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QUEST Investment Partners acquires another property in Frankfurt am Main from MEAG

QUEST Investment Partners acquires another property in Frankfurt am Main from MEAG 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners acquires another property in Frankfurt am Main from MEAG

Hamburg, 11 November 2021 – The investment and project development company QUEST Investment Partners has acquired the commercial and residential building Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 54 in Frankfurt am Main from MEAG as part of an asset deal. MEAG is the asset manager of Munich Re and ERGO. Built in 2002, the property enjoys an excellent location between the Central Business District and the sought-after Westend area and comprises some 3,800 m2 of lettable office space. The building includes 29 underground parking spaces. When the current main tenant moves out in July 2022, QUEST intends to give this building with its striking architecture a visual upgrade and to reposition the office spaces. The layout allows for flexible use, with 570 m2 per floor. Be it as a multi-tenant or single- tenant property: the spaces are suitable for individual, double or open-plan offices.

“The property blends into the course of the road like a triangle and offers not only a fascinating architecture and a superb location but also an exquisite view of Frankfurt’s skyline, the park opposite and the trade fair grounds. It is a perfect match for our Frankfurt portfolio with extraordinary properties such as the former “office pyramid” building of Deutsche Bahn, Hotel Hohenzollern at the central station and the new Kreisler building”, explains Luis Walther- Kraft, Head of Transactions & Partnering at QUEST Investment Partners.

“As an asset manager for insurance companies, we focus our capital investments on properties of excellent quality in prime locations. This allows us to make good use of our options at any time. We congratulate QUEST Investment Partners on a unique property with great potential. We would like to thank them for the excellent cooperation and wish the new owners lots of success for the future”, comments Katrin Hupfauer, Head of Real Estate Transactions at MEAG.

Due to its central location, the property is optimally connected to all transport routes: the U-Bahn stop “Messe” is only a one-minute walk away, the international airport can be reached in ten minutes and the central station in three minutes by car.

BNP Paribas Real Estate conducted a structured bidding process, acting as broker on behalf of MEAG. QUEST Investment Partners was advised by SNP Schlawien on legal matters, by HANSA Partner Rommel & Meyer on tax matters and by Bohnzirlewagen on technical matters.

About QUEST Investment Partners
QUEST Investment Partners is an owner-operated real estate investment company founded in 2016. Its offices are located in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. With a portfolio of around €3.8 billion in assets under management, the company focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in selected locations of major German cities. QUEST Development develops and finances high-quality real estate projects both independently and in cooperation with co-investors. The sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. QUEST is also engaged in property management through its majority share in Albrecht Gebrüder & Co. For further information please visit www.quest-investment.com

About MEAG
MEAG is the asset manager of Munich Re and ERGO. With offices in Europe, Asia and North America it also offers its extensive know-how to institutional investors and private clients from outside Munich Re Group. MEAG currently manages assets to the value of around €330 billion, €65 billion of which for institutional investors and private clients from outside the company group.

QUEST Investment Partners sells mixed-use property in Berlin Mitte to private investor

QUEST Investment Partners sells mixed-use property in Berlin Mitte to private investor 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners sells mixed-use property in Berlin Mitte to private investor

Hamburg, 09 November 2021. The investment and project development company QUEST Investment Partners has sold the mixed-use property “Echt Wedding” at Müllerstraße 151 in Berlin’s Mitte district as part of a share deal to a private investor. The property comprises over 7,000 m² of rental space and dates back to around 1900. It was acquired by QUEST in the spring of 2020. The six-storey property features a prestigious red brick façade with white bay windows and balconies. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

“This well-preserved multi-tenant building is located on the main shopping street in Berlin Wedding – a neighbourhood in the district of Berlin Mitte – and offers great upside potential”, says Luis Walther-Kraft, Head of Transactions & Partnering at QUEST Investment Partners.

Its popular location next to Leopoldplatz offers excellent local public transport connections as well as an abundance of cafés and restaurants.

Angermann carried out the off-market transaction. QUEST was advised on legal matters by Clifford Chance and on tax matters by Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer.

