expected to register single-digit rental growth, according to Jones Lang LaSalle’s third quarter 2012 Global Office Index, released on Monday.
The index, which measures the rental performance of prime office space across 90 major markets in the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe, reveals a stable outlook for global prime office rental growth in 2013. The markets with the strongest rental growth prospects include: Beijing, San Francisco, London, Tokyo, Moscow, Hong Kong and Sydney………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A judicial crackdown and mounting political pressure on legal tax avoidance are failing to deter companies from setting up in European tax havens.
Growing numbers of accountants, banks and consultants are signing lengthy office leases in Luxembourg and the Channel Islands as they flock to serve customers seeking the legal ways to cut their tax bills offered by having a offshore base………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The European commercial property market looks better value in Q3 with the DTZ Fair Value Index score for Europe rising to 62 from 53 in the previous quarter. The rise was attributed to falls on bond yields in the wake of the European Central Bank announcement that it will support bond markets of troubled economies.
The all-property DTZ Fair Value Index offers insight into the relative attractiveness of current pricing in the European property markets………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The European sovereign debt crisis continues to take its toll on the region’s commercial property sector, with the majority of markets recording falling activity and negative expectations.
However, the picture did nonetheless marginally improve in Q3, with more countries recording positive results than in the previous quarter of the year, according to the latest RICS Global Commercial Property Survey………………………………………..Full Article: Source

European retail property investment grew to EUR 7.1 bn in the third quarter of 2012 (Q3 2012) - a 12% increase over Q2 2012, and the highest quarterly total so far this year, according to the latest research by global property advisor CBRE.
The Q3 2012 figure is 18% down on both the Q3 2011 level and that for the last three-year quarterly average, with lack of product being the main issue that investors are facing………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Poland and the Czech Republic remain the most active markets in Central & Eastern Europe (excluding Russia) in terms of commercial real estate investment transactions.
Preliminary data compiled by Jones Lang LaSalle records EUR 450 mln of investment in Poland, the Czech Republic and Romania during the third quarter of 2012………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Continued strong activity in central London was the main driver of a 15% increase in commercial real estate investment volumes in Europe in Q3 2012, according to CBRE Group, Inc. (CBRE). During the period, investment transactions totaled €28.4 billion, compared with €24.7 billion in Q2 2012. This volume is almost back to that seen in Q3 2011, which totaled €28.6 billion.
By far the strongest trend was evident in the UK, which saw €11.9 billion of transactions completed during the quarter, an increase of 40% on Q2 2012 as well as Q3 2011………………………………………..Full Article: Source

European retail property investment grew to €7.1 billion in the third quarter of 2012 (Q3 2012) - a 12% increase over Q2 2012, and the highest quarterly total so far this year, according to the latest research by global property advisor CBRE.
The Q3 2012 figure is 18% down on both the Q3 2011 level and that for the last three-year quarterly average, with lack of product being the main issue that investors are facing………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Continued strong activity in central London was the main driver of a 15% increase in commercial real estate investment volumes in Europe in Q3 2012, according to CBRE Group, Inc. (CBRE). During the period, investment transactions totaled €28.4 billion, compared with €24.7 billion in Q2 2012. This volume is almost back to that seen in Q3 2011, which totaled €28.6 billion.
By far the strongest trend was evident in the UK, which saw €11.9 billion of transactions completed during the quarter, an increase of 40% on Q2 2012 as well as Q3 2011………………………………………..Full Article: Source

European retail property investment grew to EUR 7.1 bn in the third quarter of 2012 - a 12% increase over Q2 2012, and the highest quarterly total so far this year, according to the latest research by global property advisor CBRE.
The Q3 2012 figure is 18% down on both the Q3 2011 level and that for the last three-year quarterly average, with lack of product being the main issue that investors are facing………………………………………..Full Article: Source

European commercial real estate investment activity reached EUR 24.6 bn in Q3 2012, a 3% decline from Q2 2012, according to the latest statistics published by property adviser DTZ.
Over the last twelve months volumes across Europe reached EUR 108 bn, an 8% fall on the EUR 117 bn recorded in the same period a year ago………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Strong activity in central London was the main driver of a 15% increase in commercial real estate investment volumes in Europe in Q3 2012, according to the latest research by CBRE. During the period, investment transactions in the region totalled EUR 28.4 bn, compared with EUR 24.7 bn in Q2 2012.
This means volumes are almost back to the level seen in Q3 2011 when they totalled EUR 28.6 bn. By far the strongest trend was evident in the UK, which saw EUR 11.9 bn of transactions completed during the quarter, an increase of 40% on Q2 2012 as well as Q3 2011………………………………………..Full Article: Source

