Ad-hoc notification in accordance with Article 17 of the Market Abuse Regulation
NOT FOR FULL OR PARTIAL DISTRIBUTION, PUBLICATION OR DISCLOSURE IN, WITHIN OR FROM COUNTRIES IN WHICH SUCH DISTRIBUTION, PUBLICATION OR DISCLOSURE WOULD CONSTITUTE VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LEGAL PROVISIONS OF THESE COUNTRIES. IN PARTICULAR, NOT FOR DISCLOSURE, FOR PUBLICATION OR FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, IN AUSTRALIA, IN CANADA OR IN JAPAN. THIS NOTIFICATION IS NOT AN OFFER TO PURCHASE SECURITIES OR AN INVITATION TO SUBMIT A PURCHASE OFFER. THE RELEVANT SECURITIES PROSPECTUS IS PUBLISHED AT http://www.thegroundsag.com/en/ UNDER THE HEADING “INVESTOR RELATIONS”.
The Grounds consistently pursues a growth course: existing long-term real estate properties are being acquired. Two more properties added to the portfolio.
- The Grounds Real Estate Development AG has acquired a residential portfolio in Emden and land in the Greater Berlin area for its own property portfolio.
- The properties already enable high value enhancement potentials in the short term.
Berlin, 21 December 2017. Yesterday, The Grounds Real Estate Development AG (ISIN DE000A2GSVV5) laid the basis on which to build up a long-term real estate portfolio through two simultaneous real estate purchase contracts for properties in Emden (Lower Saxony) and Hangelsberg (in the Greater Berlin area).
The portfolio in Emden, used mainly for residential purposes, comprises a rentable residential-/usable area of around 9,600 m² spread across six apartment blocks with a total of 76 apartments, together with three more residential and commercial buildings with 44 apartments and 7 commercial units. All the properties are situated in a central position with good infrastructure links, e.g. close to the local university and at Emden Harbour. Yet more development potential for The Grounds exists here through renovation, expansion or targeted optimisation for use as student residential communities or accommodation suitable for senior citizens. The town of Emden has undergone very positive development recently, and increasingly attracts tourists and new residents. Investment costs for the portfolio amount to EUR 9.14 million.
In Hangelsberg in the direct catchment area east of Berlin, The Grounds has acquired a 99,900 m² plot of land (with a usable area of 35,611 m²) and has also taken over the assets and five employees of a logistics company’s business unit located on it. Among other things, this business operation rents out office, storage and function rooms of various sizes and equipment provision, as well as offering complete logistics solutions. Offices with an area of approx. 500 m² are available in the administration building, in addition to which 42,000 m² of warehouse area in halls of lightweight and solid construction and a further approx. 30,000 m² of open-air storage area are available. The Grounds also plans several residential and commercial project developments on the site. In this connection, permits also exist for special storage facilities for pyrotechnics or heavy loads. Furthermore, part of the areas is used as a salt storage area for the highways and traffic system. Investment costs amount to EUR 4.66 million. The areas not yet rented out, for some of which there are already parties interested in leasing, offer The Grounds Group large potential for increased rental revenues. Hangelsberg is in a favourable location regarding transport, at an exit from Federal Motorway 10 and directly on the Berlin-Frankfurt/Oder railway line.
The Emden residential portfolio and the Hangelsberg land with a resident logistics company will exert a positive effect on the revenue and result through ongoing rental incomes and operating profit. The own long-term property portfolio is thus being consistently expanded thereby, to earn sustainable rental cash flows.
Furthermore, The Grounds Group’s portfolio currently contains five other development projects attributable to the short to medium-term trading portfolio. Finally, The Grounds made two significant purchases early in the current quarter in Frankfurt’s Gutleut district and in Neu Isenburg (in the immediate vicinity of Frankfurt airport). 205 micro-apartments for temporary housing are being constructed in a four-storey boarding house on a plot of land comprising a total area of 5,683 m² in the Gutleut district of central Frankfurt. Another micro-apartment facility for temporary housing with 225 micro-apartments and/or a hotel is planned in Neu Isenburg on a plot of land comprising 8,400 m² with direct access to Terminal 3, which is currently being constructed. The Management Board expects to be able to submit building permit applications for both properties to the building authority in the first quarter of 2018.
