Swedish company Heimstaden, the third-largest provider of rental housing in Europe, continues its investments in housing in the Czech Republic. The company, which bought Residomo with 42,500 apartments mainly in the Moravian-Silesian Region last year, is now expanding its portfolio with a €22.7 million acquisition in Plzeň from Czech developer Daramis. The new assets include 226 flats and 5 non-residential premises.
With the Plzeň acquisition, Heimstaden confirmed its position as the domestic number one on the rental housing market. The fact that Central and Eastern Europe is interesting for the Swedish company is also proven by its new acquisition team for this area, which has been based in Prague since last autumn.
“Over the last year, we have expanded our portfolio by 4,000 apartments in Berlin, two projects of almost 1,500 turnkey rental apartments in Warsaw and now with our acquisition in Plzeň. Within 5 years we would like to buy 5,000 more apartments in the Czech Republic only. We are looking for suitable opportunities mainly in regional cities and Prague. Of course, we are interested in all markets in the region, including those where we are not yet," says Stanislav Kubáček, Head of the Heimstaden Acquisition Team for Germany and Central and Eastern Europe.
The transaction also includes an agreement that until the end of 2022, the seller will provide all services related to the lease. The tenants will therefore switch to the Heimstaden concept from January 2023.
“We are looking forward to the new acquisition and after its actual takeover, we will fully develop all our services. Our whole concept is based on so-called friendly homes. We try to be as helpful as possible to our customers, but also to our surroundings. Whether it is the cities and towns in which we operate or the environment that surrounds us. I am looking forward to our new customers in Plzeň and I firmly believe that more will join them soon,” adds Heimstaden CEO Jan Rafaj.
Heimstaden buys the Plzeň portfolio for €22.7 million from Czech real estate and investment company Daramis, which built the apartments in 2019 and rents them.
"Our desire to invest in the region of Central and Eastern Europe is obvious, but without the quality support of local partners, we cannot be successful. We are pleased to have found a great expert and partner in the field of further development company Daramis. We believe that we will continue our cooperation on the Czech market. I would also like to thank the cooperating consulting companies, Dentons (legal area), Deloitte (tax and business area) and Arcadis (technical area),” concludes Stanislav Kubáček.
