The Finnish Lifelong Learning Foundation’s historical building in Töölö, Helsinki, gets a new owner

The Finnish Lifelong Learning Foundation (Kvs Foundation) has sold the historical building it had originally built in Töölö, Helsinki.

The transaction was completed on the 7^th of July 2021 with a property fund advised by Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI). MSREI, through the funds that it manages, has previously acquired over 2,000 residential units in Finland through multiple acquisitions. Premico will manage the new acquisition.

The building is located on the corner of streets Museokatu and Cygnauksenkatu. Constructed in 1913, the building has been in both residential and office use during its history.

One of the most desired locations in Helsinki

In 2020 the Kvs Foundation became the administrator and operator of The Southern Helsinki Adult Education Centre (Etelä-Helsingin kansalaisopisto). The premises in the Museokatu property became too small, and the Kvs Foundation moved to a new address in Bulevardi.

Later in 2020, the main tenant of the building ended its operation, which was the final trigger for the Kvs Foundation to initiate the sales process of the property.

Commenting on the sale, Lauri Tuomi, CEO of the Kvs Foundation, said: “Being a property owner is not a part of the Kvs Foundation’s core operations, which is why our board made the decision regarding the disposal of the property in fall 2020. Our goal was to find a new owner to cherish the building’s honorable history in one of the most desired locations in Helsinki.”

Commenting on the acquisition, Ulf Pleschiutschnig, Managing Director at Morgan Stanley & Co-Head of European Real Estate Investments, said: “We believe that the Helsinki area shows long-term potential and benefits from positive demographic and urbanisation trends. This asset fits our core strategy of acquiring assets in prime, central locations. We are pleased to have added this asset to our Finnish residential portfolio.”

The Kvs Foundation was advised by CBRE as financial advisor and Castrén & Snellman Attorneys as legal advisor.

Further information:

CEO, Dr. Lauri Tuomi, Kvs Foundation, lauri.tuomi(a)kvs.fi, +358 50 476 9977

The Finnish Lifelong Learning Foundation

The Finnish Lifelong Learning Foundation, Kvs, is a politically and religiously non-affiliated organization established in 1874. It is the oldest lifelong learning foundation in Finland. The foundation is an independent think tank with its core expertise is in the fields of learning, innovations, and communication.

Kvs, with its broad network, seeks to influence the development of lifelong learning policies and practices in Finland and globally. Kvs is the administrator and operator of a Finnish learning innovation, digital distance primary school ’Kulkuri’ for Finnish children abroad, and the Southern Helsinki Adult Education Centre (Etelä-Helsingin kansalaisopisto) in Helsinki, Finland. The Foundation’s main operations consist of more than 30 joint projects on lifelong learning, and open-access publications such as the academic journal ‘Adult Education’ (Aikuiskasvatus) and European Lifelong Learning Magazine (Elm).

Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a leading global financial services firm providing investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services. With offices in more than 41 countries, the Firm’s employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. For more information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.

Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing

Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI) is the global private real estate investment management arm of Morgan Stanley. One of the most active property investors in the world for nearly three decades, MSREI employs a patient, disciplined approach through global opportunistic / value-add and regional core real estate investment strategies. With offices throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia, regional teams of dedicated real estate professionals combine a unique global perspective with local presence and significant transaction execution expertise. As of March 31, 2021, MSREI manages approximately $46 billion of gross real estate assets worldwide on behalf of its clients.

Premico

Premico is a Finnish real estate investment and development company specialized in residential assets currently managing over 6,000 rental apartments in over 20 different cities. Together with its partners Premico has established eight residential funds with a total investment capacity of 1,3 billion euros. Premico Residential Fund I & II combined own over 1,400 units of new rental apartments pursuing to grow the portfolio to approximately 2,700 apartments by 2023. Premico is a local partner for Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI) in Finland owning together over 1,900 rental apartments.