The deal for the offices at 403 route d’Arlon was sealed during the first quarter of 2018, making it the highest value acquisition for this period, according to a JLL Luxembourg capital markets report. The bank maintains its Luxembourg headquarters on boulevard Royal (pictured).

No details were given to the developers’ future plans for the site, however, they would do well to invest in residential as this area recorded average square metre costs for apartment under construction above those of the city centre, as Delano has reported.

In second place among the top three acquisitions was the E-Building in Munsbach, purchased by Maple Knoll Capital, from Rynda, for €39m, and 40 rue Goethe, a mixed development in the gare district, purchased by a private buyer from Eaglestone.

“A recent trend that will in our view persist at least in the medium term is the acquisition of obsolete properties that offer an attractive redevelopment potential in offices or in other uses like residential,” LLP wrote in its report.

Luxembourg recorded transaction volumes of €235 m during the first quarter of 2018, down 22% compared to a year ago, a decrease which LLP credits to a lack of liquidity in the Luxembourg investment market “where good opportunities are scarce”.

New developments

The next 12 months will see an explosion in the new office space, with Triologie in Leudelange expected to open in the second quarter, as well as the Impulse building beside the train station. In the third quarter, Greensquare is expected to be completed in Hamm.

Quarter 2 of 2019 should see the completion of Naos in Belval, 4 projects in the Ban de Gasperich and Staccato in Kirchberg. Altitude in Leudelange is forecast to open between 2018-2019 and the Connection building in Hamm should reach completion in the third quarter of 2020.