Property Week – 90 North makes presence felt in Europe with brace of deals

90 North, which buys real estate on behalf of Middle East investors, has bought a 280,000 sq ft warehouse in Oslo, Norway, which is let to electrical wholesaler Onninen, for €36m (£28m).

The Sharia-compliant investment specialist has also acquired a 1.12m sq ft warehouse near Kassel, Germany, for €48m (£38m). The site is leased to Rudolph Automotive Logistik Rudolph Automotive Logistik on a 10-year lease.

90 North co-founder Nick Judd said the property adviser was hiring more staff and planned to seek out more deals in Europe, particularly in the Nordic countries and Germany, but also in other territories, including Spain and Italy.

“We are very keen to look at similar opportunities where the property is newly built, well let and preferably with fixed annual indexation,” said Judd.

90 North is also looking to expand in the US, where it has set up an office and completed its first deals in recent months. The company acquired the FBI’s regional headquarters in Denver, Colorado, in July for $70m (£45m), then bought the 351,425 sq ft divisional HQ of the Continental Group in Chicago.

90 North, which was founded in November 2011 by Judd and Philip Churchill, has completed 14 deals to date with a combined value of almost £500m (£332m). In the UK, it has invested in student housing, residential, industrial, retail and offices. This summer, it acquired the 11-acre Crossharbour residential development in London’s Isle of Dogs, which has planning permission for 850 flats and a gross development value of €420m (£332m).

90 North’s chairman is James Caan, of TV show Dragons’ Den, who provides 90 North with financial backing, allowing it to co-invest in all its deals.

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