As European consumers’ switch their shopping habits to purpose-built malls from traditional town-center stores, prime shopping centers are the safest bet for property investors looking for stable income streams and a sure return, experts say.
After fears about the escalating euro-zone debt crisis curtailed investment in the first part of the year, spending on retail real estate is picking up across Europe. Direct investment in European retail property rose to €6 billion ($7.78 billion) in the third quarter, from €3.9 billion in the second quarter, according to research by property-services company Jones Lang LaSalle……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Ten top investors carried out EUR 5.5 bn of acquisitions in the European commercial real estate sectors during the third quarter, according to data analysed by PropertyEU Research. The top 10 is based on PropertyEU’s list of reported commercial real estate transactions in Europe of EUR 20 mln and above.
Dutch pension asset manager PGGM was the biggest spender in the review period, taking a majority stake in University Partnerships Programme, the second largest provider of on-campus student accommodation in the UK. The value of the investment by PGGM’s Infrastructure Fund 2010 has been estimated at around EUR 1 bn………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A quarter of all European senior commercial real estate mortgage loans, or an estimated €33 billion per annum could be sourced from insurers, pension funds and specialist loan funds within five years, pan-European real estate investment manager AEW Europe estimates.
Mahdi Mokrane, Head of Research & Strategy for AEW Europe said: “There is a deep structural change occurring in the European commercial real estate lending market, with insurers and specialised loan funds rushing to fill the gap left by receding bank mortgage lending in the sector………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Europe index gained +5.8% in the third quarter of 2012, outperforming bonds (+3.8%) and utilities (+1.2%) while slightly under-performing European equities (+5.9%), according to LaSalle Investment Management Securities.
Europe outperformed the global property universe (+4.1%) in the quarter. Within Europe, companies on the Continent (+5.1%) underperformed the UK (+7.1% in euro terms). ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Jones Lang LaSalle reports retail real estate investment picked up markedly in Q3 2012, following the subdued volumes experienced in the first half of the year.
Preliminary analysis suggests that direct investment in retail real estate for Q3 is in the region of €6.0 bln, up from the Q2 2012 volume of €3.9 bln. Year to date volumes are estimated at €13.0 bln, in comparison with €23.3 bln in the first three quarters of 2011, and the five year Q1-Q3 average of €15.4 bln………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The largest US property companies are cashing in on the troubles of their European rivals with a 3.5 billion euro spending spree that marks a rare bout of transatlantic real estate investment.
US real estate groups’ spending in the first nine months of 2012 represented a near five-fold increase on the total recorded for the whole of last year. It comes as Europe’s listed property companies battle to boost their share prices amid concerns about the impact of the eurozone crisis on property values………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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Retail real estate investment picked up markedly in Europe in Q3 2012, following the subdued volumes experienced in the first half of the year, property agent Jones Lang LaSalle said.
Preliminary analysis suggests that direct investment in retail real estate for Q3 came to around EUR 6 bn, up from the Q2 2012 volume of EUR 3.9 bn. Year-to-date volumes are estimated at EUR 13 bn, in comparison with EUR 23.3 bn in the first three quarters of 2011, and the five year Q1-Q3 average of EUR 15.4 bn………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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European banks are expected to increase the volume of commercial real-estate assets they bring to market as they prepare for new European Union capital requirements.
Banks are under pressure to reduce their property portfolios further under increased regulation. The so-called Basel III rules, which take effect next year, require banks to hold more capital against loans secured on commercial property………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The European direct real estate investment market is holding up in line with expectations, according to the latest transaction data collected from Jones Lang LaSalle Capital Markets in 32 countries across Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Richard Bloxam, Head of European Capital Markets at Jones Lang LaSalle said: ‘In Europe, as in other regions, the largest, most liquid markets continue to perform well. This is a reflection of the dominance of equity buyers who are currently looking for safe havens, and has to some extent offset a lack of transaction activity elsewhere in Europe.”‘……………………………………….Full Article: Source

A new era in opportunistic property investment is opening up in Europe, according to Joe Valente, head of research and strategy at JP Morgan Asset Management. ‘This time, returns will not be driven by financial engineering, but by the ability of the manager to add value and de-risk assets,’ he said.
Valente made the comments following the publication of a new report by the asset manager which highlights how real estate market conditions, the macro economy, capital scarcity and apprehensive investors have created a new profile and opportunity set for European property investment………………………………………..Full Article: Source

According to real-estate agents and financial advisers, a large group of high-end properties are hitting the market as business folks are trying to leave France before a stiff tax rise hits. “It’s nearly a general panic. Some 400 to 500 residences worth more than €1 million have come onto the Paris market,” a manager at Daniel Feau, a real-estate broker that specialises in high-end property, told AFP France.
While it is not yet as serious as the exodus of rich Frenchmen after the election of Socialist president Francois Mitterrand in 1981, real-estate agents said the tax plans of new Socialist President Francois Hollande are having a noticeable effect………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Uncertainty in the eurozone has continued to plague real estate funds in 2012, with weak performance continuing in most European markets, according to latest analysis from IPD property fund indexes.
It update found that the direction of real estate markets, and whether or not returns have now hit the bottom - still looks “very unclear”………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Axa Real Estate Investment Managers has raised 1.4 billion euros ($1.8 billion) for commercial property loans in Europe and plans to lend 2.4 billion euros this year.
Fundraising this year will increase Axa Real Estate’s debt program to about 7 billion euros, the unit of Paris-based Axa SA (CS) said in a statement. The company plans to secure about 2 billion euros of investment capacity this year, it said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

