Germany's largest real estate group Vonovia can make a new attempt to take over the smaller rival Deutsche Wohnen with a profit increase and an increased annual forecast behind it.
In the first half of the year, profit from operating business (Group FFO) - the key figure for real estate companies - increased by 13.1 percent to 764.7 million euros, as the Bochum Dax- Group announced on Friday.
"We are still on course," said Vonovia boss Rolf Buch. The group increased its forecast for the year. Vonovia is aiming for further growth for 2021: Group FFO is now expected to be in a range between EUR 1.465 and EUR 1.515 billion after EUR 1.35 billion in the previous year - the range has thus been increased by EUR 50 million. In addition, the Bochum-based company reported a significant increase in the value of their properties of around 4.2 billion euros.
The rent increased on average to 7.29 euros per square meter - that was 3.7 percent more than a year earlier.
Modernized apartments in particular contributed to the increase.
The corporations not only partially pass the costs on to the tenants, but they can also subsequently increase the rents more strongly.
Due to the current market development, rents have risen by 0.9 percent, it said.
Sales climbed by 10 percent to around 2.3 billion euros.
Vonovia wants to present the new public offer to the shareholders of Deutsche Wohnen in August.
The financial supervisory authority BaFin cleared the way for this on Thursday.
The Bochum company is now offering 53 euros per share - a total of more than 19 billion euros - for the smaller rival from Berlin.
In order to safely cross the threshold of 50 percent in Deutsche Wohnen, Vonovia secured almost 31 percent of the shares in advance. Both companies agree that together they can "cope with the challenges on the housing market much more forcefully," emphasized Vonovia.