SBB acquires healthcare portfolio in Finland for €222m

SBB acquires healthcare portfolio in Finland for €222m
Image: Courtesy of JLL

Nordic real estate company Samhällsbyggnadsbolaget i Norden AB (SBB) has agreed to acquire a portfolio of 55 healthcare properties, mainly nursing homes and care homes, in Finland from eQ Care special investment fund for EUR 222 million.

SBB said the portfolio comprises approximately 71,000 sq.m. of lettable area with a rental income of EUR 13.6 m and an operating net of approximately EUR 13.1m. The average maturity of the portfolio is 7.6 years.

The transaction is the largest ever in Finland in the healthcare real estate segment. The properties are primarily located in southern and western Finland with 25 percent of the property value in the Helsinki region. Retirement homes make up 60 per cent of the portfolio, followed by 20 per cent special care homes and 20 per cent education. 

“We continue to strengthen our position in Finland and in line with our strategy to increase the number of nursing homes in our own administration,” comments Ilija Batljan, CEO and founder of Samhällsbyggnadsbolaget i Norden AB.

”After this transaction the fund owns 107 properties worth 1.1 billion euro, whereof 66% are located in the Helsinki region. The fund continues investing in care, health hubs, schools and other public properties. The target is also to increase the current 45% share of public tenants in the future. We are pleased to have found a good home for the assets to be divested and trust that SBB will take care of them well,” said Jennifer Eloheimo, Investment Director of eQ Care at eQ Asset Management.

JLL acted as eQ Care special investment fund’s sole commercial advisor on the targeted sales process.

“We are extremely pleased to advise eQ Care special investment fund in the sale of this major healthcare portfolio to SBB. The sale is the largest transaction in Finland since the lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic in March and reflects the strong underlying investor demand for the Finnish healthcare market,” said Tero Uusitalo, Co-Head of Capital Markets, JLL Finland.

The completion of the sale requires approval of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority, which is expected in autumn 2020.