Archive for ‘National’

February 23, 2012

Multi-Family Wire

MIDLAND, Texas — Pivotal Group bought 21 apartment communities located in Midland, Odessa and Longview, Texas totaling over 3,200 units. Francis Najafi, founder of Pivotal Group, announced the acquisition on behalf of a joint venture between an institutional investor and Pivotal Group. Justin Lanne and Sandy Alter of Grubb and Ellis represented the sellers, TRA Midland Properties, LLC, in this off-market transaction. Arrangements for assumption of the existing Fannie Mae debt were made by Arbor Commercial Mortgage.

AUSTIN, Texas – Hendricks & Partners announced the sale of Silvervale Crossing – Brookstone, an 840-unit development located at 8800-8900 North Interstate 35 in Austin. The Buyer was GE Capital Realty, Inc. ofAddison,Texas. The Seller was FPA Multifamily LLC, aCalifornialimited liability company, ofSan Francisco. The property includes the 336-unit Silvervale Crossing, built in 1981, and the 504-unit Brookstone, constructed in 1985. The complex consists of 200 studio, 456 one-bedroom and 184 two-bedroom units. The transaction was negotiated by George Deuillet III of the Austin office of Hendricks & Partners and Ellen Muskin of Muskin Commercial, on behalf of the seller.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Pathfinder Partners LLC – a San Diego-based firm which invests in distressed real estate assets and defaulted loans – announced it recently closed on two multi-family transactions in the greaterSeattleandPhoenixmarkets. The acquisitions included the $9.5 million, 29-unit Chelsea Courte II inKirkland,Wash.and the purchase, from a receiver, of the 21-unit Shorewood Apartment complex inPhoenix.  Chelsea Courte II is located 15 miles north ofSeattleand consists of two-bedroom, two-bath condominiums. The Shorewood Apartments, located just north of downtown Phoenix near a light rail station, includes seven one-bedroom, one-bath units and 14 two-bedroom, two-bath units.

CHICAGO – HFF announced it has closed the sale of Aspen Place Apartments, a 416-unit multi-housing community in Aurora, Ill. HFF marketed the property on behalf of Kensington Realty Advisors. A unit of Friedkin Realty Group of San Francisco purchased the property. Aspen Place Apartments is located at 826 Terrace Lake Drivein the western Chicago suburb ofAurora. The 96 percent leased property has 50 residential buildings with one- and two-bedroom apartment homes and townhome units averaging 1,061 square feet each. The HFF investment sales team representing Kensington Realty Advisors was led by Managing Director Marty O’Connell, Executive Managing Director Matthew Lawton and Managing Director Sean Fogarty.

KIRKLAND, Wash. – HFF announced it has arranged a $31.85 million construction loan for the development of the 196-unit Juanita Village multi-housing community in Kirkland, Wash. HFF worked on behalf of M-M Properties and BayNorth to secure the three-year construction loan through Bank of the Ozarks. The property is located at 11801 97th St. inKirkland, a suburb of Seattle. Due for completion in 2013, Juanita Village will also feature 8,700 square feet of ground-floor retail. The HFF team representing the borrowers was led by Senior Managing Director John Brownlee and Managing Director Tom Wilson.

TEMPE, Ariz. – CBRE has negotiated the sale of San Portella Apartments, a 308-unit  community located at 2155 S. 55th St. inTempe. Tyler Anderson, Sean Cunningham and Asher Gunter of CBRE’sPhoenix office represented the seller, Apartments at Fountainhead LLC of Des Moines, Iowa, in negotiating the $45.1 million sale.  The buyer is Private Portfolio Group LLC of Seattle, Wash., managed by Pillar Communities, a wholly owned company of the buyer. Developed by Mark Taylor and Principal Real Estate Investors in 2008, San Portella is located on Broadway Road east of Interstate 10. It was 95 percent occupied at time of sale.

 FOR MORE APARTMENT NEWS  click here.

