German fund manager Union Investment Real Estate has sold the SMT office building in Seoul, South Korea for KRW 100.4 bln (EUR 64.6 mln) to local investor Trust Y7 REIT. The sale price is 70% higher than the original purchase price.

The asset is located in the Mok-dong district. It was built in 1999 and was acquired by Union Investment in 2006 for the company's institutional real estate fund Immo-Invest Europa. The 18-storey building comprises 34,600 m2 of rental space. The tenants include Samsung Life Insurance and Thyssen Krupp Korea.

'We have again taken advantage of strong investment demand for core properties and locked in excellent gains for the Fund,' said Karl-Joseph Hermanns-Engel, member of the management board of Union Investment. Sister fund UniImmo Global also realized a significant profit in July 2010 with the sale of the 14-storey HI Building office tower in Seoul. The sale price was 36% higher than the original purchase price.