SAN FRANCISCO AND SPOKANE, WASH. — iBorrow, a private direct lender for commercial real estate, has provided two loans totaling $11.7 million for properties in San Francisco and Spokane. The lender funded a $5.6 million loan to refinance a four-story, 9,580-square-foot building, located at 131 Franklin St. in San Francisco. The asset is situated on a 2,395-square-foot lot in the Hayes Valley neighborhood. The name of the borrower was not disclosed. Additionally, iBorrow provided a $6.1 million to an undisclosed borrower for an office building located at 901 N. Monroe St. in Spokane. The three-story property features 76,814 square feet of office space. Brian Good, CEO of iBorrow, handled both transactions.
IRVINE, CALIF. — Recovery of the national office sector has failed to gain traction as completions outpaced net absorption for the fifth consecutive quarter, according to the latest U.S. Office Market Outlook report by Ten-X Commercial. “While the national market shows an office segment that is struggling, a closer look at various local markets shows several different reasons underlying this general malaise,” says Peter Muoio, chief economist for Irvine, Calif.-based Ten-X. “Strong markets with fast-growing economies saw significant development and are now grappling with increased supply, while weak markets continue to languish due to their struggling local economies.” Shrinking office space requirements for employees is at the core of market pricing softness, according to Ten-X. Employers are fitting more workers into open floor plans, enabling more employees to work remotely. Cloud computing reduces the need to spend physical space on filing cabinets and servers. These trends have caused the strong correlation between rising employment figures and the strength of the office market to weaken. “In most markets, technological innovation is an additional factor that acts as a headwind for the office sector,” adds Muoio. Top buy/sell markets Naturally, some markets are more promising than others. The top five markets in …
HOUSTON — Canadian investment firm Nicola Crosby Real Estate has acquired Westgate I, a 248,707-square-foot office building in west Houston. The Class A property was completed in 2014 and was 95 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Subsea 7 and Atkins PLC, both of which are engineering firms. Westgate I includes a café, fitness center and a five-story parking garage. Cortney Cole of HFF arranged a seven-year, fixed-rate acquisition loan through Principal Real Estate Investors for the transaction. The seller was not disclosed.
HOUSTON — NAI Partners, through its Investment Fund II vehicle, has purchased Wells Fargo Business Park, a 104,212-square-foot flex office park in north Houston. The two-building property, which will undergo capital improvements, was 88 percent leased at the time of sale. San Francisco-based Berkeley Partners sold the asset and Green Bank provided debt for the acquisition. NAI Partners will handle leasing and management of the property.
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Colliers International has negotiated the sale of a 138,629-square-foot office building in Piscataway. The sales price was undisclosed. The property, which is located at 371 Hoes Lane, was built in 1989 and renovated in 1997. Colliers represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. The buyer was Brandon Rolnick, a private investor. Rolnick has hired Marner Architecture and Haas Construction to fully renovate the building. Colliers will maintain leasing at the property.
MIAMI LAKES, FLA. — Walker & Dunlop has secured a $120 million loan for the refinancing of the Graham Portfolio, a 29-property portfolio in Miami Lakes, a master-planned community located less than 20 miles northwest of Miami. The 1.2 million-square-foot portfolio includes retail, office, industrial, flex, multifamily and ground lease assets. Al Rex, Marty McGrogan and Ariel Zucker of Walker & Dunlop arranged the 15-year, non-recourse loan on behalf of the borrower, the Graham Cos., which developed the properties within the portfolio. An unnamed life insurance company provided the loan. All of the properties included in the Graham Portfolio are located within a mile of downtown Miami Lakes and many are anchored by tenants such as CVS/pharmacy, Burger King and Publix.
DOWNERS GROVE, ILL. — JLL has arranged a $63 million loan for the acquisition of Executive Towers West, a three-building office campus totaling 682,502 square feet in Downers Grove. Developed between 1983 and 1987, the buildings are located at 1431, 1411 and 1400 Opus Place, approximately 23 miles west of Chicago. Adam Schwartz, Brett Rosenberg and Patrick Heitmann of JLL arranged the loan on behalf of the borrower, Group RMC. Morgan Stanley provided the loan.
CHICAGO — Spaces Real Estate has opened a new 4,000-square-foot office in Chicago’s West Loop. This is the second and largest office for the full-service real estate brokerage firm, which specializes in apartment leasing. The company, which also assists in buying and selling single-family homes, will maintain its 2,000-square-foot office in Lakeview. Spaces worked with Rieke Office Interiors on the design of the West Loop location, which is a loft office with open lounge areas and a central kitchen. The new office will serve as the headquarters for the Elevated Spaces division, which was launched nearly two years ago to serve the high-end downtown rental market.
PLANO, TEXAS — Public accounting firm Whitley Penn has signed a 13,451-square-foot office lease at Legacy West in Plano. Calvin Hull of JLL represented Whitley Penn in the lease negotiations. David Reed and Ben Davis of CBRE represented the landlord, Legacy West Investors LP. DLR Group | Staffelbach is overseeing the interior design of Whitley Penn’s newest office.
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. — FM Capital has secured a $5.4 million bridge loan for an office complex located in Colorado Springs. The undisclosed borrower purchased the asset through the Ten-X platform. FM Capital originated the loan within seven days of acquisition. At the time of sale, the 280,000-square-foot asset was home to two Fortune 500 company call centers.