REIT Watch: British Land Share Price Up on London Property Investment

**United Kingdom**

**British Land to Invest £470m in Office-Led Paddington Estate**
iNVEZZ.com Friday, July 5th: Shares in British Land (LON:BLND) rose by more than two percent today after the UK’s second-largest real estate investment trust announced a £470 million London property investment.
According to a company statement, the purchase comprises assets including the majority of a west London office complex called Paddington Central. The properties at the 1.2-million-square-feet commercial building near Paddington station had been bought from insurer Aviva (LON:AV). Under the terms of the deal, the REIT will own one million square feet of space once the site, which will be the company’s fourth-largest single asset by value, is fully developed.

“It is an investment which plays to our asset management and development strengths, is in line with our strategy of increasing exposure to London and replenishing the development pipeline, and one we expect to generate strong returns,” said Chris Grigg, British Land’s Chief Executive Officer. He added that Paddington will be one of the three Crossrail stations in the West End district when the rail line opens in 2018.

**Canada**
**Allied Properties REIT Teams Up with Westbank and Telus in Calgary Development**
Allied Properties REIT (TSE:AP.UN) has entered into a joint venture with Canadian telecommunications company Telus (TSE:T) and Westbank, the real estate developer, to build a Telus Sky tower in Calgary.
Allied Properties today said in a statement that the development will be comprised of approximately 430,000 square feet of office space, 275,000 square feet of rental apartments, 15,000 square feet of retail space and 285 underground parking spaces. The joint venture expects to commence construction in July 2014. Completion of the development, planned for 2017, will see all three investors holding an undivided one-third interest in the joint venture.

“This is yet another example of how value-creation opportunities arise from owning underutilized sites in the urban areas of major Canadian cities,” said Michael Emory, President and CEO of Allied Properties REIT.
**Japan**

**Japan’s Shinsei Bank Plans to List Healthcare REIT**
Shinsei Bank Ltd plans to list Japan’s first real estate investment trust dedicated to building healthcare and housing facilities for the elderly next year to meet growing demand from the world’s fastest ageing population, Reuters has reported.

!m[Canada’s Allied Properties REIT to Take Part in Calgary Tower Development](/uploads/story/3731/thumbs/pic1_inline.jpg)
According to Shinsei Bank President Shigeki Toma, the REIT will initially purchase assets worth 100 billion yen ($1 billion) and the amount could double or triple within a few years.
Shinsei Bank, 21 percent owned by U.S. private equity group J.C. Flowers, has been holding talks about
the REIT with the government for three years. “Finally, the REIT has come within sight and if things go smoothly, I think we can do this around next year,” Toma has told Reuters.
**The British Land share price in London was up 1.28 percent at 592p as of 05.07.2013, 15:32 BST.**
**The Allied Properties share price in Toronto was one percent down at C$31.83 as of 05.07.2013, 15:32 BST.**