Mingtiandi

Asia real estate and outbound investment news

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Sign Up / Login Logout

Lost your password?
Register
Forgotten Password
Cancel

Register For This Site

A password will be e-mailed to you.

  • Capital Markets
  • Events
    • Mingtiandi 2023 Event Calendar
    • Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum 2023
    • Mingtiandi Asia Logistics Forum 2023
    • Mingtiandi Hong Kong Focus Forum 2023
    • Mingtiandi APAC Data Centre Forum 2023
    • Mingtiandi Asia Office Strategies Forum 2023
    • Mingtiandi Singapore Focus Forum 2023
    • More Events
  • MTD TV
  • People
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail
  • Research & Policy
  • Advertise

Greystar Readies for $200M Debut Japan Acquisition, Names Country Head

2019/12/25 by James Hatton Leave a Comment

Greystar is eyeing multifamily acquisitions in Japan

Greystar Real Estate Partners has announced the appointment of Akira Kosugi as managing director of its Japan business as the US-based rental apartment developer embarks on the next stage of its Asia expansion.

The company’s newly launched Tokyo office brings its Asia Pacific bases to four – joining three existing locations in Shanghai, Sydney and Melbourne.

Tasked with securing a foothold in what Greystar’s founder and CEO Bob Faith calls “one of the top markets in the world with a developed institutional multifamily ownership”, the company is already gearing up to make its first Japanese acquisition, according to the former country head of both New York-based property investment management firm Westbrook and US private equity giant Blackstone.

The establishment of Greystar’s Japan office follows some $500 million in China-dedicated capital raised through Greystar’s Asia platform, which the firm established in 2018. The multifamily fund is backed by Dutch fund managers APG Asset Management NV and Bouwinvest Real Estate Investors, with Saudi Arabia’s direct investment arm Wisayah having made a fresh commitment to the fund last month.

Greystar’s capital strategy for Japan will be independent from its other regional strategies, with the funds raised for the country as yet undisclosed.

Targeting a $200M Maiden Buy

Aiming to close an acquisition in the first quarter of next year, Kosugi told Mingtiandi that the value of Greystar’s first Japan deal will be somewhere in the region of $200 million.

Greystar founder and CEO Bob Faith calls Japan one of the “top markets in the world” for multifamily assets

“We’re currently looking at a number of residential portfolios of a meaningful size in the major cities of Osaka, Tokyo and Nagoya to get us into the market,” Kosugi said. The company is targeting one large acquisition to establish itself in the market, followed by a number of smaller deals to complement it, the Greystar executive explained.

Depending on deal flow, the Japan team is anticipated to grow to a core of five staff, with the aim of completing three deals by the end of 2020.

Targetting Both the Mainstream and the Niches

While developers in Hong Kong and Singapore have begun exploring co-living and other innovative models, Greystar aims to stay with more conventional apartment schemes for its initial Japan projects, while innovating on the financial structures involved.

“Sixty to seventy percent of the opportunities we are looking at are in traditional multifamily assets, but we are also considering special cases,” Kosugi said, explaining that the company saw potential to acquire real estate portfolios from Japan’s giant conglomerates under sale and leaseback arrangements.

“This started a few years ago with the escalation of corporate governance in Japan, making Japanese companies much more conscious of cleaning up their balance sheets,” Kosugi said. “This presents a number of opportunities.”

The team has also identified corporate housing and student accommodation as offering considerable investment potential.

“We’re really studying the student housing sector in Japan,” Kosugi said. “There aren’t many operators in the country, but both domestic and international university students are increasing annually – the demographic looks interesting.”

In addition to these possibilities, a number of value-add development opportunities have fallen across the company’s radar.

“We’ve been looking at obsolete retail stores that are dying for capital and need a partner,” Kosugi said. “There could be an opportunity in downsizing their retail offering and potentially building multifamily above that.”

Institutional Capital Flows into Japanese Multifamily

Greystar’s entry into Japan’s multifamily market follows a wave of interest from institutional investors attracted by the country’s tradition of renting homes.

Just last week, M&G Real Estate acquired 12 residential properties in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, and Fukuoka, bringing its Japanese exposure to 22 percent, according to Richard van den Berg, the manager of M&G’s Asian property strategy.

That acquisition came just over two months after European insurance titan Allianz entered the Japan market, acquiring a portfolio of 82 rental apartment properties from Blackstone for €1.1 billion ($1.2 billion).

“Japan has the largest multifamily market in Asia Pacific, supported by its strong fundamentals and healthy occupancy rates,” said Stuart Crow, capital markets CEO of JLL Asia Pacific, which represented Blackstone in the disposal.

Crow said at the time of Allianz’ acquisition in October that institutional capital was being increasingly drawn to the stable outlook, low volatility and high yields of Japan’s multifamily sector.

Share this now

  • LinkedIn
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email

Filed Under: Finance Tagged With: Akira Kosugi, daily-sp, Featured, Greystar, highlight, Japan, multi-family, Residential

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get Mingtiandi Delivered

MTD TV

Princeton Digital Sees APAC Network Expand with Hyperscaler Demand: MTD TV
China Rental Housing Sector Here to Stay Says Warburg Pincus Executive

More MTD TV Videos>>

People in the News

Terence Li Arch
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2023-05-22
Varun Malik VGAP
Rush Desai’s Varsity Group APAC Hires Former MSCI Exec in Singapore
Kiyohito Motoyama, director of logistics and industrial
Hines Hires Kiyohito Motoyama as Japan Industrial Head, Adds Two Others to Team
Sandeep Mathrani
WeWork Boss Sandeep Mathrani Steps Down, Joins Sycamore Partners

More Industry Professionals>>

People in the News

Asia Real Estate People in the News 2023-05-22

Terence Li Arch

A promotion at a leading Hong Kong real estate fund manager leads this week’s roundup of people moves from around Asia, … Read More>>

Rush Desai’s Varsity Group APAC Hires Former MSCI Exec in Singapore

Varun Malik VGAP

Rush Desai is adding some senior talent to his team at Varsity Group Asia Pacific in Singapore, with the company … Read More>>

Hines Hires Kiyohito Motoyama as Japan Industrial Head, Adds Two Others to Team

Kiyohito Motoyama, director of logistics and industrial

US developer and fund manager Hines has added three new hires to its Japan team, led by Kiyohito Motoyama as director of … Read More>>

WeWork Boss Sandeep Mathrani Steps Down, Joins Sycamore Partners

Sandeep Mathrani

WeWork’s ongoing turnaround will continue without the leadership of chairman and CEO Sandeep Mathrani, who is leaving … Read More>>

More Industry Professionals>>

Latest Stories

John Graham CPPIB
CPPIB Posts 1.3% Annual Return as Real Estate Investments Sustain Losses
5 Churchill Place
Lenders Seize Cheung Kei’s 5 Churchill Place in London After Default
Wang Jianlin Wanda Getty Images
Wanda Seeks to Refinance $275M Debt Facility and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Sponsored Features

Could Real Estate Ecosystems Be Your New Edge?
Data centers: Empowering a Data-Driven World
Singapore skyline
Asia Pacific Capital Markets: 2023 Insights and Priorities

More Sponsored Features>>

Connect with Mingtiandi

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Real Estate News

  • Capital Markets
  • 2022 Event Calendar
  • MTD TV Archives
  • People
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail

More Mingtiandi

  • About Mingtiandi
  • Contact Mingtiandi
  • Mingtiandi Membership
  • Newsletter Subscription
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Join the Mingtiandi Team


© 2007-2023 China Advertising Media Ltd (Samoa). All rights reserved.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.