News & Stories

Heiligendamm/Berlin. Insolvency proceedings have been opened; a suitable buyer for the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm has not yet been found and more and more investors have taken recourse to the courts.

Frankfurt. Now it's official: SEB Asset Management AG is set to liquidate the SEB ImmoInvest fund with a portfolio valued at over six billion Euro. The Frankfurt-based investment house cleverly decided to leave the decision to investors. And their will was clear: On the crucial date, EUR 1.9 billion in liquidity was insufficient to satisfy all redemption requests. As a result, SEB was forced to announce that the fund will be liquidated. Now, 132 properties must be sold over the next five years, including some renowned hotels in Berlin. The fund industry now stands at a crucial turning point, in particular since CS Euroreal also tries to follow the SEB model.

Munich. Times are difficult. Security is the key. Hotel properties as niche products and special properties with a lot of knowhow requirements hence seem to be questioned even more than before by current buyers. And this happens even more often as many open-ended real estate funds have to cope with their own problems. Closed-end real-estate funds have problems as well. Consequently, they tend to "play safe" when it comes to new investments. But not all investors regard office properties and retail properties as a panacea. Some established providers like Deka Immobilien, Invesco Real Estate and Fondshaus Hamburg deliberately rely on hotel properties as investment objects. They have good reason to do so.

Frankfurt. The hotel transaction volume in the EMEA region totalled nearly 1.5 billion Euro in the first quarter of 2012; about three quarters of this comprised single transactions. But it lags significantly behind the previous year.

Munich. Against the backdrop of the debt crisis, the increasing regulation of the financial market and Basel III, the shortage in financing is developing into the largest problem of the real-estate industry – and the hotel industry is no exception to that. Alternative forms of financing are needed. Is the financial crisis being followed by a financing crisis? The evaluations of banks, real-estate experts and loan agents. Amazing: Despite the continuing refinancing restrictions, market experts are not talking about a real credit crunch so far.

Frankfurt. The transaction volume within the German hotel investment market in the first quarter of 2012 has lagged far behind expectations.

Munich. Open-ended real estate funds stand before a fateful year, funds specialist Beatrix Boutonnet says. More and more have to be closed: They have learnt nothing from the crisis. Open-ended real estate funds will split into two groups. Two weeks ago, Beatrix Boutonnet looked at closed-ended real estate funds, today she looks at the status quo of the second asset class.

Berlin. The Berlin real estate developer, Chamartin Immobilien AG, announced insolvency on the 6th of March, 2012. A holding company for around 15 project companies is hidden behind it that will, however, not be concerned by the insolvency.

Berlin. China, Russia, South America: Emerging markets continue to bring a sparkle to developer eyes. Yet also in other regions, investments can make sense, provided the preparatory work was thorough enough. Non-Europeans didn't paint a rosy picture of Europe, and attempts were made to correct prejudices with regard to Russia. Market analyses presented by various experts at the 15th International Hotel Investment Forum last week in Berlin this time took better account of individual country idiosyncrasies, yet the contents still only scratch the surface. And on the CEO panel, the gentleman again basked in their strategies and pipelines. There was no more to be seen or heard of the IHIF motto "Vision for the Future".

Berlin. Adlon GmbH, the company which operates the restaurant and spa in the south wing of the Adlon, is finally back in the black. A comprehensive restructuring concept by a renowned hotel consultancy is now to herald the turnaround. Yet this alone is hardly sufficient to solve the problems faced by Fundus Fund No. 31, as hefty loan repayments are due in 2016.