Northeast

NEW YORK CITY — Compass Group, an asset management firm focused on Latin American markets, has signed an 8,000-square-foot office lease at 590 Madison Avenue in Manhattan’s Midtown Plaza District. The 43-story, 1 million-square-foot building offers a gym, golf simulator and onsite parking and houses users such as IBM, Morgan Stanley and Aspen Insurance. David Kaplansky of Colliers represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Stephen Siegel, Evan Haskell, James Ackerson, Taylor Scheinman and Brett Shannon of CBRE, along with internal agent Jeff Sussman, represented the landlord, Edward J. Minskoff Equities Inc.

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AXA

GREENWICH, CONN. — AXA Investment Managers Alternatives has acquired a 23-property portfolio of industrial assets from Dermody Properties Industrial Fund II for $1.2 billion. The company is also under contract to acquire nine industrial properties currently under development by Dermody for $850 million upon completion in 2022 and 2023.  The combined 32-property portfolio spans 8.5 million square feet across California’s Inland Empire; Northern California; Seattle; Portland, Ore.; Las Vegas; Chicago; Louisville, Ky.; Atlanta; Eastern Pennsylvania; Northern New Jersey; and Wilmington, N.C. Dermody Properties will continue to manage the portfolio upon completion of both transactions, which CBRE brokered. The average age and size of each property in the portfolio is eight years old and 208,000 square feet, with the majority of assets ranging between 150,000 and 400,000 square feet. The initial 23-property portfolio was 77 percent leased at the time of sale.  “The quality and scale of the Dermody Properties portfolio, together with its resilient income profile and attractive geographical diversification, made it stand out as a particularly compelling investment opportunity,” says Steve McCarthy, head of North America at AXA.  “Logistics remains one of [our] long-term conviction calls as demand for prime space shows no sign of abating thanks to structural …

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Steve Theobald Multifamily 2021

COVID Disrupts Markets Again The country began breathing a sigh of relief in the second quarter of 2021 as U.S. GDP returned to pre-pandemic levels. With a substantial part of the U.S. population vaccinated, the unemployment rate plummeted, schools began preparing for in-person instruction and restaurants were back in business, again surpassing grocery sales in volume. But just as things seemed to be returning to “normal,” the delta variant of COVID began to spread. New COVID cases turned into rising COVID deaths by August,[1] disrupting supply and demand chains. Consumer confidence, which had been rising since hitting a low in April 2020, dipped to a new low point in August; consumer spending stalled[2], and fewer people traveled by plane[3] or returned to the office[4] that month. While economic growth remains positive, the delta variant, now accounting for almost all new COVID cases[5], again introduced market uncertainty, resulting in a 4 percent drop in stock market pricing in September. However, as COVID cases began declining in mid-September, stock prices began to rise, erasing the September drop in October, and resulting in a 22.6 percent gain for the year. Overall, economists maintain strong economic growth expectations of 6.1 percent GDP growth for …

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Planta-Queen-Manhattan

By Taylor Williams The fervent desire that many Americans have to make up for lost eating, drinking and socializing time has New York City’s food and beverage (F&B) market roaring back to life, prompting tenants to revisit growth plans, landlords to aggressively market their spaces and the brokers who represent the two sides to sharpen their pencils.  In mid-August, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that residents wishing to eat or drink inside a restaurant or bar would have to show proof of receipt of at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Yet after two months of seeing this policy enforced, local brokers say the mandate has had a minimally adverse impact on business. Consequently, leasing activity, which began rebounding a year ago, is now accelerating in the F&B space. According to data from CBRE, F&B deals accounted for 30 percent of all new retail leases executed in New York City between March 2020 and August 2021. The company’s research team also identified 65 F&B leases throughout New York City in 2021 alone, representing about 33 percent of the total deal volume.  Specifically within Manhattan, there were 24 leases executed for F&B concepts in the third quarter …

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NEW YORK CITY — Eastdil Secured has arranged $130 million in financing for Eastchester Heights, a 1,416-unit rent-stabilized community located on roughly 15 acres at 3480 Seymour Ave. in The Bronx. The borrower, a partnership between Taconic Partners and Clarion Partners, will use proceeds to refinance existing debt and fund capital improvements. Eastchester Heights was originally built in 1935 and offers amenities such as courtyards, basketball courts, a computer lab and a playground. Residents also have access to services like life coaching, job training and financial counseling. Since acquiring the property in 2007, the partnership has invested more than $50 million in upgrades, including the recent installation of a 200,000-square-foot rooftop solar panel system. Wells Fargo provided the financing.

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Southpoint-at-Massapequa-Long-Island

MASSAPEQUA, N.Y. — JLL has brokered the sale of Southpoint at Massapequa, a 214-unit apartment community on Long Island. Southpoint at Massapequa houses one-, two- and three-bedroom units that average 987 square feet. Select units feature stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, newly renovated kitchens and bathrooms and private balconies/patios. Amenities include a pool, fitness center, bark park and outdoor grilling stations. Steve Simonelli, Jose Cruz, Michael Oliver, Kevin O’Hearn, Andrew Scandalios and Josh Stein of JLL represented the seller, JRK Property Holdings, in the transaction. Fairfield Properties purchased the community for an undisclosed price. Thomas Didio, Jr., Gerard Quinn and Salvatore Buzzerio, also with JLL, arranged $77.3 million in Freddie Mac acquisition financing for the deal. The loan was structured with a fixed interest rate and a 15-year term.

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CVS-Shirt-Corner-Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA — Stan Johnson Co., an Oklahoma-based brokerage firm specializing in net-leased retail assets, has negotiated the $10.8 million sale of a 12,485-square-foot retail condo in Philadelphia that is leased to CVS. The store is housed within a 62-unit multifamily building known as Shirt Corner that is located in the Old City District. Brandon Duff, Austin Duff, Matt Spangenberg and Mack Wolfgram of Stan Johnson Co. represented the seller, a Chicago-based private investor, in the transaction. The buyer was a 1031 exchange investor from Indiana.

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NEW YORK CITY — Locally based investment firm Conway Capital, in partnership with a private family investment group, has acquired a 16-unit multifamily building in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn for $8 million. The new ownership plans to renovate the four-story property at 423 16th St., which was originally built in 1920. Derek Bestreich and Luke Sproviero of Bestreich Realty Group represented the seller, a private investor, in the transaction.

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NEW YORK CITY — Ergatta, a health and wellness company known for indoor rowing products and fitness regimens, has signed a 11,185-square-foot office lease at 40 West 25th Street, a 136,226-square-foot building in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. The 12-story building was originally constructed in 1913 and most recently renovated in 2018. Michael Mathias and Sean Hoffman of Savills represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. A joint venture between Kaufman Organization and AXA Insurance owns the property.

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Two-Drydock-Boston

BOSTON — A partnership between global investment firm KKR and Boston-based Synergy Investments has acquired Two Drydock, a 235,000-square-foot office building located in the state capital’s Seaport District, for $234.5 million. The 13-story building features 7,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space that was recently leased to Lord Hobo Brewing Co. and Render Coffee, as well as 150 above-ground parking spaces and a 10,000-square-foot outdoor plaza. Newmark represented the seller, international developer Skanska, which originally broke ground on the property in June 2018, in the transaction.

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