Über QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners is an owner-operated real estate investment company founded in 2016. Its offices are located in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. With a portfolio of around €3.4 billion in assets under management, the company focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in selected locations of major German cities. QUEST Development develops and finances high-quality real estate projects both independently and in cooperation with co-investors. The sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. QUEST is also engaged in property management through its majority share in Albrecht Gebrüder & Co. For further information please visit www.quest-investment.com

QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in prime location in Munich

QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in prime location in Munich 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners


QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in prime location in Munich

Hamburg, 29 October 2021. The investment and project development company QUEST Investment Partners has acquired an office and commercial building with around 3,400 m2 of rental space on one of Munich’s most popular boulevards. The property at Leopoldstraße 7 in Munich was sold as part of an asset deal. The seller is Catella Real Estate AG, acting on behalf of the open-ended real estate fund Catella MAX. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price. The property was built in 1982 and is located on the border of the districts of Maxvorstadt and Schwabing. On the ground floor, it accommodates the Italian restaurant Bar Giornale, which is well-known throughout the city.

“We are delighted to have acquired this trophy asset with a view of the Siegestor gate in the fashionable Schwabing district. The property allows for a complete redevelopment, including the addition of new storeys and the redesign of the façade. With our refurbishment, we will once again demonstrate how we can carry buildings into the future with innovative concepts”, says Jan Rouven Künzel, Managing Partner at QUEST Investment Partners.

The property in the immediate vicinity of the Siegestor gate has received a positive building notification to increase the rental space to about 4,000 m2 and to modernise the building. In a competition for ideas, the Munich architects at Allmann Sattler Wappner came out as winners. Their design envisages the dismantling of the current roof and storage floors of the detached corner building and the construction of two new stacked floors with flat roofs and terrace areas on the 5th and 6th floors.

The building is located in the immediate vicinity of Munich’s universities, major attractions, the English Garden and culinary highlights. Munich’s city centre can be reached on foot.

Cushman & Wakefield conducted the structured bidding process on behalf of the seller. QUEST received legal advice from Jebens Mensching, tax advice from Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer and technical advice from Bohnzirlewagen. The sellers received legal and tax advice from DLA Piper and technical advice from Arcadis.

Über QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners is an owner-operated real estate investment company founded in 2016. Its offices are located in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. With a portfolio of around €3.4 billion in assets under management, the company focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in selected locations of major German cities. QUEST Development develops and finances high- quality real estate projects both independently and in cooperation with co-investors. The sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. QUEST is also engaged in property management through its majority share in Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

QUEST Investment Partners acquires centrally located office property in Hamburg

QUEST Investment Partners acquires centrally located office property in Hamburg 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners acquires centrally located office property in Hamburg

Hamburg, 27 October 2021. The investment and project development company QUEST Investment Partners has acquired the office and commercial building at Steindamm 72-86 in an off market transaction. The building comprises 14,100 m2 of rental space and 144 car parking spaces. The seller is a joint venture between the London-based investment manager Tristan Capital Partners and the German real estate company Investa Real Estate. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
Built in 1973, the eleven-storey property received a complete refurbishment and an energy efficiency upgrade in 2014 and 2019. It is located in Hamburg’s St. Georg district, next to the 12,750 m2 office building Steindamm 94, which is also part of the QUEST portfolio.

“We are very convinced by the central location of this building within the public transportation network. Furthermore, we see this fully let office-asset as a strategic, long-term investment, which will profit from a significant increase of the neighborhood”, explains Luis Walther-Kraft, Head of Transactions & Partnering at QUEST Investment Partners. The main tenants at Steindamm 72-86 are the City of Hamburg and EOS.

Thanks to its central location, the building offers optimal public transport connections: Hamburg’s central station can be reached on foot in just a few minutes, and bus and underground stations are right around the corner.

BNP Paribas Real Estate carried out the transaction process. QUEST received legal advice from Capstone Legal and Huth Dietrich Hahn, tax advice from Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer, and technical advice from Bohnzirlewagen. Poellath provided legal and tax advice to the sellers.

