Real estate investment manager Mark, formerly known as Meyer Bergman, has partnered with Credit Suisse on the first phase of its €1bn pan-European portfolio.
The pair will target an initial portfolio of €500m in Germany and the Netherlands, focusing on core cities and the commuter belt.
The new platform Doma will acquire and manage individual flats and blocks of flats. Doma already has 700 homes under management.
The venture will be led by Mark’s chief investment officer Josip Kardun.
Kardun said: “Doma aims to replicate the success we have had with our urban logistics platform Crossbay by aggregating granular assets that institutional investors would otherwise find hard to access and achieving a portfolio premium through scale, strong branding and proactive asset management.
“Whereas institutional ownership of traditional multifamily assets is well established in Germany and the Netherlands, there is a major untapped opportunity in privately-owned smaller residential assets in prime urban locations that Doma will look to unlock using a mix of technological solutions and our network of on-the-ground teams with deep local market knowledge and contacts.”
Sven, Schaltegger, head multi-manager of real estate at Credit Suisse Asset Management added: “The granularity of the seed portfolio provides a strong fit for our residential strategy that we have pursued for our investors.
“In the selection of our partner, it has been important to cooperate with a team that has a value-add mindset and an active asset management approach, as this should allow unlocking an attractive return potential in a residential strategy with defensive characteristics benefitting from stable income streams.”
Mark currently manages €4.4bn in residential assets and in 2015 launched Meyer Homes, a €600m platform dedicated to sites across Greater London.