January 11, 2012

New $50 Million Headquarters Underway for Realogy

MADISON, N.J. — A 280,000-sfoot building is being constructed in Madison, N.J. to serve as the headquarters of Realogy, the parent company of Century 21, ERA, Coldwell Banker and Better Homes & Gardens.

Realogy, one of the biggest names in residential real estate, has a total 253,000 sales associates doing business in 101 countries around the world under its various brands. The company is owned by Apollo Management.

HFF announced  that it has arranged a $49.1 million construction loan for the building, located at 175 Park Avenue, in Madison, New Jersey.

Working exclusively on behalf of The Hampshire Companies, HFF placed the loan with US Bank and M&T Bank.  HFF secured US Bank to be the lead agent and brought in M&T to participate in the loan.

175 Park Avenue is located near State Route 24 and Interstate 287 adjacent to BASF’s new North American headquarters and the headquarters for the New York Jets.  The building will be built to LEED standards and will feature a full range of amenities including a fitness center, full-service cafe, and conference / team room facilities.

The HFF team representing The Hampshire Companies was led by senior managing director Jon Mikula and director Michael Klein.

The Hampshire Companies is a full-service, private real estate firm with equity in assets valued at more than $2.5 billion, based in Morristown, New Jersey.

Realogy has pre-leased the building.

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December 14, 2011

Americans Still Believe Buying a Home is a Good Investment

Despite problems plaguing the U.S. housing market such as tumbling values, record foreclosures, and tight credit for buyers, 74% of Americans believe home buying is a good investment. And 81% said it’s still part of the American dream according to a new survey from Yahoo! Real Estate.  The survey, which polled 1,500 current and aspiring homeowners, plus renters, found that while few (13%) currently live in their dream home a majority (55%) feel it’s attainable.

American optimism about housing as a good investment comes despite years of market turmoil that have had a wide impact on society. One in three Americans knows someone who has experienced a foreclosure, according to the Yahoo! Real Estate study.

Most Wanted Home Features: Energy Efficiency

While having a large room with a view is still desirable, the dream home is no longer a supersized McMansion. Our survey found that a “green,” energy-efficient home built with “sustainable” materials tops the ‘most wanted’ list. No longer in desire for home buyers: gated communities, urban locations, and castle style homes. Those in demand include:

  • Green/energy efficient 50%
  • Building a custom home 38%
  • Water views 38%
  • Mountain views 32%
  • Suburban home 31%
  • Near the beach 27%
  • Cottage in the woods 20%
November 22, 2011

National Real Estate Recovery: A Gradual Reality

By Ralph Bivins

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The nation’s residential realty market is improving, but it may be two or three years or so until the market is completely healthy again, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors.

Existing-home sales are forecast to increase about 1 percent in 2011, and then rise another 4 to 5 percent in 2012, the NAR predicts. For the year, existing home sales will be just under 5 million homes, an improvement over last year, but a far cry from the mid-2000s when annual sales topped 7 million homes.

“The market has been tough,” Yun told reporters at the recent NAR convention in Southern California. “We anticipate recovery next year through 2013 and 2014.”

Home prices are projected to increase on a gradual  climb – a 2 percent increase in 2012; a 3 percent price gain in 2013 and a 4 percent increase in 2014. Of course, the price gains will vary from city to city.

The NAR economist is also projecting an increase in builder’s new home sales, from a record low of 320,000 in 2011 to 372,000 new homes in 2012. Yes, that means home building hit bottom this year.

Mortgage rates will continue to remain low, Yun said.  Rates for 30-year mortgages, currently around 4 percent, will rise to 4.5 percent in 2012, 4.8 percent in 2013 and up to 5.5 percent in 2014, Yun predicted.

For the full story, see Ralph Bivins’ column and photos on the CultureMap.com web site at: http://houston.culturemap.com/newsdetail/11-21-11-its-no-fantasy-real-estate-is-slowly-recovering/

 

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