According to the latest European Shopping Centre Development Report released by Cushman & Wakefield today, “Whilst this year’s projected volume of new shopping centre completions at 6.9 million m² exceeds the 2011 total, a more cautious mood has clearly taken hold among occupiers and developers and delays have been reported in countries including Italy, France, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Romania. As a result, the actual volume of space delivered could well fall short of projections.”
Of the 71 new shopping centers opening in H1 2012, 53 were in Central & Eastern Europe and 18 in Western Europe. ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

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Sale-and-leaseback transactions account for only 4.5% of all reported investment transactions in Eastern Europe since 2007, less than half the average for the rest of Europe which is put at 10%, according to research from Colliers International.
However, the potential scope for SLB activity in the region is enormous, the adviser claims in a report entitled ‘market for sale and leasebacks’. Citing a research study produced by Hordijk & Ahlqvist in 2004, the adviser points out that corporate entities hold roughly 83% of the commercial property market in Europe………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Dutch pension giant PGGM’s recent acquisition of a majority stake in a student beds provider illustrates how institutional investors are willing to take large bets on niche real estate sectors to access stable income streams.
The transaction was the largest single real estate-related transaction recorded by PropertyEU Research from 1 July to mid-September………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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The Eurozone has been afflicted with a financial crisis for quite some time now. Economies of countries such as Portugal, Ireland, Spain and Greece continue their slump in real estate, as talks of a proposed bailout from their well-to-do partners are slowing down remarkably.
The real estate market in Asia is also facing troubled times, save for countries such as Hong Kong and India, both of which have experienced year-on-year profits for Q2 of 2012………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Savills’ latest European office market research report shows that over half of the property markets it analysed will record positive year-on-year prime rental growth at the end of 2012 due to decreasing availability of prime space in the CBD.
These markets include London West End (where the firm expects a yoy rental growth of 7.3%), Brussels (5.5%), Lyon (8.7%), Dusseldorf (5.8%) and Hamburg (4.3%)………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Over EUR 7.5 bn of commercial real estate loan sales have been publicly completed by European banks so far in 2012, according to global real estate adviser CBRE.
The 14 transactions tracked up to September have seen the region’s lenders dispose of a range of loan portfolios including those secured against assets in the US and Australia as well as in Europe. Of these, six involved sales of loan portfolios where the assets were solely located in the UK and Ireland………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Investment by the listed sector into European real estate has slowed significantly compared to the first half of 2012. Listed companies contributed EUR 2.5 bn of the total of EUR 15 bn of publicised real estate transactions in Europe tracked by PropertyEU Research in the period from 1 July to mid-September.
Our data indicates listed companies were on the buy-side of EUR 3.5 bn of transaction in the first quarter of 2012, and EUR 5.3 bn from April to end-June………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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Recent boom and bust in European housing markets has differed between countries but overall the euro area overall has seen much more subdued housing market behaviour in recent years, research from property consultants Savills shows.
Average house prices did not rise so high in the early noughties and have not fallen so much subsequently and in reality the UK is much more like the rest Europe than was thought in terms of typical house prices and rates of owner occupation, its latest Residential Property Focus report shows………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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For the savvy buyer there are potentially good deals to be had throughout the eurozone. Ian Cowie considers the options available. Never mind the macroeconomics – or even questions of morality – rising numbers of Britons are “schadenfreude shopping” for second homes in the eurozone.
Squeamish souls may feel it wrong to take pleasure or profits from others’ distress. But hard-nosed home buyers with sterling to spend can benefit from a double whammy created by the euro crisis………………………………………..Full Article: Source

