AFIAA invests in the USA
AFIAA, the investment foundation of 40 pension funds focusing on international commercial real estate, has acquired the office building "501 Congress Avenue" in downtown Austin, Texas. The office building, which includes first floor retail space and an attached, newly constructed parking garage, was built in 1963 and underwent a core renovation in 2014/2015. This created a Class A office building that spans five upper floors and an atrium/basement.
The 11,400 sqm office complex is located in the heart of Austin's business district. In the immediate vicinity are branches of financial service providers, law firms, and institutional and teaching buildings of the University of Texas. Congress Avenue is the most famous street in downtown Austin and was the city's most important traffic artery as early as the 19th century. The building complex also borders 6th Street, which is part of the central nightlife and shopping district.
The property is currently 76.3 percent leased (based on square footage). According to AFIAA, the multi-tenant structure has long lease terms and is broadly diversified. The main tenant is Dropbox, a well-known provider of cloud file-sharing solutions. The other tenants are U.S. financial services provider Charles Schwab, wine retailer Vine Vault, Allen Edmonds, a manufacturer and retailer of men's shoes, and EMC2 Cooperation, the world's largest data storage systems provider. AFIAA writes in a media release that it is "looking forward to a quick leasing of the vacant space and the associated increase in yield."
The investment volume in Austin is around CHF 75 million. According to AFIAA, the property now acquired is a classic long-term property thanks to its exposed, very central location, which can also be held in the portfolio beyond a possible renovation cycle (20-30 years).
AFIAA has offices in Zurich, New York and Sydney. Currently, the portfolio comprises 31 direct investments in North America, Europe and Australia. The total investment volume amounts to approximately CHF 1.4 billion. (ah)
