In 2016, the Bouwinvest Dutch Institutional Office Fund continued its optimisation strategy, completing a number of upgrades and initiating new redevelopments. The Fund also acquired the Hourglass office building in Amsterdam Zuidas business district, increasing the proportion of assets in Amsterdam, the Netherlands’ leading office location. The Fund's intensified focus on multi-use office buildings in prime locations in core regions puts it in an excellent position to provide stable and predictable income returns.
Fund characteristics
Core investment style
No leverage
7% long-term average annual Fund return target
Robust governance structure
Investment structure for an indefinite period of time
Reporting in accordance with INREV standards
Fund management
Bouwinvest is the manager and Statutory Director of the Office Fund. The Bouwinvest Board of Directors is responsible for Bouwinvest’s long-term strategy, as well as the day-to-day management of the organisation itself and its assets under management. Bouwinvest’s Dutch Investments business unit is responsible for all real estate investments in the Netherlands. This business unit has a dedicated asset management team specialised in the office real estate sector, with experts in acquisition and divestment, property revitalisation and letting.
Our vision of the Dutch office market
Widespread construction before the last major financial crisis left the Dutch office market with an oversupply of office space. Despite a marked pick-up in demand for office space in both 2015 and 2016, supply remains substantial, with vacant space of around 6.9 million m² lfa, or approximately 13% of total office space. However, this is only part of the story, as the polarisation on the office market has continued. The G4 cities of the Netherlands (Amsterdam, Utrecht, The Hague and Rotterdam) have benefited the most from the recovery in demand, while the oversupply is still growing outside these cities and in other parts of the country with less favourable economic and demographic outlooks. On top of this, occupier demand for traditional Dutch office space is generally low, as both established and new companies look to create more flexible working environments. Thanks to the above trends, multifunctional, easily accessible, sustainable offices in prime locations in the big cities remain highly sought after. We believe that multi-functional environments, combining flexible working spaces, business networking opportunities, meeting places and leisure facilities will continue to meet today’s and tomorrow’s office requirements.
Optimisation strategy
The Office Fund aims to optimise its portfolio through targeted acquisitions and the revitalisation of assets.
The Fund's strategy has proven itself over the past years and continues focusing on:
Core regions and A-locations
Multifunctional locations with excellent transport links
Multi-tenant assets
Enhancement of core assets
Improving occupancy rates