Velero Partners and Forte Group close 4,500 NRW resi portfolio

German residential group Velero Partners and Forte Group have finalized their acquisition of a portfolio of 4,500 apartments in North Rhein-Westphalia from US investment management Angelo, Gordon & Co. for an undisclosed sum, Velero’s transactions manager, Christian Hirschel, told REFIRE this month.

The apartments, which total around 300,000 sqm, are mainly located in cities such as Dortmund, Duisburg, Bochum und Essen, Hirschel said. The portfolio generates an annual net ‘cold’ rent of €16.2 m and has a vacancy rate of 9.2%.

‘We’re always on the lookout for new investment opportunities, although it can be a challenge to find value-add assets in Germany as investor interest is very high,’ Hirschel said.

With this acquisition, Velero has grown its portfolio to 9,300 apartments. ‘We’re looking to grow the portfolio further and are particularly interested in the Ruhr region, Leipzig and Dresden, where we see interesting investment opportunities. For us, it’s very much about the repositioning potential,’ Hirschel added.

Angelo, Gordon & Co., which has been active in Europe since 2009, will also continue to invest in Germany’s residential sector, according to Stefan Doerffler, the group’s director and head of Germany: ‘We’re interested in all types of use, from multi-family to strong demand for stable portfolios in a good location as potential value-add investments to which we can greatly improve the value through active management, investment and repositioning,’ he said.