Union Investment has acquired a fully let office property in central Stockholm comprising around 11,500 sq m of rental space. The main tenant in the multi-tenant building is cooperative housing association HSB, which has around 600,000 members in Sweden and occupies some 85 per cent of the space. The property at Fleminggatan 39–43/Celsiusgatan 10 was completed in 1939 by well-known Swedish architect Sven Wallander. It was extensively upgraded in 2013. Wallander was chief architect for HSB, which has been based in the building since completion. The acquisition will be added to the holdings of institutional open-ended real estate fund UniInstitutional European Real Estate. The vendor is insurance company AFA Sjukförsäkrings AB. The purchase price was not disclosed. Union Investment was advised on the transaction by Pangea Property Partners and legally by Linklaters.
“We have acquired five office properties in the Stockholm area for four different funds since 2016. The HSB headquarters building in the Kungsholmen district is an excellent addition to our portfolio. This submarket serves as an extension of Stockholm’s traditional business district due to its central position and very good transport links. We therefore expect to see further rent growth in this location,” said Martin Schellein, head of Investment Management Europe at Union Investment Real Estate GmbH. The HSB building is the second property in Stockholm city centre to be added to Union Investment’s portfolio following the acquisition of the nearby Stockholm Hub office building at Vasagatan 12 in 2017. The other three properties in the metropolitan region are located in the Arenastaden district, where the most recent acquisition was made in 2018.
The HSB headquarters building has a heritage-protected façade and enjoys a highly visible location on Fleminggatan. The property consists of three buildings with up to eight upper storeys. In addition to the office space, around 550 sq m is occupied by a restaurant and 210 sq m by retail outlets.
Source : Company