BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICH. — Kennedy Funding has provided a $1.8 million loan for the refinancing of 31.3 acres of land in Bloomfield Hills. Proceeds from the loan will be used to pay off the existing first mortgage. Remaining proceeds will be used as working capital. The property is zoned as a research park district and is currently listed for sale for $4.9 million. Bloomfield Technology Park LLC was the borrower. New Jersey-based Kennedy Funding is a direct private lender specializing in bridge loans for commercial property and land acquisition, developments, workouts, bankruptcies and foreclosures.
HAMILTON, N.J. — CBRE has negotiated the sale of Kuser Industrial Center, a 145,950-square-foot industrial property located just outside of Trenton in Hamilton, for $29.6 million. The property is under construction and is expected to be complete in February. Brian Fiumara, Michael Hines, Brad Ruppel and Lauren Dawicki of CBRE represented the seller, Scannell Properties, in the transaction. The buyer was Cohen Asset Management. CBRE will also handling leasing of the property.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. — An undisclosed wholesale distributor of home furnishings and housewares has signed a 192,000-square-foot industrial lease in South Brunswick, located in between Trenton and Newark. San Francisco-based Terreno Realty Corp. (NYSE: TRNO) owns the property. The lease term is 10 years.
MESA, ARIZ. — MIG Real Estate has purchased Gateway Technology Commerce Center, a multi-tenant industrial and warehouse project located at 7535 E. Ray Road in Mesa. Phoenix-based Orsett Properties, the original developer, sold the asset for $21.4 million. Built in 2019, the 138,692-square-foot, Class A project features dock-high and grade-level loading, 24- and 28-foot clear heights, a 180-foot secured gated truck court and ESFR sprinklers. At the time of sale, the property was 90.3 percent occupied. Steve Lindley, Eric Wichterman and Will Strong of Cushman & Wakefield’s Phoenix office represented the seller in the transaction. Ken McQueen and Chris McClurg of Lee & Associates provided leasing advisory services.
STOCKHOLM AND CONSHOHOCKEN, PA. — EQT AB, a private equity firm based in Stockholm, has agreed to purchase Exeter Property Group, an industrial real estate owner and developer based in the Philadelphia suburb of Conshohocken. EQT plans to purchase Exeter using $800 million in EQT shares and nearly $1.1 billion in cash for a total acquisition price of nearly $1.9 billion, including the refinancing of Exeter’s existing $300 million in debt. Founded in 2006, Exeter has approximately $10 billion in assets under management. In addition to industrial properties, Exeter also owns life sciences and office space in the United States and Europe. Exeter has 37 offices in North America, Europe and Asia. EQT expects Exeter’s revenue in 2020 to total $135 million. Exeter’s recent acquisitions include Creekview Corporate Center in metro Dallas, a 193,000-square-foot industrial building in Illinois and a new distribution center in Pennsylvania totaling 1.2 million square feet. The company also recently developed a 673,920-square-foot speculative industrial building in the St. Louis suburb of Edwardsville, Ill. Upon completion of the transaction, Exeter will operate as EQT Exeter and will be part of the EQT Real Estate Assets division, which comprises EQT Infrastructure and EQT Real Estate. EQT Exeter …
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US Commercial, Multifamily Construction Starts Down 20 Percent in 2020, Says Dodge Data
HAMILTON, N.J. —The value of commercial and multifamily construction starts in 2020 tumbled 20 percent to end the year at $193.4 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. Within the top 20 metropolitan areas that the Hamilton-based research firm tracks, the fall was more severe as that group’s starts fell by 23 percent in value, or $111.1 billion. Overall, commercial real estate starts fell 26 percent in value to $104 billion, while multifamily building activity slid by 11 percent to $89.5 billion. Richard Branch, chief economist for Dodge Data, says that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant negative impact on commercial and multifamily construction across the country with only a few markets seeing year-over-year increases in construction starts compared to 2019. “The construction sector will show signs of recovery in 2021, but, the road back to full recovery will be long and difficult. The effects of the pandemic on the U.S. economy and building markets will be felt for several years,” says Branch. “While some areas stabilized over the summer, the current wave of the virus has further hindered activity.” Only one metro area in Dodge Data’s top 10, Phoenix, reported a year-over increase in construction starts. The No. 7 …
SUNNYVALE, TEXAS — Developers Brian Flaherty and Eric Langford, the duo behind the redevelopment of the former Raytheon industrial campus in the northeastern Dallas suburb of Garland, have broken ground on a 643,760-square-foot industrial project in nearby Sunnyvale. The development will consist of two cross-dock buildings with divisibility to 100,000 square feet and 36-foot clear heights that will be built on a speculative basis. Paladin Partners is leasing the project, which is expected to be complete this fall.
HOUSTON — Locally based firm Boyd Commercial has brokered the sale of an 84,200-square-foot industrial building located at 5708 N. Shepherd Drive in North Houston. David Munson and David Boyd of Boyd Commercial represented the seller, the Estate of Frank D. Adams, in the transaction. John Ferruzzo and Nick Peterson of Transwestern represented the buyer, Geirin North Shepherd LLC.
MORRISTOWN, N.J. — Cohen Asset Management has purchased an 18-building, 725,000-square-foot industrial portfolio in the Meadowlands and surrounding submarkets of Northern New Jersey. The portfolio, which was fully leased at the time of sale, is primarily comprised of shallow-bay warehouses ranging in size from 16,000 to 78,000 square feet. Jon Mikula and Michael Lachs of JLL arranged acquisition financing for the deal through Principal Real Estate Advisors.
STAFFORD, VA. — Merritt Properties has purchased 28 acres in Stafford with plans to develop Merritt at Austin Ridge, an industrial campus featuring five light industrial buildings spanning 54,500 to 113,775 square feet each. The Ashburn, Va.-based developer expects to break ground on the project in the third quarter as site plans are still being finalized. The park is expected to offer clear heights from 18 to 32 feet, as well as rear-loaded docks, drive-in capabilities, Interstate 95 visibility and free surface parking. Preleasing is underway, and Merritt expects to deliver the property during the second quarter of 2022. Merritt Construction Services, the construction division of Merritt Cos., will manage the project’s construction. Merritt at Austin Ridge will be the developer’s second spec project in Stafford County, joining Merritt Business Park at Quantico Corporate Center that broke ground in October 2020.