Real Estate

The Firm advises foreign investors, institutional and high-net-worth private individuals, including hedge funds, family offices and private equity firms with their investments in the whole territory of Spain.

Among our professional’s strengths we underline our strong international profile, commitment and high specialization which have resulted in a solid expertise advising cross-border transactions, designing and incorporating the most suitable foreign investor structures. Thanks to our specialization, we can provide to our clients a comprehensive service, including advice on the civil real estate side, urban regulation, as well as tax, corporate and environmental matters.

The team has a full and broad understanding of the transactions; asset or company driven, which allows us to offer bespoke assistance to the foreign capital investing in the Spanish market. Our advice includes the negotiation and drafting of letters of intent, SPA’s, purchase options and other related agreements, due diligences, and the necessary help to satisfactory execute the transactions. We advise on the Real Estate side of the M&A transactions involving the transfer of shares, assets, business units and a combination of the foregoing. We have also been involved in the structuring and implementation of commercial alliances and joint ventures. The Firm has a strong expertise advising industrial/ financial sponsors and investment funds, Spanish and foreign entities, in sale and purchase transactions related to the real estate side of the energy projects and in the tax and corporate structuring of investments in projects and portfolios, in Spain and abroad.

Our highly experienced Real Estate team delivers its legal expertise advice, among others, on the following Real Estate aspects and transactions:

Hedge funds

Our team provides highly technical advice that maintains a commercial perspective. In the exercise of our role as legal advisor, we deal with transactions of reference, including advising on numerous acquisition and divestment transactions such as the advice to the purchaser in the acquisition of a portfolio of 450 leased properties in Spain, or the advice to a sovereign wealth fund cornerstone investor on establishing and consolidating an investment in Costa del Sol, Marbella.

Hospitality, leisure: restaurants

We provide comprehensive legal assistance to leisure and hospitality investors, covering all the needs our clients require through a specialized and business focused team. We offer legal advice analysing the legal aspects of the assets object of the transaction through the relevant due diligence, to draft hotel management agreements, lease agreements and all type of commercial contracts, managing contracts, promote agreements, marketing and sales agreements. In this sense, we have advised a private equity firm based in UK in relation with the sale & lease back transaction of 4 schools in Madrid and Barcelona, and a private equity firm based in Spain in relation to the acquisition of a Hotel in Menorca, Balearic Islands, by means of a loan-to-own structure with the tenant holding a preferential acquisition right which was executed.

Development and construction

Our team has both front-end and back-end construction law expertise. We have acquired a wide experience negotiating and drafting contracts for: (i) construction and execution of works; (ii) turnkey; (iii) project management; (iv) delegated development; and (v) technical and architectural services. We also provide advice to the developers on: (i) compliance with the Building Act in force in Spain (LOE); (ii) drafting of the off-plan sale and purchase contracts; (iii) commercialization and marketing agreements; and (iv) drafting of brokerage contracts with the realtor agents.

We have advised on numerous construction projects, such as the development of plots located in Madrid, Málaga, Valencia, Ibiza, Barcelona (downtown and technologic industrial park -22@-), Andalucía and Galicia becoming a reference as an advisor in the residential and offices sectors and the advice to an US fund in connection with residential development projects and acquisition of buildings in Spain.

Lease contracts

The team has a vast experience drafting and negotiating a complete spectrum of leasing and other exploitation contracts, (including but not limited to sale- and-leaseback structures, triple net configuration), and for all kinds of properties and premises, such as: (i) offices; (ii) retail units in shopping centers; (iii) commercial premisses in buildings of a mixed-use; (iv) industrial warehouses; and (v) logistics centers, both owner and tenant side. Furthermore, we advice in the hospitality sector providing our legal expertise in hotel lease and management agreements, as well as in (i) residential; (ii) offices; (iii) student residence, and (iv) homes for the elderly.