Über QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners is an owner-operated real estate investment company founded in 2016. Its offices are located in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. With a portfolio of around €3.4 billion in assets under management, the company focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in selected locations of major German cities. QUEST Development develops and finances high- quality real estate projects both independently and in cooperation with co-investors. The sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. QUEST is also engaged in property management through its majority share in Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

Ardian acquires Hamburg-based office complex “Quartier 21” from QUEST Funds

Ardian acquires Hamburg-based office complex “Quartier 21” from QUEST Funds 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners


Ardian acquires Hamburg-based office complex “Quartier 21” from QUEST Funds. The acquisition marks Ardian’s first real estate investment in Hamburg with plans for a significant capital expenditure program.

Hamburg/Frankfurt am Main, October 4, 2021 – Ardian, a world leading private investment house, has acquired the office and commercial building “Q21 Offices” located at Fuhlsbüttler Strasse in Hamburg, Barmbek. The seller is a retail fund managed by the real estate investment and asset manager QUEST Funds. The parties have agreed not to disclose the financial details of the transaction. QUEST Funds had previously concluded lease extensions for more than 2,100 m2 with denn’s Biomarkt, Targobank and Budni drugstore in April 2021.

Centrally located in the up-and-coming district of Barmbek in Hamburg Nord, the property was built in 2012 and covers around 20,000 m2 of rental space permitting flexible usage. The complex has 299 underground parking spaces and 15 outdoor parking spaces. In addition, public transport such as buses and trams are within a short walking distance, and the airport, city center and major highways can be reached in less than 20 minutes.

Constructed between 2008 and 2013, Quartier 21 is an ensemble of 21 listed historic buildings and 16 modern buildings on the site of the former General Hospital of Barmbek. The name also reflects the vision of intergenerational living and working in the 21st century, which has been put into practice here. The area has a neighborhood feel and encompasses 14 hectares of parkland, apartments and townhouses as well as healthcare, education, offices, retail and amenity facilities in close vicinity.

Roland Holschuh, Managing Partner at QUEST Funds, said: “As an asset manager, we are proud that our active management has contributed to increasing the attractiveness of the neighborhood and that we have also been able to achieve a very attractive overall result for our investors.”
The Ardian team plans to undertake extensive upgrading measures to reposition the property in the market and sustainably increase the attractiveness of the building.

Bernd Haggenmüller, Senior Managing Director at Ardian Real Estate, said: “Quartier 21 is ideally located in the vibrant district of Hamburg Barmbek. We see considerable development potential in this property, which we intend to realize through targeted investments. Quartier 21 fits perfectly into our investment strategy of acquiring and developing high-potential core plus and value-add properties in key European cities. Having already made successful investments in Munich, Berlin and Frankfurt in Germany, this transaction now marks our first investment in Hamburg. In our view, investments in office space in top cities continue to be attractive. Office properties will not become less important following the pandemic and changing work models, rather they will be designed differently to fulfill additional functions. As a real estate investor and asset manager, we are actively shaping this change.”

About QUEST Investment Partners
Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. QUEST Funds is in charge of the fund business of the real estate company and makes individual investments in cooperation with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers. www.quest-investment.com

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$114bn managed or advised in Europe, the Americas and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base.
Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian’s activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world.

Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with more than 780 employees working from fifteen offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), the Americas (New York, San Francisco and Santiago) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo and Seoul). It manages funds on behalf of more than 1,200 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.

Ardian on Twitter @Ardian

www.ardian.com

About QUEST Investment Partners
QUEST Investment Partners is an owner-operated real estate investment company founded in 2016. Its offices are located in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. With a portfolio of around €3.8 billion in assets under management, the company focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in selected locations of major German cities. QUEST Development develops and finances high-quality real estate projects both independently and in cooperation with co-investors. The sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. QUEST is also engaged in property management through its majority share in Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

LIST OF PARTIES INVOLVED

Ardian
Legal and taxes: Clifford Chance
Technology, environment and ESG: KVL

QUEST Funds
Legal and taxes: Jebens Mensching
Technology: CBRE
Real estate: BNP Real Estate

PRESS CONTACT

CHARLES BARKER CORPORA TE COMMUNICA TIONS
Tobias Eberle
tobias.eberle@charlesbarker.de
Tel: +49 69 79409024

Jan P. Sefrin
jan.sefrin@charlesbarker.de
Tel: +49 69 79409026

QUEST FUNDS
Stefanie Rother
rother@quest-investment.com
Tel: +49 160 972 88 057

The Q21 Offices comprise separate five and seven-story buildings
Copyright: Room Communication

