The initial public offering of India's first real estate investment trust (REIT), Blackstone-backed Embassy Office Parks REIT, opened on Monday. The IPO will close on March 20 and has a price range of Rs 299-Rs 300, with an aim to raise Rs 4,750 crore.

Embassy Office Parks, a joint venture of Blackstone and Embassy, on Friday raised Rs 1,743 crore from anchor investors ahead of the IPO. Embassy Office Parks has so far raised Rs 2,619 from anchor and strategic investors in its REIT, which is 55 per cent of the total issue size of Rs 4,750 crore. Here's what experts have to say on the Embassy Office Parks REIT IPO:

Ramesh Nair, CEO and country head of JLL India

-Commercial demand over the last few years has been Around 30 million square feet

-About 60% of Embassy Portfolio is in Bengaluru, which has just 3% vacancy

-Would rate Embassy among top 10 developers in the country

-Could look at an internal rate of return of 13-15% over next 3 years

Ashish Shanker, head of investments, Motilal Oswal Wealth Management

-Office rentals are linked to the business cycle

-Expect some stability in rentals with revisions every 3 years

-Will invest with expectation of 7.5-8% return

Sunil Rohokale, MD and CEO of ASK Group

-Expect few more REITs in the sector this year

-Expect a couple of more issues this year which would expand the market

-There is a rental yield escalation of 12-15% periodically

Also Read: Key things to know about Real Estate Investment Trust or REIT

First Published:Mar 18, 2019 12:12 PM IST