The Following Article Appeared in the Estates Gazette on 12/12/2015
Cordatus and CBRE GIP fund looks to regions
CBRE Global Investment Partners and Cordatus have launched a £150m joint venture investment programme targeting smaller shops, offices and sheds.
The vehicle, called Cordatus Property Trust, will target investment opportunities in “strong micro locations” primarily in UK regional markets.
It will be managed by Cordatus co-founding director Mike Channing and will purchase assets with lot sizes of between £3m to £15m in an attempt to generate above-market income distribution.
Tom Laidlaw, chief executive at Cordatus Real Estate, who was previously head of property at Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, said the new vehicle represented the next stage in the development of the Cordatus business.
“This is our venture using institutional capital and builds on the success of our existing private client business, workout mandates and joint ventures. We are bringing together Cordatus’s asset management expertise and CBRE GIP’s investment capacity. We are looking forward to building a long-term relationship beyond this initial commitment of £150m.”
Alex Bignell, head of UK at CBRE Global Investment Partners, said the fund manager saw investing in smaller-sized assets in the UK regions as an opportunity to achieve higher returns. Savills has forecast UK total property returns will fall to 7.5% next year as capital growth cools.
CBRE Capital Advisors acted as placement agent for Cordatus in raising the equity.
