Colliers International in Hungary represented the seller, Bluehouse Capital, in the sale of Infopark E to a fund managed by Diófa Asset Management. The transaction represents the largest single asset deal in Hungary in 2015. Infopark E is the newest building within the prominent Infopark development project, located in the best performing South-Buda submarket.
The seller of the property is the private equity real estate investment management firm Bluehouse Capital, which acquired the asset in October 2012. Since then, Bluehouse has successfully repositioned the building by improving its tenant mix and achieving full occupancy. The acquisition of Infopark E is the largest single asset deal by lot size this year, and the third institutional deal that Colliers has closed in Hungary in 2015. The transaction provides a great impetus to the local real estate market, which has regained its momentum in the last two years.
The new owner, the Magyar Posta Takarék Ingatlan Befektetési Alap managed by Diófa Asset Management, has enlarged its real estate portfolio with a high quality, income producing Class ‘A’ office building. “The high quality property sits within the highly successful Infopark, the key area for IT companies in Budapest,” added Bence Vécsey, Director, Head of Investment Services at Colliers International Hungary.
“Over the three years that Bluehouse owned the property, we eliminated its vacancy and increased the WAULD, executing our repositioning strategy and creating a class A’ institutional asset. Hungary is gradually re-gaining its place among the most attractive investment markets in the CEE,” said Yannis Ganos, Bluehouse Capital’s Investment Director.
“We are delighted to expand our portfolio with a really high quality office building. This was our second deal this year, but we are analysing other investment opportunities and we will remain one of the most active investors on the Hungarian market,” said Gergely Biro, CEO of Diófa Asset Management.
According to Bence Vécsey, the building is fully let to international companies such as: Lufthansa Systems, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology and National Instruments, providing a defensive, yet attractive risk profile and very stable cash-flow to the new owner.
“Budapest represents a great buying opportunity for investors seeking quality products at a yield premium compared to other core CEE markets. We have seen an increased level of investor interest in Hungary, targeting mostly offices and retail assets, and we are certain that the transaction volume by the end of the year will be significantly higher than in 2014,” added Bence Vécsey
CMS Cameron McKenna provided legal representation to the seller, while Jalsovszky Law Firm represented Diófa Asset Management.