QUEST Investment Partners acquires iconic Deutsche Bahn building in Frankfurt for a German pension fund

QUEST Investment Partners acquires iconic Deutsche Bahn building in Frankfurt for a German pension fund 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners


QUEST Investment Partners acquires iconic Deutsche Bahn building in Frankfurt for a German pension fund

Frankfurt, 06 July 2021. The investment and project development company QUEST Investment Partners has acquired the former Deutsche Bahn headquarters at Stephensonstrasse 1 in Frankfurt’s Europaviertel district for a fund of funds of an occupational pension scheme. QUEST Funds acts as initiator and asset manager in this off-market transaction. The acquisition is carried out via a newly established institutional AIF, which is managed by INTREAL as the AIFM. The property, which comprises 51,000 m2 of rental space and is considered an architectural icon of Brutalism, is now to be repositioned. It has only recently been declared a listed monument.

The current owner is the closed-end retail fund Hesse Newman Real Estate No. 3, managed by QUEST Funds. Constructed in 1993, the property will be transferred to the new AIF under a leasehold agreement. QUEST will be modernising the distinctive property and re-letting the spaces on behalf of the AIF. The rental agreement with Deutsche Bahn, which had been using the building for almost 30 years, expired at the end of March 2021.

Roland Holschuh, Managing Partner at QUEST Funds, explains: “We firmly believe in the long-term potential of this outstanding property. Its conservation is absolutely worthwhile, if only for sustainability and architectural reasons. We have structured this transaction in such a way as to combine the interests of first- time investors with those of the new institutional investor. While the new AIF secures a unique and stable long-term asset through the early entry, the existing retail fund receives an attractive and secure ground rent. ”

RAW – new plans for the listed architectural icon
The architect Stephan Böhm, son of the master architect of concrete buildings Gottfried Böhm, created one of the main works of Brutalism in Frankfurt. Six wings connected by pavilions and a central tower measuring 65 metres in height make up the striking building complex of concrete, steel and glass. With its distinctive supporting structure of exposed concrete, flexible room configurations and impressive vistas, it boasts a high level of architectural quality.

Brutally modern and timeless: inspired by the raw, exposed concrete, the building is now called “RAW”. Its repositioning aims to transform it into a multi-tenant property with a campus feel. The entrance hall is to serve as a communication and service hub, complemented by contemporary restaurants, co-working and conference spaces.

The buyer received legal and tax advice from Mayer Brown LLP and legal advice from Greenberg Traurig Germany LLP. Technical advice was provided by Drees & Sommer SE. The seller was advised on legal matters by REIUS Rechtsanwälte Partnerschaft mbB and on tax matters by Jebens Mensching PartG mbB.

 

About QUEST Investment Partners

Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. While QUEST Development primarily develops projects, its sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers.

QUEST Investment Partners acquires stake in property management company Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

QUEST Investment Partners acquires stake in property management company Albrecht Gebrüder & Co. 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners acquires stake in property management company Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

Hamburg, 21 June 2021. On 30 June 2021, the project development and investment company QUEST Investment Partners will acquire a majority stake in the property management company Albrecht Gebrüder & Co., which was founded in 1987 and is based in Hamburg and Berlin. This move will mark the further expansion of the real estate company and its entry into its third business area, alongside the project development and fund business.

Albrecht Gebrüder & Co. employs around 30 people in an interdisciplinary team of real estate specialists, civil engineers, business economists, accountants, rental experts, lawyers and property caretakers. The company currently manages some 120 properties with over 4,500 commercial and residential units and more than 500,000 m2 of usable space. Its clients are domestic and foreign investors such as pension funds, family offices, foundations and medium-sized property owners. With its focus on central locations in Hamburg and Berlin, the company is an ideal match for QUEST Investment Partners. The two companies have maintained a trusting business relationship for many years.

QUEST integrates own portfolio and plans new locations for the property management company
“This strategic partnership will bring us closer to our properties in the future and enable us to ensure optimal property management”, explains Theja Geyer, Managing Partner at QUEST Investment Partners. Geyer sees the investment as a logical step following the dynamic growth in recent years. QUEST plans to establish new branches of the property management company in Munich and Frankfurt and to gradually integrate its own portfolio into that of Albrecht Gebrüder & Co. Dr Philip Boll and Dr Christoph Lück will stay on board as Managing Partners of Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

Dr Christoph Lück, Managing Partner at Albrecht Gebrüder & Co., states: “We are delighted to have this strong partner, whose high-quality properties and steady pipeline of new projects offer us attractive growth prospects.”

