Dutch property offers opportunities in residential, retail and office

While investment in residential property was the best choice in The Netherlands only a short while ago, office and retail now also offer great opportunities, says Robert Koot, Head of Research at Bouwinvest REIM and a speaker at PIE’s Dutch Property Opportunities Breakfast on 14 April in London.

“I am optimistic on all sectors,” Koot told PIE in a pre-event interview. Residential property was the first to bottom out after the financial crisis and thus investors’ main focus two years ago. “It still offers great opportunities but office and retail also provide good returns,” he said, not only from a historic perspective but also on a global pricing comparison.

Dutch residential still attracts the strongest occupier demand, and rents are rising – by stark contrast to office. “Dutch office has the image of being mostly vacant, and the national average is still pretty high at 16%,” Koot said. But several sub-locations offer healthy occupancy rates of 90%-95%, such as Amsterdam’s city centre or the South Axis. Good office locations are usually characterised by a mix of uses, including retail and residential and good accessibility by car and public transport.

Koot will be part of a panel at PIE’s Dutch Property Opportunity Breakfast on 14 April in London. Other experts include Rogier Bos, Head of Real Estate Finance Benelux at Berlin Hyp, Peter Helfrich, Managing Director of Patrizia Netherlands and Jaap van der Bijl, Managing Director Investor Relations of Syntrus Achmea Real Estate & Finance. pie

Source Property Investor Europe