Quinlan Property in €300m Spanish deal

PROPERTY investors advised by one of the country’s top investment groups, Quinlan Private, have bought the Diagonal Mar Shopping Centre in Barcelona, Spain, in the largest ever single real estate deal in that country.

The other party to the deal is Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH (DEKA), a German open-ended fund.

Consideration for the transaction is in excess of €300 million which gives an initial yield in excess of 5%.

Derek Quinlan, executive chairman Quinlan Private, said he was pleased to announce the acquisition of a unique asset operating in a strong economy.

Thomas Dowd, partner, Quinlan Private, said the group identified Spain as an attractive market for their investor group some time ago. QP’s investment should benefit from continued, strong economic growth and increased consumer spend. The Diagonal Mar Shopping centre will enhance Quinlan Private’s growing prime property portfolio and should deliver superior returns going forward, he said.

Asked about fears of the Spanish property might be over heated Mr Down said: “Spain, with its strong fundamentals, is an economy in which we have sought quality assets for some time. The Diagonal Mar Shopping Centre is certainly one such investment and reflects our belief that the Centre will benefit from the general growth in the Spanish economy and also the specific growth anticipated in the Diagonal Mar Area over the next few years”, said Mr Dowd.

“The transaction between DEKA and Quinlan was advised by CB Richard Ellis and Savills.

The Diagonal Mar Shopping Centre is the largest shopping centre in Cataluña and one of the largest in Spain. Since opening four years ago, the centre has accelerated the development of one of Barcelona’s key shopping districts.

The centre has 193 units comprising approximately 87,000 square metres of retail space on 3 floors over a multi-storey car park of over 5,000 spaces on 5 basement levels. The tenant portfolio is made up of a diverse range of international retailers and operators.

Quinlan Private was established in 1989 as Ireland’s first independent private client advisory group. Quinlan Private acts as a principal and adviser, in originating, structuring, financing, developing and managing a diversified portfolio of assets. These assets include: commercial office blocks, shopping centres, retail properties, residential properties, car parks and hotels through Europe and North America. It has effective distribution capacity and partners with major international banking groups to syndicate and place private equity in property transactions. Total assets under management exceed €5 billion.