QUEST Investment Partners received legal advice on the transaction from SNP Schlawien and tax advice from Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer. Bird & Bird acted as legal advisor to Albrecht Gebrüder & Co.

About QUEST Investment Partners
Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. While QUEST Development primarily develops projects, its sister company QUEST Funds is responsible for the fund business and makes individual investments together with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers. www.quest-investment.com

Still on course for growth:
Theja Geyer (left) and Jan Rouven Künzel (right), Managing Partners at QUEST Investment Partners

Copyright: Sebastian Vollmert

QUEST and Competo let 19,000 m2 in Frankfurt to Nestlé Germany

QUEST and Competo let 19,000 m2 in Frankfurt to Nestlé Germany 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST and Competo let 19,000 m2 in Frankfurt to Nestlé Germany

Hamburg, 17 June 2021. The “Kreisler” property, a joint project development by QUEST Investment Partners and Competo Capital Partners, has found a new tenant before the construction works have even begun: the food company Nestlé will be taking over around 19,000 m2 of space for its new German headquarters. After completion in 2024, Nestlé employees will move from the current location in Niederrad to the centre of Frankfurt.

This modern, 45-metre tall building will comprise 12 storeys with a total area of 25,000 m2, around 1,900 m2 of landscaped roof terraces and outdoor areas, as well as open-air workspaces in the shade. The two lower floors are to accommodate a staff restaurant and a Nestlé test kitchen, while flexible office spaces are planned on the remaining floors.
The architects at Faller + Krück have designed a layered and elegantly curved building with fluid shapes and rounded corners — a development that significantly upgrades the area. The concept also includes a sustainable LEED Gold certification.

Theja Geyer, Managing Partner at QUEST Investment Partners, states: “The decision by Nestlé Germany is an excellent signal for the development of Frankfurt’s Bahnhofsviertel. We believed in the potential of this property from the start and are delighted to have secured such a strong tenant.”

The property is located on the southern edge of the dynamic Bahnhofsviertel, Frankfurt’s railway station district. The site measuring around 4,700 m2 is situated at the corner of Baseler Straße and Gutleutstraße, between the central station and Baseler Platz. The name “Kreisler” is inspired by the former traffic roundabout between the central station and the Friedensbrücke bridge, which was an important junction in the city. With the demolition of the existing office buildings currently underway, civil engineering activities are set to begin in the summer of 2021.

Colliers acted as broker in the transaction; QUEST Investment Partners was legally advised by SNP Schlawien.

About QUEST Investment Partners
Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. QUEST Funds is in charge of the fund business of the real estate company and makes individual investments in cooperation with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers. www.quest-investment.com

About Competo Capital Partners
Competo Capital Partners GmbH is an owner-managed and independent investment and asset management specialist. Core competencies are focused on custom-tailored-investments in German project developments with equity and mezzanine loans as well as long-term investments in existing properties. In this context Competo supports a small and select number of institutional investors, almost exclusively from foundations and family offices.

In project developments, Competo Capital Partners participates with equity and mezzanine loans in selected real estate project developments by experienced developers in Germany in the office, residential, retail, logistics and hotel segments. On average, the investment portfolio consists of 15 equity investments with an investment volume of around one billion euros and 10 mezzanine investments with an investment volume of about one billion euros. This amounts to a combined investment volume of around two billion euros.

In the segment of existing properties, Competo acts as an investment and asset manager and currently manages a portfolio of 17 office properties with an investment volume of around 1.2 billion euros in Munich, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Ulm.

Competo hence manages a total investment volume of 3.2 billion euros in the real estate sector.

