FINANCE: Irish Residential Property REIT made a €7.1m (£5.6m) profit in the period 2 July 2013 to 30 June 2014, its maiden set of results.
The company, which raised €200m on the Dublin Stock Exchange in April this year, will have built a portfolio of 1,202 Dublin apartments after it completes the acquisition of Project Orange, a 761-strong collection of residential property being sold by Nama.
IRES REIT announced this morning that it had been named preferred bidder on the €211.3m portfolio, with completion of the deal expected in October. This will make the REIT Ireland’s largest residential landlord.
The REIT, which has the capacity to gear up to 50%, will be around 80% invested once the Project Orange transaction completes.
Rental income from the portfolio during the year (not including Project Orange) was €2.6m.
Analysts at Investec gave IRES REIT a “buy” rating this morning, but warned that any shocks to Ireland’s nascent economic recovery and the possibility of rent controls being introduced in future could pose risks to the company’s growth.
sophia.furber@estatesgazette.com
