The fund managed by Berlin-based Catella Residential Investment Management (CRIM) and open to German institutional investors, made the investments in small-scale affordable housing complexes in Munich, Berlin and Wolfsburg for €65 million, with €35 in Nieuwegein and Deventer in the Netherlands and €15 million in the Taastrup suburb of Copenhagen. The transactions were executed through the AIFM-registered Catella Real Estate AG (CREAG) investment platform.

Michael Keune, Managing Director of Catella Residential Investment Management, said:

“The fund’s latest acquisitions in Germany, The Netherlands and Denmark, are good examples of the main themes within its investment strategy. These include providing affordable rental homes by investing in small apartments in central locations of cities such as Munich and Wolfburg, where high rents are the norm due to high demand and constricted supply; or offering accommodation to key workers on relatively modest incomes who need to live close to major cities, as is the case in Copenhagen. The Berlin acquisition is targeted at the growing group of retirees who want to downscale in the size of their homes and move to affordable apartments, while continuing to live in the major cities.”

Catella Wohnen Europa has expanded its portfolio in Denmark, with the purchase of a fully-leased residential complex comprising 42 apartments in the suburb of Tåstrup. near Copenhagen. Dating from 2006, the complex offers affordable housing units at a location with excellent public transport connections to Copenhagen’s city centre, which can be reached by a 20-minute train ride. Following this purchase, Denmark accounts for approximately €175 million of Catella Wohnen Europa fund’s assets under management. The seller was Topdanmark, which is the second-largest Danish insurance company.