Buysse & Partners acquires iconic Las Palmas building in Rotterdam.

Buysse & Partners acquires iconic Las Palmas building in Rotterdam.

Rotterdam, December 21, 2022 – Antwerp investment house Buysse & Partners is taking over the iconic Las Palmas building on Kop van Zuid in Rotterdam from an Anglo-Saxon institutional investment fund managed by APF International. Buysse & Partners is thus strengthening its position on the Dutch market.

Thanks to the acquisition of Las Palmas, the value of Buysse & Partners' real estate portfolio increases to just under 400 million euros. Las Palmas joins the list of iconic real estate that Buysse & Partners focuses on: Zilveren Toren in The Hague, the Glaverbel building in Brussels, the CBR building in Brussels and the BP Tower in Antwerp.

With the purchase of Las Palmas, Buysse & Partners acquires its second property in the Netherlands, after Zilveren Toren in The Hague, and thus confirms its ambition to play an active role as a real estate investor and manager outside Belgium.

The purchase of Las Palmas is part of a long-term strategy to invest in high-quality Dutch real estate, explains Peter De Bie, partner at Buysse & Partners and one of the key figures behind the real estate strategy: "The Netherlands has always been an important focus for us. We are therefore very pleased that with Las Palmas we can support our ambition to expand our real estate portfolio outside Belgium. Las Palmas is a fantastic building with a truly iconic appearance. It fits perfectly with our vision to committing fully to sustainable investments. By choosing iconic real estate, we choose properties that can withstand the test of time and have proven to retain their value. Moreover, these types of properties attract a reliable group of tenants thanks to their appearance."

The choice of the Netherlands was not only inspired by its wealth of iconic real estate, but also ties in with the philosophy of active building management that Buysse & Partners represents. The investment house chooses to handle its asset and property management in-house as much as possible, based on the belief that this creates the most value for both tenants and investors in the long term. Proximity is of course an important factor in this strategy.

Houthoff and Laurius advised on the transaction for Buysse & Partners Smart Assets. Berlin Hyp is the financing partner on duty.

About Las Palmas

Las Palmas is a former workshop building of the shipping company Holland America on the Wilhelminakade in Rotterdam. It was built in 1953 to a design by the Rotterdam architectural firm Van den Broek & Bakema. The facades are constructed from prefabricated concrete elements, with open glass staircases in the façade that are characteristic of the architecture of Van den Broek & Bakema. In 2007 the building was completely renovated, while respecting the qualities of the original design as much as possible. A distinctive architectural feature was added to its rooftop. Las Palmas has a surface area of 19,700 m² over seven floors and currently houses, among other things, the Dutch photography museum, a multifunctional event location and a restaurant.

Despite its age, the building has an A++ energy label and a BREEAM ‘very good’ certificate. Buysse & Partners aims to continue investing in the building's sustainability to ensure this architectural gem remains future-proof.