Visualisation: beyond visual arts GmbH

QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in Berlin

QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in Berlin 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners acquires office and commercial building in Berlin

Hamburg, 7. Juni 2021. The project developers at QUEST Investment Partners have acquired another property in Berlin Mitte, in the direct vicinity of the Zeitungsviertel, in an off-market transaction: the seven- storey office and commercial building dates back to 1996 and is located at Alte Jakobstraße 83/84. It comprises a rental area of approximately 5,350 m2, of which around 4,500 m2 can be used for customisable office spaces. The retail premises on the ground floor are let to the food retailer Netto under a long-term lease. The office spaces in the multi-tenant property are almost fully let, the main tenants being a publisher of comics and children’s magazines and an agency for digital marketing. The building’s own underground car park features 43 parking spaces. The seller is a private individual; the purchase price has not been disclosed.

“As is typical for our developments, we want to rebrand this project and significantly improve the quality of the office space, façade and lobby, as well as the unused courtyards and terraces”, explains Jan Rouven Künzel, Managing Partner at QUEST Investment Partners. Commenting on the market outlook for German office buildings, Künzel states: “We continue to see stable and even increasing demand for multi-tenant properties in central locations of major German cities. The coronavirus pandemic does not change that.”

A central location between the Zeitungsviertel and Kreuzberg
The building is within walking distance of the Spree Canal, between the Zeitungsviertel and the office location of many tech and start-up companies in Kreuzberg. It boasts excellent public transport links with the underground stations Spittelmarkt, Heinrich-Heine-Straße and Moritzplatz as well as various bus routes in the immediate vicinity.

Angermann Berlin acted as intermediary in the transaction. QUEST Investment Partners was advised on legal matters by SNP Schlawien and Huth Dietrich Hahn, on technical matters by Arup and on tax matters by Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer. Schwenke Schütz provided legal advice to the seller and GSP Steuerberatungsgesellschaft advised the seller on tax matters.

Über QUEST Investment Partners
Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. QUEST Funds is in charge of the fund business of the real estate company and makes individual investments in cooperation with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers.

Copyright: Angermann Investment Advisory AG

QUEST Investment Partners and AXA IM Alts acquire 15,000 m2 office building in Berlin’s Mitte district

QUEST Investment Partners and AXA IM Alts acquire 15,000 m2 office building in Berlin’s Mitte district 150 150 QUEST Investment Partners

QUEST Investment Partners and AXA IM Alts acquire 15,000 m2 office building in Berlin’s Mitte district

Hamburg, 5 May 2021. A joint venture established by QUEST Investment Partners and AXA IM Alts, acting on behalf of its clients through its Real Assets platform, has acquired an office building in Berlin Mitte that directly adjoins the inner-city campus of an international life sciences company. The seven-storey building at Sellerstraße 31 comprises 15,800 m2 of total lettable area and was acquired as part of a sale-and-leaseback transaction. Built in 1992, the corporate property is in very good structural condition and will be used by the current tenant for at least another two years.

“Subject to the necessary approvals, we intend an extensive repositioning programme on expiry of the current lease with the aim of designing a highly modern, sustainable and and future-proof building. Furthermore, we plan to activate the unused area potential of the property to redevelop and reposition the location”, explains Jan Rouven Künzel, Managing Partner at QUEST Investment Partners.

The subway station Reinickendorfer Straße, located directly in front of the property, as well as various bus lines offer excellent connections to the local transportation network. The central station is only a five-minute car ride away, while the new BER airport can be reached in half an hour.

Cushman & Wakefield carried out the structured transaction process on the exclusive order of the seller. The JV partners received legal advice on the acquisition from Jebens Mensching LLP, technical advice from Propertunities Immobilien Consulting, and tax advice from Hansa Partner Rommel & Meyer. In establishing the joint venture, QUEST was advised by Jebens Mensching LLP, while AXA IM Alts was advised by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

About QUEST Investment Partners
Founded in 2016, QUEST Investment Partners is an investment and project development company with offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt. QUEST focuses on investments in commercial properties with upside potential in top locations of major German cities and the Benelux countries. The team has extensive experience in the development of high-quality real estate projects. QUEST Funds is in charge of the fund business of the real estate company and makes individual investments in cooperation with institutional investors. The shareholders of QUEST Investment Partners are the managing directors Theja Geyer and Jan Rouven Künzel as well as the investment holding company of the Hamburg entrepreneur Erck Rickmers. www.quest-investment.com

Timeless architecture with light-flooded offices in Berlin’s Mitte district
Copyright: Image Agency