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Real-estate calendarPacific Northwest FIABCI (International Real Estate Calendar)
Wednesday : February 15, 2012 11 am – 2 pm
Tuesday : March 13, 2012 11 am – 2 pm
Monday : May 7, 2012 11 am – 2 pm
SEATTLE KingCounty REALTORS®
12410 SE 32nd Street Suite#100
Bellevue, Washington 98005
Local
187,000-SF Shopping Center Trades for $31M
COVINGTON, WA-Clarion Partners has acquired a shopping center here for $31 million. The acquisition was made on behalf of a separate account client of the firm. Located just 25 miles from Seattle, Covington is a rapidly growing and prosperous suburban community
Griffin Capital Net Lease REIT Buys 155,000-SF Facility
REDMOND, WA-GlobeSt.com has exclusively learned that Griffin Capital Corp., on behalf of Griffin Capital Net Lease REIT Inc., has purchased a three-building, 155,830-square-foot office and data center facility fully occupied by AT&T Wireless Services Inc
Greystar Closes on 516-Unit Seattle Multifamily Buy
SEATTLE-Greystar has closed on its purchase of the Mill at Mill Creek, a 516-unit multifamily property here in the Seattle submarket of Mill Creek. The company financed the purchase with a $46.3-million loan.
Medical Plaza Changes Hands for $33M
SPOKANE, WA-Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, formerly known as Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II, has acquired Spokane Integrated Medical Plaza for $32.5 million. The acquisition expands the size of the company’s portfolio to 71 buildings valued at approximately $663 million, based on purchase price.
Terramar Pays $35M for Canyon Park Place in Bothell
BOTHELL, WA-Terramar Retail Centers LLC, a Carlsbad, California-based real estate firm, has acquired Canyon Park Place, a retail center spanning 130,786 square feet at the junction of the Bothell-Everett Highway and 228th Street in Bothell.
A Tower’s New Owner Hears the Hum of Data
The New York Telephone Company building at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge is not among the city’s most loved, to put it charitably. It was built in 1975 as a switching control center for the phone company but has been largely vacant for years, despite the large “Verizon” sign that adorns its forbidding facade.
Job gains, lower vacancy give Portland an edge in retail real estate
Payroll growth and a decline in vacancy will push the Portland area into one of the country's top retail real estate markets for investors, the commercial real estate firm Marcus & Millichap reported Monday.
Real estate market better
Last year won't go down as an outstanding time for the commercial real estate industry, but several big deals managed to jell in the Salem area. And some in the real estate business expect a better 2012.
National
Marriott Delivers Late Editions
Marriott International Inc. has been trying—and failing—for more than four years to build a brand of hip hotels. Now, it finally may be breathing some life into its competitor to the stylish W chain.
Calpers Downsizes Housing Portfolio
Calpers, the giant California pension fund, is dumping one of its last major housing investments at a big loss.
A Times Square Tune-Up
Sometimes, the renovation costs almost as much as the purchase itself.
Small Cities Lure Investor
After a four-year hiatus on the sidelines, California investor Judah Hertz is buying office buildings in small cities with some of the highest vacancies and lowest demand in the country. That probably means more torment for other landlords in these markets.
Less Building Now, Higher Office Rents Later
Office-building construction is in the midst of a severe drought. This means higher rents may be on the horizon in some cities, if history is any guide.
It's Hardly a Ball for 11 Times Square
NEW YORK—The risks of speculative office building, especially during a real-estate slump, are obvious at the 11 Times Square skyscraper here. Just stand on the sidewalk and look up.
Pyramid Cos.' Carousel Plan Rides Again
Developer Robert Congel's drive to create one of the largest malls in the country, in Syracuse, N.Y., is back in gear after almost being upended by the economic downturn and a nasty court battle with Citigroup Inc.
Mission West Again Hangs 'For Sale' Sign
The leading office landlord in California's Silicon Valley, Mission West Properties Inc., is preparing to sell itself to the highest bidder. But the selling price is likely to fall short of the $1.8 billion the company nearly fetched five years ago.