Residential and condominium development

We have extensive expertise in the drafting and the negotiation of all the contractual documentation needed for the formalization of acquisitions and disposals of residential property, including carrying out complex due diligence of the property. Our extensive industry knowledge means that we can respond to commercial residential real estate issues with speed and confidence.

We have solid expertise advising on the incorporation of commonhold systems and horizontal division (‘división horizontal’) and real estate complexes located in shopping centers and residential homes for students and the elderly.  In this sense, our assistance involves the preparation of any related and necessary legal documentation, including the drafting and negotiating of all kind of documents, such as: (i) deed of incorporation of the horizontal division (‘división horizontal’); (ii) segregation and grouping of units deeds; (iii) new works declaration deed; (iv) bylaws for commonhold or real estate complex and (v) internal regulations procedure (‘reglamento de regimen interior’). In addition, we work in conjunction with the Land Registries and the Cadastre for regularizing the data of the real estate assets.

We have advised a Hong Kong based family office who has incorporated a flagship building in Barcelona as a part of its portfolio of assets and in which the client intends to design, construct and furnish luxury residences with approximately 250 units and to engage a leading hotel brand to operate the residences or advice on the conclusion of a development contract to build a residential tower complex, including drafting all the transaction documentation.

Development Zoning and Planning

The team assists in some complex matters of the urban planning activity in Spain. In order to advice our clients to succeed, we assist them to navigate the maze planning, zoning and land approval processes anywhere around Spain, reducing delays and costs which can spell the difference between success and failure for a development project. Our expertise and advice comprises: (i) drafting and negotiation of all type of urban planning and management instruments (including but not limited to partial plans, allotment projects, urban agreements, etc.) in close collaboration with other related professionals of the area (i.e. engineers, architects) and (ii) drafting of legal opinions on a huge variety of related matters that might be requested by our clients, including environmental assessment, licensing or other development approval issues.

Environmental issues

We advise during our due diligence processes underlining the compliance with the environmental regulation in force in Spain and the European Union, including the drafting of the necessary disclaimers to be considered to protect clients interests.

Financing real estate transactions

Financial institutions, companies and public and private sector entities, boutique investment banks and private debt firms rely on the experience and specialized knowledge of both our Real Estate and our Market&Financial Services practice groups. We have a unique insight of the interests and needs of borrowers and lenders in the context of financing real estate transactions, and we advise our clients ensuring a successful negotiation and closing of transactions in a dynamic and effective manner.

We offer legal advice, aligning the concerns of all the parties involved and providing solutions that allow the implementation of solid transactions based on the trust deposited in us by our Clients.

Our Market&Financial Services team has extensive expertise in real estate project finance, mortgage developer loans, the structuring and granting of all types of collateral, in debt restructurings and refinancings, in the acquisition, management, and sale of distressed assets, including NPLs and REOs portfolio deals, loan-to-own strategies and other Special Situations.

Practice Group’s Publications

Legal Flash! - Medidas de Reactivación Económica - Arrendamientos

Legal Flash! «Economic recovery measures: lease agreements»

Real Estate Team – July 2020

Our Real Estate team writes this brief Legal Flash about the latest measures in Real Estate matters included in the Royal Decree-Law 26/2020.

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DanielTienda

Article: «Sector hotelero: el necesario rescate de uno de los pilares de la economía española»

Daniel Tienda – June 2020

This article was written by the partner Daniel Tienda which was published by Expansión Jurídico.

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Newsletter C&L - El sector hotelero ante la crisis derivada del COVID-19

Newsletter: «The hotel sector facing the COVID-19 crisis»

Real Estate Team – May 2020

The hotel sector facing the COVID-19 crisis. Newsletter prepared by the Real Estate team of Cases&Lacambra.

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Decreto Ley Medidas Urgentes Economía Baleares

Legal Flash! «Decree Law 8/2020,13 May, on urgent and extraordinary measures to promote economic activity in the Balearic Islands»

Real Estate Team – May 2020

Our Real Estate team writes this legal flash with urgent measures to promote economic activity in the Balearic Islands.

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