REIT has €150m to spend on properties

Publicly-quoted property investment fund, Irish Residential Properties REIT (I-RES) has said it has more than €150m to spend on boosting its portfolio, adding that it has a strong pipeline of future acquisitions available through Nama and private market opportunities.

At the start of this year, I-RES signed a new five-year revolving credit facility of up to €250m, which can be extended to €350m, but some commentators have suggested the company may need to raise extra cash in the next six-to-12 months if it means to go after any remaining Nama assets.

The company — which spent nearly €154m on property in the first half of the year — yesterday reported a 67% annualised rise in profits for the first six months of the year to €24.7m, with revenues up from €11.2m to €17.9m.