HIH Invest Real Estate and IntercityHotel Renew Leasehold Agreement in Vienna by another 25 Years

IntercityHotel Vienna to remain at its central location on Mariahilfer Strasse at least through 2046

Investments in the long-term appeal of the property

Green lease clause integrated in lease to ensure sustainable use and management

Hamburg/Vienna, 31. January 2022 – HIH Invest Real Estate (“HIH Invest”) just renewed its leasehold agreement with its anchor tenant at Mariahilfer Strasse 122 in Vienna for the long term: The IntercityHotel, offering 179 rooms on more than 6,000 square metres of lettable area, will remain at its Vienna site for at least another 25 years. The building straddles one of the largest and best-known high streets of the Austrian capital, and lies within walking distance of the Westbahnhof railway station. This makes it a perfect fit for the concept underlying the IntercityHotel brand, which primarily engages business travellers and urban tourists. IntercityHotel GmbH is a subsidiary of the hotel company Deutsche Hospitality and operates over 40 hotels in eight different countries. Deutsche Hospitality in turn maintains a footprint on three continents with its eight hotel brands.

The leasehold agreement was renewed at a time when conditions for hotel operators were made even more difficult by the ramifications of the coronavirus pandemic. “But the renewal of the leasehold agreement with Intercity for such a long period of time goes to show that an attractive long-term outlook for the hotel’s location on Mariahilfer Strasse transcends the current challenges,” said Jana Wetzel, Real Estate Manager of HIH Invest Real Estate in Vienna.

“Working in close consultation with the leaseholder, we developed a variety of measures to enhance the appeal of the property even further through capital expenditures, and to safeguard its intrinsic value for the next 25 years,” elaborated Malte Wallschläger, Head of Asset Management International at HIH Real Estate. “This way, we managed to tie InterCity Hotel GmbH to the location for the long term while structuring the lease renewal in a manner that benefits both parties.” A new component added to the agreements is a green lease clause of the type that the HIH Group has begun to integrate more and more often in its lease agreements. In the clause, a given contractual partner commits itself to the sustainable use and management of the rented property.

“The talks concerning the lease renewal were defined by mutual respect and the joint goal to find a sustainable long-term solution. We take a positive view of the hospitality market’s mid- to long-term performance, and look forward to our next quarter century in Vienna,” said Thomas Knabner, Senior Director Operations at IntercityHotel GmbH.

The building at Mariahilfer Strasse 122 in the 7th district of Vienna was completed in the year 2000. Since IntercityHotel would occupy it as anchor tenant from the start, the property’s development was closely coordinated with the incoming hotel operator. HIH Invest acquired the building in 2015 on behalf of an individual fund. Out of a total lettable area of around 9,100 square metres, most of which is occupied by the hotel, retail units that complement the use concept of the property occupy 3,000 square metres on long-term leases.

HIH Invest received both legal and business advice from KPMG in conjunction with the lease renewal. Consultancy to IntercityHotel GmbH was provided by the law firm Monlaw.

“The renewal of the leasehold agreement with Intercity for such a long period of time goes to show that an attractive long-term outlook for the hotel’s location on Mariahilfer Strasse transcends the current challenges.”

Jana Wetzel, Real Estate Manager
HIH Invest Real Estate, Vienna Office

“Working in close consultation with the leaseholder, we developed a variety of measures to enhance the appeal of the property even further through capital expenditures, and to safeguard its intrinsic value for the next 25 years. This way, we managed to tie InterCity Hotel GmbH to the location for the long term while structuring the lease renewal in a manner that benefits both parties.”

Malte Wallschläger, Head of Asset Management International
HIH Real Estate

“The talks concerning the lease renewal were defined by mutual respect and the joint goal to find a sustainable long-term solution. We take a positive view of the hospitality market’s mid- to long-term performance, and look forward to our next quarter century in Vienna.”

Thomas Knabner, Senior Director Operations
IntercityHotel GmbH