Urbanitae will once again take part in SIMED, held from 12 to 14 November in Málaga, as a leading partner of the event. Carlos de Garnica, Director of Direct Investments, will represent the company in a panel discussion on capital, investment, sales and marketing, and new models in the residential property market.
Urbanitae will once again attend SIMED, the Mediterranean Real Estate Exhibition, which will hold its next edition from 12 to 14 November at FYCMA, the Málaga Trade Fair and Congress Centre. The event has established itself as one of Spain’s leading gatherings for the residential property sector and a meeting point for developers, investors, public authorities, sales and marketing professionals, and other participants across the value chain.
For Urbanitae, returning to SIMED reinforces our particularly close relationship with property developers and with Andalusia. Financing new residential developments has been at the heart of our business from the outset, through both equity and debt investments, adapting the capital structure to each project’s stage, requirements and characteristics.
Our presence is particularly significant in Málaga. Since Urbanitae’s first financed project in the province in 2019, we have financed 40 projects totalling nearly €108 million, both in Málaga city and across numerous municipalities on the Costa del Sol and elsewhere in the province. This activity includes residential developments, prime and luxury projects, debt and capital appreciation investments, as well as new accommodation models such as flex living.
Our track record extends across markets including Marbella, Estepona, Mijas, Fuengirola, Benahavís, Casares, Manilva, Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Cártama, Alhaurín de la Torre and Ojén, as well as Málaga city. This geographical presence reflects both the depth of Málaga’s property market and the diversity of developers, assets and strategies Urbanitae has worked with in recent years.
The capital driving the living sector
As part of SIMED’s professional programme, Urbanitae will be represented this year by Carlos de Garnica, Director of Direct Investments, who will participate on Friday, 13 November, from 11:00 to 11:45 a.m. in the panel “The capital driving housing: investment, sales and marketing, and new market models”, within the Living in Evolution forum.
The session, moderated by Alexandre Lima, Director of Iberian Property, will also feature José Félix Pérez Peña, Executive Director and Head of Andalusia at Savills; Óscar Ochoa, Director of New-Build Developments at Gilmar; and Paloma Pérez Bravo, Residential CEO at Dils Lucas Fox.
The Living in Evolution forum will examine the transformation of this broad sector from a strategic perspective: how users’ needs are changing, which new products and accommodation formats are gaining ground, and the role of capital, investment and sales and marketing in making them viable.
Carlos’s participation will provide an especially wide-ranging perspective. Urbanitae operates at different points along this value chain: we finance real estate projects, connect capital with developers and, through Direct Investments, enable investors to acquire selected assets directly.
This market is no longer limited to traditional residential housing. The evolution of living is bringing greater prominence to flex living, medium-term stays, properties managed by specialist operators and other hybrid products, where the way an asset is used, its management and its operating model are becoming increasingly important to the investment case.
Direct Investments is particularly well suited to this new environment. Its offering combines direct ownership of the asset with professional analysis and support throughout acquisition, operation and eventual exit. Alongside new-build and existing homes, the business line can also include assets with more passive management models for owners, provided there is a clear investment opportunity and a robust operating structure.
Financing and sales: two connected parts of the process
For developers, access to capital is only one of the factors determining a project’s progress. Sales velocity, pre-sale levels, construction timelines and the ability to adapt the financing structure to each stage are equally important.
Urbanitae has steadily expanded its ability to support these needs. In addition to our equity and debt financing activities, Direct Investments makes certain investment-oriented properties available to a specialist investor community.
The relationship between the two activities is particularly valuable for developers. Reaching certain pre-sale thresholds earlier can facilitate access to bank financing, reduce commercial risk and accelerate a development’s cash flow. At the same time, it creates opportunities to explore formats and assets whose natural buyer may be more investment-oriented than residential.
For Urbanitae, therefore, Direct Investments does not replace our core role as a financing partner for developers. It broadens the opportunities for collaboration around the finished product and its commercialisation, particularly in a market where the boundaries between residential property, hospitality and new forms of accommodation are becoming increasingly blurred.
Málaga, one of Urbanitae’s key markets
Urbanitae’s accumulated activity in Málaga also helps explain our connection with SIMED.
The province brings together several of the segments that have gained the most prominence on our platform in recent years: multi-family developments, single-family homes, prime and luxury residential properties, and projects located both in established Costa del Sol markets and in inland or metropolitan municipalities.
In the past two years alone, Urbanitae has participated in transactions in Mijas, Fuengirola, Estepona, Benahavís, Casares, Manilva, Málaga city, Cártama, Alhaurín de la Torre and Ojén, among other locations. The projects range from major residential developments to smaller-scale, high-value-added investments, as well as formats such as flex living.
Our relationship with Málaga therefore goes beyond its appeal as a residential property market. For Urbanitae, it is already one of the areas where we have built the most sustained relationships with the property development community, and SIMED provides an especially valuable opportunity to strengthen those ties each year.
Another year alongside the property development sector
Urbanitae also took part in SIMED’s 2025 edition, when Sergio Arana, Director of Real Estate, joined a panel discussion on the evolution of the premium residential sector. At that time, the debate focused on changing demand and the growing importance of factors such as design, services and the overall residential experience.
This year, the discussion broadens to an even more cross-cutting question: how to connect capital, property development, sales and marketing, and new living models to continue creating real estate products adapted to changing demand.
Our participation as a leading partner and Carlos de Garnica’s presence at Living in Evolution once again bring Urbanitae together with developers and industry professionals to examine the changes reshaping the market.
Because although financing, investment and sales models evolve, the objective remains the same: to make more and better real estate projects viable.
