Investcorp adds to real estate portfolio with $160m investment in US

Business Tuesday 25/April/2017 12:26 PM
By: Times News Service
Investcorp adds to real estate portfolio with $160m investment in US

Muscat: Investcorp, a global provider and manager of alternative investment products, announced that its US-based real estate arm has invested in an industrial portfolio of properties in the Chicago and Boston metropolitan areas for a total purchase price of approximately $160 million. The portfolio includes six properties with an aggregate of approximately 1.8 million square feet of warehouse and distribution space.
"The industrial and logistics real estate asset class is benefiting greatly from the uptick in e-commerce. Consumers are making more purchases online and are expecting faster deliveries, which means warehouses have to be close to major cities. The six assets we have acquired are all in close proximity to Chicago or Boston, making them all high demand properties. Combined with the limited supply in their respective locations, we believe they are all great additions to the Investcorp portfolio," said Harsh Shethia, managing director at Investcorp in Oman.
The Chicago portfolio, located in close proximity to downtown Chicago, is comprised of three individual cold storage industrial buildings that are used primarily for the storage and distribution of frozen food products. There is limited cold storage industrial space in Chicago and minimal new development that is able to service the city’s growing consumer base as demand for fresh, organic and perishable food products continues to grow. Investcorp is partnering with Bridge Development Partners, one of the largest owner/operators of cold storage in the Chicago market.
In Boston, Investcorp has purchased a warehouse, distribution and flex portfolio totaling approximately 1.1 million square feet. These properties are located in the southern portion of the Boston metropolitan area, with convenient access to major transportation thoroughfares for easy distribution to businesses throughout the city and adjacent suburbs. The supply and demand dynamics are strong for industrial space in the Boston region and these properties boast a large and diversified tenant base with long lease durations, providing a steady cash flow for landlords. Investcorp has recapitalised these assets with Condyne Capital Partners, a vertically integrated owner/operator focused on northeastern commercial real estate assets.
With these investments, Investcorp adds to its Boston-based industrial assets, as the firm purchased a four-building industrial portfolio in the region comprising 900,000 square feet in October 2016.