Toronto-based healthcare properties group Northwest is buying a portfolio of German healthcare properties in a sale-and-leaseback transaction. The vendor is Carecapital, a developer-investor of UK and German healthcare properties listed on London's junior AIM market.

Northwest is paying for EUR 27 mln for the portfolio which was valued at EUR 33 mln at end-June 2010. The current net rental income of the German portfolio is just under EUR 2 mln per annum, reflecting a yield of about 7.4% for the transaction.

Carecapital said there are good opportunities for growth in the healthcare property segment in both the UK and Germany. However, the company said, it decided on the sale to improve its financial position.

Noting development and investment in healthcare assets is capital intensive, Carecapital said it has a current market capitalisation of £3 mln and equity market conditions have made it impossible to raise equity finance 'on sensible terms'. Repayment of a short-term loan facility provided by CareCapital's chairman was also overdue.

Carecapital said it is pursing a pipeline of further healthcare property projects in the UK, Continental Europe, the US, the Middle East and South East Asia.