It’s mainly for Southern Europe’s benefit that the European Central Bank is keeping its monetary-policy floodgates wide open. But in a currency union, cheap credit lifts all boats. Exhibit A is the ongoing boom in Northern European real estate.
Not half a decade after a calamitous housing bust in many European countries, property prices are being bid up in new markets, as investors flee the Mediterranean badlands seeking stable returns. This could end badly………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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According to Savills latest European office market research report over half of the markets surveyed will record positive year-on-year prime rental growth at the end of 2012 due to decreasing availability of prime space in the CBD. These markets include London West End (where the firm expects a y-o-y rental growth of 7.3%), Brussels (5.5%), Lyon (8.7%), Dusseldorf (5.8%) and Hamburg (4.3%).
Overall the international real estate advisor forecasts that prime CBD rents across European office markets will increase by 1.4% on average by year end………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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While the world is anxiously watching to see how the European debt crisis will unfold, many real estate investors in the United States are eagerly seeking opportunities to reap profits from the Continent’s distress.
Private equity firms, whose investors include pension funds, university endowments and foundations, have been vying to buy portfolios of European bank debt consisting of troubled commercial real estate mortgages. By acquiring these loans at deep discounts, they hope eventually to earn generous returns of 12 to 18 percent, investors and advisers say………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Low interest rates are giving many publicly traded property companies in Europe an advantage over private-equity funds, their traditional rivals when it comes to buying property.
But listed companies haven’t fully taken advantage of this competitive advantage, real-estate experts say. Many European real-estate investment trusts already have too much debt on their balance sheets and not many of the high-quality properties that REITs like to buy are on the block, they say………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Norwegian Property Federation has joined Brussels-based umbrella organisation European Property Federation. Stein Olaf Onarheim and Thor Olaf Askjer, chairman and president of Norsk Eiendom, or the Norwegian Property Federation (NPF), said: ‘EU regulation now has a big impact on real estate and most of it becomes Norwegian law.
Through our membership of EPF, we look forward to participating in the EU policy process while it is still possible to shape events………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The commercial real estate industry contributes 2.5% to the total economy of Europe, more than the automotive, telecommunications and banking industries, according to new research commissioned by the European Association for Investors in Non-listed Real Estate Vehicles (INREV) and the European Public Real Estate Association (EPRA).
While other studies have shown that real estate in all forms accounts for nearly 20% of total economic activity, the new study reveals that the commercial property sector alone generated EUR 285 bn for the European economy in 2011 and employs over four million people………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Austrians, wary of the Eurozone financial crisis, are placing their bets and their money these days in residential real estate. Like neighboring Germany, prices are rising in Austria, especially in the fabled city of Vienna.
Select Property, an international residential broker based in London, notes the outskirts of Vienna have shown an increased demand for property which is driving up the prices. “People know that they can get a larger property with more living space for the same amount of money that you would pay for something much smaller in the city,” according to the brokerage………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A mismatch between the kind of property that investors are seeking and what is available to buy is likely to push European real-estate prices lower for all but premium assets, according to real-estate analysts.
Also, the supply of property coming to market exceeds demand. European property valued at €413 billion ($526.9 billion) is going to come to the market over the next five years, averaging €83 billion a year, said Harm Meijer, European property analyst at J.P. Morgan Chase………………………………………..Full Article: Source

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Middle East investors accounted for 12 per cent of the European real estate market in the second quarter of 2012, according to the latest research from CBRE. That’s almost half of the total European property owned by non-European investors, which amounted to 25 per cent during the quarter, the highest since Q2 2007, said CBRE.
Nicholas Maclean, managing director, CBRE Middle East, commented: “European property markets and infrastructure continues to prove interesting for Middle East investors. What we are likely to see going forward, however, is co-investment activity particularly involving Middle Eastern sovereign funds and Chinese state or quasi state investors.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Foreign buyers are the major force at the prime end of the market in CEE, even though the cross-border element as a percentage of the volume has dropped from almost 100% in 2005 to just above 60% now.
However, cross-border investors are facing a shortage of prime assets following a bumper year in 2011, according to Jos Tromp, director, head of research & consulting CEE at property adviser CBRE………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A handful of European cities with strong economies will likely see increases in office rental values, while most office markets across EMEA will remain flat, Colliers International has said.
Some of the weaker markets, outside of Europe’s core, will likely continue to see rents fall, according to Colliers’ EMEA office report for H1 2012. The report points to broad economic stagnation in the region and no imminent solution to the Eurozone crisis, as the main reasons the majority of corporations are taking a cautious approach to any leasing activity………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Cross-border investors no longer think of Europe as Western Europe and Central and Eastern Europe, but rather in terms of a north-south divide, according to Walter Hampel, head of real estate finance CEE at pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank.
Hampel made the claim during a panel discussion at PropertyEU’s second investment briefing on the CEE region. The event was hosted by CBRE in London on 3 September………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The eurozone crisis pushed second-quarter returns on pan-European real estate funds into the red for the first time since early 2010, according to the latest research from IPD.
Total returns at the NAV level amounted to -1.1% in Q2, the first negative return to be recorded after several quarters of marginal growth……………………………………..Full Article: Source

Poland and the Czech Republic are set to maintain their near-monopoly positions in Central European real estate transactions, PropertyEU’s second investment briefing on the CEE region has heard.
In the first six months of 2012, Poland and the Czech Republic accounted for 90% of the EUR 1.25 bn invested in commercial real estate in the region……………………………………..Full Article: Source