PHILADELPHIA — Treetop Development LLC has acquired Charter Court at East Falls, a 502-unit high-rise apartment complex located in Philadelphia, for $47.3 million. The transaction represents the Teaneck, N.J.-based real estate company’s first foray into the Philadelphia market. Treetop plans to invest more than $7 million into Charter Court. The company will renovate the vacant properties with high-end finishes, including hardwood flooring, espresso cabinetry with blizzard white countertops and fully renovated bathrooms. Charter Court at East Falls consists of two 11-story high-rise buildings featuring a unit mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment homes.
Northeast
NEW YORK CITY — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $12 million sale of two five-story apartment buildings totaling 40 units on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The buildings are located at 234 East 88th St. and 518 East 88th St. The sale price equates to $300,000 per unit. Peter Von Der Ahe, Joseph Koicim and David Lloyd, all in Marcus & Millichap’s Manhattan office, represented the seller, The Orbach Group LLC. Von Der Ahe, Koicim and Lloyd also represented the buyer, Aimco. Of the 40 total apartments, 33 are one-bedroom units, three are two-bedroom apartments and four are studios.
QUAKERTOWN, PA. — Ayer Capital Advisors, an investment firm, and The Wankawala Organization, a hotel owner and management firm, have acquired a 78-room Holiday Inn Express & Suites Hotel in Quakertown, a southern suburb of Allentown, Pa. Ayer will work with The Wankawala Organization to manage the property. Ayer and Wankawala plan to acquire more than $150 million worth of select-service hotels in the next 18 months.
NEW YORK CITY — Besen & Associates has arranged the $7.6 million sale of 1185 Lebanon Street, a 73,000-square-foot, six-story apartment building located in the Morris Park section of The Bronx. The building includes 75 apartments, seven stores and roof antenna. Amit Doshi of Besen & Associates represented the seller in transaction, while Alex Frants also of Besen & Associates represented the buyer, a local private investor. Constructed in 1928, the property is located on the northwest corner of Morris Park Avenue. Average monthly rent per apartment is $914, with layouts that include 12 two-bedrooms, 54 one-bedrooms and nine studios.
BRAINTREE, MASS. — Wallace Capital has provided a $1.7 million acquisition bridge loan for a 20-acre site in suburban Boston to 2001 Washington Street LLC. The 19.4-acre site houses a 76,223-square-foot, two-story brick structure that was built in 1920. The building most recently served as the 79-bed Kindred Hospital Northeast. The hospital ceased operations in September 2008 and since that time the property has been vacant. The borrower used loan to purchase the property for redevelopment and plans to refinance the loan.
FRAMINGHAM, MASS. — Office-supply retailer Staples Inc. plans to close 225 North American stores by the end of 2015. The closures are part of a multi-year cost savings plan that is expected to generate annualized pre-tax cost savings of approximately $500 million by the end of 2015. In contrast to the company’s fourth-quarter performance as a whole, which saw a 10.6 percent year-over-year decline in sales, fourth-quarter business at Staples.com was up 10 percent from a year ago. Staples says it reduced its footprint last year by 1 million square feet through closing 40 stores.
BOSTON — EagleBridge Capital has arranged $12.7 million in permanent mortgage financing for a multi-state portfolio of retail and office buildings. The portfolio includes six retail buildings and two office buildings. The retail buildings are located in Mansfield and Attleboro, Mass.; North Windham, Conn.; North Kingston, R.I.; and North Hampton, N.H. The two office buildings are located in Lincoln, R.I. Brian Sheehan and Ted Sidel of Boston-based EagleBridge arranged the financing on behalf of the Docor Group through a financial institution. Proceeds from the loan were used to refinance the existing mortgages; cover all closing costs, including prepayment premium; and provide cash out to the borrower.
BRANFORD, CONN. — Washington Trust’s commercial real estate group has provided $4.8 million in financing to Lakeview Center Associates LLC and Branford Equities LLC for the refinancing of Lakeview Center, a 69,955-square-foot shopping center in Branford. Sixteen tenants lease the four single-story buildings, located at 249-251 W. Main St. Edmond DeLaurentis Jr., a second-generation real estate developer and operator, operates Lakeview Center Associates LLC. He and other members — Herman Gans, Ram Gupta and Theodore Sannella — also own several other shopping centers located in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
YORK, PA. — Endurance Real Estate Group LL has acquired 325 S. Salem Church Road, a 624,800-square-foot, Class A warehouse in York. Endurance acquired the asset through a joint venture with a commingled fund managed by American Realty Advisors. Located in Central Pennsylvania, the property has served as the Northeast distribution center for the seller, American Signature Furniture, since it was constructed in 2007. David Binswanger and Michael Treacy of Binswanger represented the seller in the transaction.
NEW YORK CITY — The Feil Organization has signed Asset.tv to 3,883 square feet on the 45th floor of its landmark 570 Lexington Ave. building in New York City. Asset.tv, a video reporting firm, had been subleasing from another tenant in the building. Originally known as the RCA Victor Building, 570 Lexington Ave. includes Art Deco architecture. The 50-story structure also boasts a crown of Gothic spires that resemble a giant torch when illuminated. The 640-foot tall building, designed by Cross and Cross, opened in 1931 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.