Diamond in the Rough
For years, a charitable organization begun by the wife of New York real-estate developer Aaron Diamond has held onto stakes in three Manhattan office buildings, even after its founder, philanthropist Irene Diamond, died in 2003. Now, roughlyfour decades after the Diamonds first bought into the buildings, their charitable fund is taking its chips off the table.
Downtown Offices Continue Recovery
Even as values of office towers in some U.S. downtowns have recovered surprisingly well since the market's nadir in 2009, the suburban office market has barely budged.
International
Deconstructing China's Urban Legend
China is now an urban society. That is good news for Yum Brands, less so for BHP Billiton.
Cambodia's Developers Again Aim at Stars
PHNOM PENH—Cambodia's low-rise capital city is reaching for the sky—again.
Long known as one of the last major Asian cities without a skyline, Phnom Penh embarked on a high-rise building boom in the middle of the last decade, only to see it derailed by the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009
Profit Drop for Large Developer in Asia
SINGAPORE—CapitaLand Ltd.'s fourth-quarter net profit fell 20% from a year earlier, but the property developer is still optimistic about weathering an uncertain global economy and government intervention in China and Singapore's real-estate markets.
MultiFamily
CityView Closes on First Asset from $300M Fund
SAN FRANCISCO-Los Angeles-based CityView, a real estate advisory firm founded by former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros, has just closed on its first asset from the Bay Area Fund. The new $300-million fund will be used to invest in multifamily housing communities in the Bay Area region.
Four Property Portfolio Gets $61M Refinance
LOS ANGELES-Beech Street Capital LLC has provided $61-million in Fannie Mae loans to refinance a four-property apartment portfolio totaling 493 units in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The fixed-rate loans have a 10-year term with a two-year interest-only period.
Greystar Closes on 516-Unit Seattle Multifamily Buy
SEATTLE-Greystar has closed on its purchase of the Mill at Mill Creek, a 516-unit multifamily property here in the Seattle submarket of Mill Creek. The company financed the purchase with a $46.3-million loan.
Essex and Wisconsin Join $1.2B Parkmerced Plan
SAN FRANCISCO-The Essex REIT and the Wisconsin Investment Board are providing $175 million, along with a $450 million Fannie Mae loan, for this massive multifamily redevelopment.
National Apartment Vacancy To Dip Down to 5% by Year End
ENCINO, CA-The US apartment sector powered through last summer’s economic doldrums to record strong absorption gains and higher occupancy rates. So says a 2012 National Apartment Report, which was released by Marcus & Millichap.
NAI Capital Hopes 320-Unit Multifamily Will Fetch $62M
RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA-NAI Capital is representing the sale of 320-unit Eagle Glen Apartment Homes Community in Murrieta, CA bordering on the city lines of Temecula. Under the seller’s orders, the multifamily investment firm could not give GlobeSt.com the seller’s identity or description, but did reveal that the seller owns several East Coast properties and has decided to focus on those assets.
Pathfinder Partners Closes on Two Distressed Apartment Communities
Coming on the heels of two Denver-area acquisitions, Pathfinder Partners LLC, a San Diego-based firm focused on distressed real estate assets and defaulted loans, has closed on two multifamily transactions in the Seattle and Phoenix markets.
REIT BEAT
Griffin Capital Net Lease REIT Buys 155,000-SF Facility
REDMOND, WA-GlobeSt.com has exclusively learned that Griffin Capital Corp., on behalf of Griffin Capital Net Lease REIT Inc., has purchased a three-building, 155,830-square-foot office and data center facility fully occupied by AT&T Wireless Services Inc
Essex and Wisconsin Join $1.2B Parkmerced Plan
SAN FRANCISCO-The Essex REIT and the Wisconsin Investment Board are providing $175 million, along with a $450 million Fannie Mae loan, for this massive multifamily redevelopment.
Medical Plaza Changes Hands for $33M
SPOKANE, WA-Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, formerly known as Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II, has acquired Spokane Integrated Medical Plaza for $32.5 million. The acquisition expands the size of the company’s portfolio to 71 buildings valued at approximately $663 million, based on purchase price.
REITs Come Out Swinging in 2012
WASHINGTON, DC-US REITs turned in a strong performance for January, outpacing the broader equity market. On a total return basis, the FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index gained 6.47% and the FTSE NAREIT All Equity REITs Index was up 6.36% for the month. This compares to 4.48% for the S&P 500, according to NAREIT, which tracks these figures.
