Built in 1898 in the Neo-Renaissance style, the building is located in an area which registers some 5.6 million passers-by a year – the highest footfall in the Finnish capital. The vendor of the property is Finnish investment company Sponda. The purchase price is approximately EUR 148 million and the acquisition is being made for the portfolio of open-ended real estate fund UniImmo: Deutschland.

This is the largest investment in Finland for the fund to date, joining two office buildings in the Helsinki area already held in the portfolio. Regarding the new transaction Union Investment was commercially advised by Cushman & Wakefield and legally by Merilampi. The vendor was advised by CBRE and Krogerus.

“High street properties in excellent inner-city locations are an integral part of our investment strategy. After the recent purchases in Madrid and Copenhagen, this mixed-use property in downtown Helsinki is an excellent fit with our portfolio. The prominent corner location at the junction of two important shopping and office streets ensures a safe long-term investment environment,” said Henrike Waldburg, head of Investment Management Retail at Union Investment Real Estate GmbH.

The anchor tenant of the approximately 8,300 sq m property is Zara while the biggest office tenants are Finnish investment company eQ and the OP financial group. The building is currently used by a total of 22 companies. Some 60 per cent of the rental income is derived from retail, and around 40 per cent from office tenants.

The sustainability of the building is documented by a BREEAM Very Good rating. Helsinki’s main station is some 250 metres from the building, and Ylioppilastalo tram stop is located directly in front of the property.

The mixed-use property at 19 Aleksanterinkatu is Union Investment’s fourth acquisition in Helsinki in 2019. The Hamburg-based real estate investment manager currently holds eight commercial properties in Finland worth a total of over EUR 650 million.