Catella Market Indicator has been published; Another record year for property transactions

Finland’s real estate investment market remained exceptionally active until the end of 2017. As a result, a record-high transaction volume was achieved for the second year in a row. This time, the new record came to around EUR 10 billion, which was driven by a few major deals and strong demand by international investors. It may well be that the 2017 record will not be broken in the coming years, as it is explained by a few unusual arrangements, the likes of which are rarely seen in Finland. Two of these arrangements – the sale of Sponda to Blackstone funds and the sale of Logicor’s (formerly Certeum) properties to Chinese CIC – accounted for a considerable proportion of the total volume. Other interesting transactions also took place during the year. Several Finnish investors were active as usual, but most of the largest deals were closed by foreign investors. International players currently seem to be more interested in Finland than perhaps ever before. As much as 73% of last year’s transaction volume was made up of purchases by foreign investors, while the peak in 2007 was only 65%.

Yield requirements also fall outside the centre of Helsinki

Yield requirements for properties in the Helsinki CBD have already dropped previously due to strong demand by investors, but now the downward trend seems to also have spread outside the centre. Judging from recent transactions, the yield requirements for the best office areas away from the centre have been nearing the level in the CBD, which had a head start of many years over other areas. International investors also appear to be attracted by selected properties outside the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, where a few major transactions, after a long break, and new actors were seen.

The Catella Market Indicator, Spring 2018 has been published today. It can be ordered from the following e-mail: info@catella.fi

For more information, contact:
Antti Louko
Tel. +358 50 5277 392
antti.louko@catella.fi