Multilet fund manager Valad Europe sold off assets totalling €130m (£103m) during the first half of the year, including the 37,000m² (398,000 sq ft) Shepley North and South Industrial Estate in Manchester for €12m.
The company also agreed to the £18.5m forward funding deal Burghmuir Retail Park in Scotland with Legal & General during the period, where TK Maxx and Waitrose have been secured as tenants.
Valad let 650,000 m2 (7m sq ft) of space during the first six months of 2012, with an annual rental income of €42.5m. The company also signed 400 new leases in the Nordic region in the first half of the year, amounting to 135,000m².
Valad’s chief executive Marty McCarthy said: “We have had an extremely encouraging first half, with greater than 70% tenant retention rates, especially given the continued strong economic headwinds across Europe.
“This reinforces our strategy to focus on local teams of asset managers on the ground in our 22 local offices and demonstrates the resilience of the underlying portfolios of assets in the funds we own and manage.”
Valad has around €4bn of assets under management as of the end of June 2012, and is wholly owned by management and Blackstone, the investment managers.
Valad has a pan-European focus and specialises in value-add real estate investment.
Sophia.Furber@estatesgazette.com
