The DIC Group is one of the leading investors in the German market for commercial real estate

Press Release

MainTor: DIC launches marketing for around 100 “Palazzi” condos

Frankfurt, 04.12.2012

• Creating Frankfurt’s latest and most central residential quarter
• Altogether around 200 new apartments at MainTor Quarter

DIC just initiated the next step in the development of the MainTor Quarter: The marketing of around 100 condominiums available at “MainTor Palazzi,” totalling a floor area of about 10,100 sqm, is now under way. Altogether, 200 new apartments are under construction at MainTor Quarter, with another approximately 100 rental apartments to be raised at the “Patio” complex nearly at the same time.

MainTor Palazzi is poised to become Frankfurt’s latest and most centrally located residential quarter. There are three main features that make the location of these apartments unique:

• Nearly all apartments overlook the Main River (“waterfront living”)
• Frankfurt’s central railway station and all other means of public transportation are within walking distance, as are the Zeil high-street retail location and the city’s key cultural institutions
• The development of this new quarter in Frankfurt will involve the creation of an attractive infrastructure, and thus invest the quarter with an urban flair from the start.

The 100 condominiums are spread across the three double buildings called “Lido,” “Puro,” and “Riva,” each of which has 6 to 8 floors. The smallest apartment has a floor area of 36 sqm, while the largest, a 5-bedroom penthouse, has more than 260 sqm. There are also several split-level apartments as well as generously laid-out rooftop patios and a 3-storey underground car park with around 140 parking spaces. The apartments will feature high-quality fit-outs, with buyers given the choice to realise bespoke interior fit-out options.

The architectural firms Jo Franzke and B&V Braun/Canton/Volleth have been commissioned to handle the project planning. Construction is to start as early as summer 2013, with the apartments scheduled for completion by summer 2015.

The condominium sales are exclusively handled by the Frankfurt-based estate agency Ballwanz Immobilien. Around 100 prospective buyers have signalled interest. Said Kai M. Dreesbeimdiek, the Managing Director at DIC in charge of the project: “It is quite a high ratio at this stage, considering that we have not done any public advertising yet. At the moment, we are in the process of successively contacting these prospects.” Given the high level of exposure that the MainTor project has at the moment, sales will be boosted via information brochures and a professional website (www.maintor-frankfurt.de).

About MainTor – the Riverside Financial District
The MainTor Quarter project of DIC Group is nothing less than a complete redevelopment of the area extending from Untermainkai to Weissfrauenstrasse. In the process of redeveloping the formerly enclosed brownfield compound of Degussa, the area is being restored to public use, with historic access ways from the inner city to the Main riverbank revitalised and firmly integrated into the lanes and streets of the surrounding city quarter. The construction is realised in several spatially and temporally distinct building projects, thereby ensuring the necessary flexibility to accommodate the specific requirements of each user and investor group. Architectonically speaking, MainTor Quarter will upgrade the riverbank facing Frankfurt’s CBD into a riverside financial district and thereby complete it in urban development terms. The successive construction stages will be realised incrementally in sync with the upcoming lettings and sales. The entire MainTor Quarter is scheduled to be operational by 2015/2016.

Time Line

• 2005: DIC acquires the former Degussa compound
• 2007: The master plan for the MainTor Quarter is created (masterminded by the architectural firm of KSP Jürgen Engel)
• Starting September 2009: The architects who will design the high rises are identified
• 30 September 2009: Architectural competition for the design of the main towers starts
• 11 December 2009: Drafts selected for MainTor towers WinX (Engel) and Panorama (Mäckler)
• 2010: Effective local development plan is finalised
• January 2011: Evonik (formerly Degussa) moves out
• June - October 2011: Anniversary show of the MMK Museum of Modern Art in Frankfurt mire more than 100,000 visitors
• June 2011: Primus building complex sold to Professor Carlo Giersch. Primus will become the future headquarters of DIC Group.
• August 2011: Demolition work commences
• November 2011: Construction work starts on MainTor Primus
• January 2012: Major letting contract over 14,000 sqm is signed with Union Investment
• July 2012: MainTor Panorama and MainTor Patio sold to the Ärzteversorgung Westfalen-Lippe pension fund for EUR 150 million
• 29 August 2012: Foundation stone laid for MainTor Porta
• December 2012: Marketing starts for around 100 Palazzi condominiums

About DIC

DIC (Deutsche Immobilien Chancen), active throughout Germany and based in Frankfurt, was founded in 1998 and, with its innovative investment philosophy and its focus on the German market, is one of the most prominent and successful firms in Germany specialising in commercial real estate transactions. Its business activities include portfolio and asset management, which are handled by its SDAX-listed company, DIC Asset AG, as well as project development and joint venture investments. It currently holds approximately 40 per cent of DIC Asset AG. The real estate assets managed by the DIC Group currently amount to around EUR 3.3 billion. Its shareholders are investment companies, several insurance companies, international investors and family offices.

For more information about the MainTor project, please go to www.maintor-frankfurt.de.

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