FINEP and AFI Europe to collaborate on improving access to rental housing in Prague

28.06.2024

Praha, 28. 6. 2024 – Czech developer FINEP and international investment and development group AFI Europe have announced two signed transactions that will add more than 800 apartments in two different locations to the Prague rental housing market over the next three years. FINEP will newly build two apartment buildings with more than 300 apartments for AFI Europe in the Nová Elektra project in Prague 9 - Hloubětín. In addition, AFI Europe is buying from FINEP the project "V Korytech" in Prague 10 – Strašnice where AFI Europe intend to develop residential project having more than 500 apartments. Moreover, the two companies expect to cooperate on rental housing in other locations soon.

"By developing the rental and cooperative sector we contribute to accessibility much more significantly than any intended regulation, which, as foreign experience shows, leads to the opposite," says Tomáš Pardubický, CEO of FINEP. He points for example to a study by Mense from Berlin, Germany, which showed that adding one new market unit to the 100 currently available on the rental market reduces rents in their neighborhood by 0.4 - 0.7%. "The way to increase the availability of housing is to increase the number of available apartments on the market," emphasizes Pardubický. Ha also welcomes the cooperation with AFI Europe not only because it is an experienced partner with unique know-how and a similar strategy to support housing affordability as FINEP itself, but also because of the company's high moral credit and sense of responsibility.

For AFI Europe, the current agreement is a confirmation and at the same time development of its own long-term strategy to develop rental housing in Prague. “Residential rental concept AFI Home has been rapidly gaining traction not only in CR, but also in other CE markets. We adopted the new strategy of residential for rent at the beginning of 2017 and the pilot project AFI Home Třebešín in Prague 3 was finished in the summer 2022. AFI Home Karlín and AFI Home Kolbenova followed with a total of almost 900 apartments. As these projects in metropolis are nearing full occupancy, further plans are being implemented. We intend to triple this number in the next three years. In CEE, our AFI Home platform is active in CR, Poland, Romania and Serbia where our portfolio is set to total over 6,000 rental units,” says Doron Klein, Deputy CEO of AFI Europe, about the group's plans for further growth.

Unlike FINEP, AFI Europe is not only building rental apartments, but also specialises in their long-term operation. The decision to cooperate with FINEP was determined by the interesting locations and the quality of the projects, which are prepared from the very beginning for this segment – both by the choice of the location, architectural concept of individual apartments and adequate composition of dispositions - which is still a rather exceptional approach in the Czech Republic.

"FINEP's success in stabilizing and optimizing rental housing projects, as well as their ability to adhere to the highest standards of sustainable construction, made us confident in our choice of partnership. The purchases reinforce our strategy of providing affordable, high quality and sustainable rental housing in attractive locations in Prague," comments Doron Klein on the deal and continues: "New projects will allow us to further expand our portfolio. Prague is a natural choice for us as it has a great potential for the future. We still see great opportunities here in terms of urban planning. Prague is a safe, healthy city, one of the best places to live in Europe. The only thing it lacks is a sufficient supply of affordable housing. That's where we are trying to help and improve the situation."

 

800 flats for rental housing in Prague 9 and 10

The project of two houses in the Nová Elektra location in Hloubětín in Prague 9 is an attractive residential complex offering a total of 291 residential units of various sizes - from 1-bedroom to
4-bedroom with kitchenette. In addition to the apartments, there are also 309 parking spaces and commercial premises, which add to the practicality and complexity of the project. The buildings are located in a sought-after location with full public amenities including post office, schools, medical facilities, supermarket and shopping malls, all of which are within walking distance, adding to the convenience of residents' daily lives. In addition, the project is interesting for its immediate connection to nature and transport infrastructure. The Rokytka Nature Park, which is only a two-minute walk from the houses, offers diverse opportunities for relaxation and active recreation. There are children's playgrounds and fitness zones, landscape architecture that encourages you to take walks and relax in nature. Furthermore, the housing is located right next to the tram stop, with quick access to the Hloubětín and Kolbenova metro stations, which allows residents easy and fast transport. It takes only 20 minutes to the center of Prague. The combination of transport accessibility and proximity to greenery makes the project of “UV XY” houses an ideal place to live.

