Almot Maqolo, Staff Writer 
MASHONALAND Holdings (Mash Holdings) expects to grow its total asset portfolio by around 50 percent to reach US$120 million in the next five years.
The property developer has a five-year diversification strategy expected to boost its asset portfolio from US$80,7 million it recorded at the close of 2023 to US$120 million by 2027. This was a 4,9 percent increase from US$76,9 million realised in 2022.
This comes amid calls by analysts for the property investment and development firm to carefully navigate its portfolio diversification to avoid saddling itself with underperforming property assets in future.
High-quality commercial real estate investments are luring more and more businesses, since they are thought to be more resilient to the country’s persistent macroeconomic turbulence than liquid assets.
At an annual general meeting held in Harare recently, Mash Holdings acting managing director Kudakwashe Masundire told shareholders that the strategy remains anchored on portfolio diversification to support the company’s quest for better returns.
“Currently, from when we started, Central Business District (CBD) retail really has been a major contributor to our portfolio,” he said.
“However, where we are going, we see that the portfolio will be more balanced, having entrants in sectors such as tourism as well as retail, which we think speak to what the market is looking for in terms of our tenants.”
There has been a longstanding need for Mash Holdings to diversify away from the historically depressed CBD office and industrial property sub-sectors.
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are becoming more and more popular as a type of investment that may yield steady profits despite various obstacles, like poor occupancy rates in large office buildings.
Construction of the company’s flagship project, Pomona Wholesale Centre Development, is ongoing, with current progress at 57 percent. The project has a development budget of US$12,2 million and is set to achieve an entry rental yield of nine percent. It is poised to be completed by the end of the year.
The development concept consists of wholesaling and flexible warehousing with 14 square metres of lettable space.
“We already have off-takers for 60 percent of that space that we are developing,” Masundire said.
There is also a development of the hotel and Borrowdale Office Park, which will commence in 2025.
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