The Competition Commission has approved of the merger of Redefine Income Fund and Spearhead Property Holdings without condition

The third quarter of 2006 saw a rebound in performance of the Real Estate segment of collective investment schemes (previously called unit trusts) after a large dip in the second quarter ending June. On average, these funds saw a return of 8.3% for the third quarter ending September, after a somewhat dismal loss of 15.9% in the second quarter, according to official returns of the Association of Collective Investments (ACI) prepared by Hugo Lambrechts.

JSE Listed Sizafika Property Investments Limited, which has been restructured from the shell of knitwear company Adonis, announced that it has concluded agreements to acquire 67 commercial properties from various vendors for R581 million.

IN A deal that values Paramount Property Fund at about R1,5bn, Growthpoint Properties, the largest listed property company on the JSE, has made a mandatory offer to acquire all the linked units in Paramount.

Hyprop Investments is pulling out of bidding for the Victoria & Alfred (V&A) Waterfront.

CBS Property Portfolio, which is enjoying a growth phase after listing on the JSE last November, has appointed well-known property player Richard Harman as an executive director.

After a torrid three months, the listed property sector has bounced back, with some commentators saying it is a more attractive buy than fixed property.

ABSA Bank has acquired full control of the management company of listed property company Ambit Properties for an undisclosed amount

Old Mutual Property Group, which owns 32% of listed property unit trust Martprop and also manages the fund, aimed to substantially increase the size of the fund over the next three years, said Martprop MD Roger Perkin.

The new management at Acc-Ross Holdings, which is listed as a property-development company on AltX, aims to turn the embattled company’s fortunes around by moving the listing to the JSE’s hotel and leisure sector.