New York-listed insurance giant MetLife has issued €131 million to finance four properties in Dublin, the multinational's first such venture into the Irish property financing scene.
The loans were issued to global real estate investment business Kennedy Wilson, through MetLife Real Estate Investors, and the mortgages are linked to three residential properties and an office block.
The Sandford Lodge in Dublin 6, Clancy Quay in Dublin 8, and Alliance (formerly Gasworks) in Dublin 4 residential developments have 751 units between them, while the office development is Brooklawn House on Shelbourne Road in Dublin 4.
Growing portfolio
“We are very pleased to be able to enter a new market with a strong, experienced international player like Kennedy Wilson,” said
Paul Wilson
, managing director and head of MetLife Real Estate Investors’ office in London.
“These loans are the first for us in Ireland and we look forward to growing our portfolio in that market.”
Real estate investments, including commercial mortgage loans, are an important part of MetLife’s asset matching programme, according to the company, and are designed to provide a good match for the long-term liabilities it writes.
In 2014, MetLife Real Estate Investors originated more than $2.1 billion in commercial mortgage loans in the UK. Globally, the equivalent figure was $12.1 billion.
Investments
Kennedy Wilson is a global real estate investment and service company headquartered in Beverly Hills, California, that has made a number of substantial propety investments in Ireland since the crash.
Most recently, this has included the purchase last month of Gardner House, the Dublin office block that is home to the international headquarters of LinkedIn in a deal believed to be worth in the region of €45 million.
The group is building 160 residential units at its Vantage project in Leopardstown, South Dublin. The group is now reported to own around 1,200 rental units in Dublin.
* This article was edited on Wednesday, March 18th.
