THE NATIONAL ASSET Management Agency has pushed the button on the largest-ever bulk sale of apartments in Dublin.
The portfolio includes a total of 761 apartments across four mixed-use developments in the city. A price of around €160 million has been mooted for the properties.
It is understood that the properties are being sold on behalf of four separate developers, all of whose loans have been taken over by the state’s bad bank.
The four complexes covered by the deal are Charlestown in Finglas, comprising of 235 finished apartments, 224 apartments in Lansdowne Gate next to Drimnagh Castle, 217 units in South Quarter and 85 apartments in Baker’s Yard, Dublin 1.
There is permission for a further 187 apartments and approximately 7,977 square metres of retail space across the portfolio, although the seller is willing to take offers for individual blocks as well as for the job lot.
The projected gross rental income from the properties is expected to rise from €10.4 million per year to €12.5 million thanks to rising rental prices in the capital.
The bidders
The portfolio is expected to attract substantial interest from international investors, with Canadian real estate investor CapReit said to be leading the field.
CapReit recentl raised €200 million for its newly-launched Irish investment vehicle, IRes, and has previously snapped up similar investments in Inchicore and Tallaght.
A source said that another unnamed Canadian real estate investment trust (REIT) is likely to join the bidding war, alongside American players such as Kennedy Wilson and Hines.
From a domestic perspective, Hibernia Reit, which has been extremely active in the market in recent months, is likely to lead the field.
Israeli investors are also thought to be interested.
The developers
The original developer of Charlestown was Bovale Developments, whose account keeping practices were examined by the planning tribunal in the late nineties.
The tribunal found that company founders the Bailey brothers had been siphoning off company funds for their own purposes, and had made corrupt payments to politicians, including former Fianna Fail minister Ray Burke
The Baileys later made the largest payment of back taxes and penalties in the history of the state, coming in at €22.17 million.
The Lansdowne gate project was built by Cosgrave Developments, while Beacon South Quarter was the brain-child of Landmark Developments. Cleary Doyle built the Baker’s Yard block.
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