CMS has advised REICO, the manager of the largest and oldest Czech open-ended real estate fund, on the purchase of the Proximo I office building in Warsaw from Proximo I sp. z o.o. Sp. K., part of the Hines Russia & Poland fund. In addition to CMS, REICO was advised by international advisory firms CBRE, TPA, and DIL, while the seller was represented by Cushman & Wakefield, Crido, and Dentons.
The transaction, which was carried out on behalf of CS Nemovitostni Fond (CSNF), is valued at over EUR 116 million and represents REICO’s first investment in Poland. With the purchase, REICO increases its property portfolio to 12 buildings, including six properties in Prague, three in Bratislava and one each in Warsaw, Brno, and Ceske Budejovice.
According to CMS, Proximo I, which was built in 2016 near Warsaw's Rondo Daszynskiego metro station, "is a 15-story office building with total leasable area of about 29,200 square meters and 428 parking spaces. The property was designed by UK-based architectural studio Rolfe Judd, and developed by Hines with HOCHTIEF Polska acting as general contractor of the construction. The building received environmental certification BREEAM Excellent."
“The unceasing interest in office space in Warsaw coupled with forecasts that current rent rates will be maintained make this market sector very attractive to investors, especially when it comes to buildings in such prime locations as Proximo I," said Partner Wojciech Koczara, head of CMS's Real Estate team in Central and Eastern Europe. "We hope that this first investment in Poland will prove a significant step in the geographical diversification of the fund, which until now has been active only on the Czech and Slovak markets."
The CMS team working on the deal was managed by Koczara and Counsel Adriana Andrzejewska, and it included Associates Adriana Ciesla and Paulina Kotecka.
The Warsaw-based Dentons team advising Hines consisted of Partner Pawel Debowski, Senior Associate Jacek Jezierski, and Associate Joanna Fidecka.
Image Source: proximooffice.pl
