1. Greece: Spanish REIT buys majority stake in hotel company
Madrid-based real estate investment trust Azora acquired a 50.1% stake in Greece’s Donkey Hotels for an undisclosed price, at a time when regional tourism and investor interest has been increasing.
As part of the deal with Azora, family-run investment firm Ioannou will continue to own the remaining 49.9% stake in Donkey Hotels, which includes five hotels across Greece with a total of 834 rooms. The joint venture aims to expand the Donkey Hotels portfolio and “establish an institutional quality hospitality platform focused on the Greek market,” through future added capital commitments, according to a statement.
2. UK: Blackstone prices largest CMBS sale since financial crisis
Blackstone has completed and priced the United Kingdom’s largest commercial mortgage-backed securities sale since the global financial crisis, a £1.5 billion deal involving Haven vacation parks.
The transaction is backed by a senior loan secured on a portfolio of 40 properties, including 39 of the parks in the United Kingdom operated by the Haven Group and its head office. Haven is the region’s largest operator of what are known in the United Kingdom as holiday parks, which include lodging, camping facilities and other recreation and entertainment amenities.
3. France: Climate risks could weigh on European investments
Costs associated with converting properties to sustainable energy systems could cut into total returns for prime real estate throughout Europe, according to a report from investment and management consulting firm AEW. Analysts said the latest data on rising temperatures and sea levels confirm that climate change is becoming more pronounced due to increasing greenhouse gas emissions, including those from commercial properties.
Compared with a year-earlier study, the firm cites an average 37% increase in the climate transition risk premium in Europe, potentially cutting 26 basis points from expected annual total returns for the 2025-2029 period. That’s up from the 19 basis points projected in the 2024 study, based on data covering five property categories for 196 regions across 20 countries.
4. Germany: Canadian-Israeli investor enters market with big retail purchase
Mishorim, a company listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, is entering the German real estate market with the purchase of a shopping center in Berlin, with further purchases to follow, according to sources.
The company controlled by Canadian businessman Alex Shnaider has previously been active primarily along the East Coast of the United States and in Israel. In Berlin, Mishorim secured the Obi shopping center in the Steglitz-Zehlendorf district with a total area of 24,000 square meters for around €62 million, a transaction financed with a €40 million loan from financial services firm Berliner Sparkasse.
5. Canada: Developer secures financing for data center expansion
Montreal-based eStruxture Data Centers earned a financial vote of confidence for its ambitious pace of industrial real estate projects across Canada, as the eight-year-old firm says it’s secured $1.35 billion in financing for its construction projects.
The financing agreement represents a step forward for eStruxture Data Centers, a company launched in 2017 by President and CEO Todd Coleman with $15 million and 20 employees. The operation has since built 15 data centers and grown to 150 employees. The company is currently completing projects in Alberta and has upcoming projects in Ontario and British Columbia.
6. US: Southern California landlords deal with steep industrial leasing drop
Industrial landlords in Southern California’s Inland Empire, the most active Western U.S. warehouse and logistics hub, are coming up with ways to cope with a major drop in demand after years of tenant expansion.
Tenants in the region packed with warehouses about 60 miles east of downtown Los Angeles vacated 4 million square feet more than they moved into during the second quarter, ranking among the steepest quarterly occupancy losses of any U.S. industrial market as regional vacancy reached a 15-year high of 8.5%. Landlords are responding by offering rent concessions, leaning into renewals and marketing top-tier properties. New leasing is happening, but tenants are pickier than usual, landlords said.
This report was compiled from CoStar’s news publications in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.