KBS Legacy Partners Apartment REIT acquires Poplar Creek apartment complex
KBS Legacy Partners Apartment REIT has acquired Poplar Creek, a 196-unit apartment complex located in Schaumburg. The 12.8-acre complex was acquired free and clear of existing debt. Occupancy stands at 95 percent.
Distressed
World Bank Lowers Growth Forecast
The World Bank has revised downward its global growth forecast for 2012, acknowledging that the world is in a precarious position under threat of a Lehman-like crisis engulfing capital markets.
Casino Debtholders Fight On
The commercial real-estate industry has seen more than more than three years of "tranche warfare" among debtholders who hold various degrees of risk on mortgages that were sliced up and sold by Wall Street firms.
Brookfield Ends Deal for Atlantis
Brookfield Asset Management Inc. has canceled a deal to take control of the huge Atlantis resort in the Bahamas and two other resorts from Kerzner International Holdings Ltd. after other creditors obtained a court ruling delaying the deal.
CRE Price Index Rises for Seventh Consecutive Month
The CoStar National Composite Index of commercial real estate pricing rose for the seventh straight month since last spring as investment-grade sales made solid pricing gains in November 2011, and the level of distressed sale transactions continued to decline during the month.
Atlanta Tower Proves too Tall an Order
The tallest building in Atlanta is now in the hands of a group of bond investors that foreclosed on its first mortgage
Pyramid Cos.' Carousel Plan Rides Again
Developer Robert Congel's drive to create one of the largest malls in the country, in Syracuse, N.Y., is back in gear after almost being upended by the economic downturn and a nasty court battle with Citigroup Inc.
Receivers Emerge As Key Legal Remedy
LOS ANGELES-With about 65% of the $1.7 trillion or so worth of commercial mortgage-backed loans maturing in the next four to five years considered unsuitable for refinancing, receivers will be assuming an ever-increasing role in t`he mounting saga of distressed properties. That is exactly the reason why the Los Angeles Bar Association recently held panel discussion on the very topic.
Why foreclosure investors are double-edged sword for economy
The best and most expeditious way to clear the vast inventory of foreclosed properties weighing down today's housing market is to get more investors in and sell them these properties at bulk discounts.
Goldman Fund Plans Fight Over Hancock
A Goldman Sachs Group Inc. real-estate fund that has walked away from a number of struggling investments is taking a different approach with a Chicago skyscraper, deciding to fight its creditors rather than surrender ownership of the building.
Loan Wrangling on the Rise
Commercial-property debtholders and servicers are slowly working through the stages of grief. This year is beginning to look like the year of acceptance.
Clinging to Chicago Hope
After a two-year struggle, a third-generation Chicago developer has succeeded in keeping a hand in one of his pet projects: the $190 million conversion into retail and office space of the landmark building that once housed the Carson Pirie Scott & Co. department store.
Ex-Banker Caught Up in Debt Brawl
In the battles erupting throughout the commercial real-estate world over properties defaulting on loans, Douglas Rohrer is one of the hired guns.
RE Trends
Pickup in Lending Lifts Big Banks
Big U.S. banks are reopening the lending spigot amid signs that an improving economy is spurring companies and individuals to borrow more.
Hope Puts Spring in Home Builders' Stocks
The stocks of home builders, shunned by investors for most of the past year, are suddenly in vogue again.
A Steel Site Is Recycled
More than 10 years after the last steelmaking operations were closed down at the Bethlehem Steel Corp. plant in Pennsylvania, its 1,800-acre site is slowly attracting new businesses.
Apollo Has Difficulty Landing Real-Estate Funds
Apollo Global Management, a private-equity firm with $75 billion in assets under management, regularly mixes it up with other heavyweights in the buyout world.
CRE Podcasts
Jere Lucey on Trends in Note Sales
Jere Lucey, Jones Lang LaSalle’s managing director of real estate investment banking, examines the note-sale market at the end of 2011 and looks forward to increased activity in 2012 – from the MBA CREF conference in Atlanta.