The project "Residential complex V Korytech" in Prague 10 offers 519 residential units in a dynamically developing part of the city with excellent accessibility by public transport and in close proximity to green areas. The efficiently designed layouts of the units respond to the current market demand and are adapted for maximum efficiency of rental housing. The project includes sustainable features such as electric charging stations and community courtyards. It combines excellent accessibility to the city center with the convenience of a quiet residential area. Among other things, there are extensive green spaces and a promenade right next to the project, which contributes to a higher quality of life for residents. The transport infrastructure includes easily accessible metro, tram and train links, which make it convenient to get in all parts of the city. In addition, all residential units are designed with an emphasis on space and functionality. This ensures that every resident will find the optimal solution for their living situation. With its combination of location, quality and comfort, "Residential complex V Korytech" is a great choice for individuals and families looking for a new home.

 

CONTACTS FINEP:

Tomáš Hečko

mobil: +420 601 375 542

e-mail: tomas.hecko@finep.cz

 

CONTACTS AFI Europe:

Denisa Kolaříková

mobil: +420 731 613 606

e-mail: denisa.kolarikova@crestcom.cz

 

About FINEP:

FINEP specializes in the construction of residential housing projects and large office centers. FINEP emphasizes superior service and client satisfaction in the implementation of projects. The key is location, original architecture, quality construction and full-fledged civic amenities. FINEP has built over 16,000 new apartments in dozens of successful projects. FINEP's office complexes include the CITY WEST project in Prague's Stodůlky district, providing facilities for Komerční banka, Siemens, Vodafone, Hyundai, Nixdorf, CGI and many others.

FINEP is a Czech company that has built a very strong position on the Czech market since 1995. In 2006, FINEP expanded its operations beyond the Czech Republic to Slovakia, and since 2013 it has also been implementing a project in Mongolia. The product portfolio is complemented by a range of financial services and household equipment. FINEP has been at the forefront of the renaissance of new cooperative construction in the Czech Republic and is active in the market and in the rental housing segment.

FINEP belongs to the FINEP HOLDING group, which is the largest property development group in the Czech Republic with a registered capital of CZK 4 billion. More information at www.finep.cz.

 

About AFI Europe:

AFI Europe is an owner, manager and developer of landmark real estate commercial and residential assets in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Portfolio of properties also operated by AFI Europe includes business parks and office complexes, shopping malls and retail properties, multi-family residential projects and mixed-use developments. AFI Europe is fully owned by AFI Properties Ltd, a leading entrepreneurial company in the field of income-producing real estate. AFI Properties was founded in 1971 and in 2004 became a public company listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. For more information, please visit www.afi-properties.com.

At the moment, AFI Europe is expanding in the CEE real estate markets with a new Residential for Rent Brand – “AFI Home”. Thousands of apartments for rent are currently in various stages of development in the Czech Republic, Poland, Serbia and Romania. For more information, please visit www.afi-home.com.

AFI Europe has been operating in the Czech Republic since 1997, where it has completed a number of successful projects: the shopping centres Palác Flora and AFI Palác Pardubice, the residential complexes Korunní Dvůr, Tulipa Rokytka, Tulipa Modřanská rokle and Tulipa City, and the logistics park D8 European Park. In the field of office development, it has so far completed three phases of the Classic 7 Business Park, AFI Karlin, AFI Vokovice and AFI City 1 office buildings. Almost 900 rental apartments have been also completed in the projects AFI Home Karlín in Prague 8, AFI Home Třebešín in Prague 3 and in the multifunctional complex AFI City (AFI Home Kolbenova) on the urban brownfield site in Prague 9 near the Kolbenova metro station. In April 2021, the company expanded its existing office portfolio with the acquisition of Avenir Business Park in Nové Butovice.

 

Contact

AFI Europe

Jankovcova 1037/49
170 00 Praha 7
Czech Republic

+420 255 743 111

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