The recent real estate market index of the world’s leading provider of real estate market information and analyses, the British Investment Property Databank Ltd., shows peak profitability for IMMOFINANZ AG’s Austria portfolio. The IPD total return benchmark index, which measures the profitability of Austrian real estate, was outperformed by one third in 2005.

IPD is the world’s leading provider of real estate indices for national real estate markets. The company publishes widely respected indices for Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Japan, Australia and the USA. The “IPD Austria Index” has been published for the first time and is based on an analysis of 810 objects with a fair value of 6.5 billion Euro. The property is owned by 13 institutional investors who furnish IPD with all data relevant to their properties. IMMOFINANZ’s Austria portfolio (excluding BUWOG/ESG and WIPARK) has a value of 28.58 percent in the index.

The IPD Austria Index shows an average total return (rental income and the increase in value of an object) of 5.9 percent for 2005. The total return of the IMMOFINANZ portfolio reached 7.8 percent, outperforming the benchmark index by 1.9 percentage points or 32 percent. “To outperform the index to this extent is a highly remarkable achievement and is only possible with an extremely well-structured portfolio,” says IMMOFINANZ Chairman Karl Petrikovics. The fact that the IMMOFINANZ portfolio is considerably younger than the average age of the market portfolio contributes to its high performance, too.

In fact, current market trends can be optimally exploited of with the IMMOFINANZ portfolio. The significant share of highly shopping centres has had a particularly positive effect. Active asset management is just as important as a successful investment strategy, however. “It has always been our philosophy that the purchase of a piece of real estate is only the start for our efforts as an investor,” says Petrikovics. “Comparison with IPD Austria Index impressively confirms that it is not enough to simply buy the right object. Whether average or very good profits are generated is determined only through active and optimal letting as well as carefully implemented measures for a continuous increase in value.”

As of the end of 2005 IMMOFINANZ (excluding BUWOG/ESG and WIPARK) had 268 properties in Austria with total lettable space of 1.2 million ² and a fair value of 1.8 million Euro.