CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — South Florida-based investment firm Benderson Development has purchased a 53,400-square-foot retail property located outside of Boston in Cambridge. The property at 340 River St. is located roughly one mile from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and houses a 40,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market and a 13,000-square-foot Walgreens. The seller and sales price were not disclosed.
NEW YORK CITY — Insurance giant New York Life has signed a 20,000-square-foot office lease at 97-77 Queens Blvd. in the borough’s Rego Park neighborhood. JLL represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Roy Chipkin of CBRE, along with internal agents Marylou Berk, Meredith Jackness and Michael Leary, represented the landlord, LeFrak.
NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between global real estate and investment management group Lendlease and Australian pension fund Aware Super has secured a $360 million construction loan for the development of 1 Java Street, a 36-story mixed-use development adjacent to the East River in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. Plans call for 834 apartments, 13,000 square feet of retail space and an 18,000-square-foot public waterfront park connecting the property to the India Street Pier, which offers service for the East River Ferry. Thirty percent of apartments at 1 Java Street will be affordable units under the Affordable New York 421(A) Program and Voluntary Inclusionary Housing. Lendlease’s investment management, development and construction business units will serve in 1 Java Street’s development. The property is slated for completion in 2026. Christopher Peck, Alex Staikos, Phil Cadorette and Joy Dracos led a JLL Capital Markets team that represented the joint venture to secure the floating-rate construction loan through a Bank of America-led syndicate. New York City architecture firm Marvel will serve as interior designer for both market-rate and affordable units at 1 Java Street. INC Architecture & Design will design the public areas and Créme Architecture & Design will be the interior designer for …
It’s been quite the run for Seattle. Like many secondary markets out West, the Emerald City was a pandemic darling, racking up loads of new residents and workers over the past few years. Seattle-area employers added more than 102,600 workers in 2021 alone, according to Marcus & Millichap’s second-quarter market report, which predicts the area will add another 85,000 workers by year’s end. The report also forecasts Seattle’s population will increase by more than 220,000 residents over the next five years. All this activity has led to a bull run for multifamily owners, investors and developers. Net absorption in Seattle’s central business district surpassed the 5,000-unit mark for the first time on record last year, while rents have risen by 14 percent year over year. Demand was so fierce that all 20 of the metro’s submarkets recorded vacancy compression over the past four quarters, resulting in an average 2.8 percent vacancy rate, according to Marcus & Millichap. This is the lowest rate in two decades. Nearly 9,000 units — representing 1.9 percent of the supply — were added over the 12-month period that ended in March, with another 25,000 units still under construction at the end of the second quarter. …
By Nick Knecht, Senior Advisor, Industrial, Dickson Commercial Group The vibrancy and growth of the Reno-Sparks industrial market has solidified the region’s position as a premier distribution hub of the Western U.S. — even as we head into what is expected to be a nationwide economic slowdown in the near term. The third quarter continued the trend of positive net absorption of 469,970 square feet. This occurred even with four new construction deliveries totaling 1.7 million square feet, 98 percent of which was spoken for upon completion. This momentum is expected to continue to some degree, as our team is actively negotiating RFPs on each of our speculative big box listings, with space requirement inquiries coming in at a steady pace. Alongside this positive activity, our market has been affected by the economic turmoil that has started to take shape over the past two quarters, with similar trends discussed nationwide. A changing debt market has produced several price adjustments mid-transaction for buyers to stay within their underwriting thresholds. The number of developers aggressively acquiring land at a feverish pace has decreased as they face a higher cost of capital and tamp down rent growth assumptions to more reasonable levels. There …
By Allison Herrera, Walker & Dunlop Effective Dec. 15, 2022, Freddie Mac began accepting ownership of two- to four-unit properties — aka duplexes, triplexes or quadplexes — as relevant experience for all loans in its Optigo® Small Balance Loans (SBL) program. Previously, Freddie Mac defined multifamily experience as controlling ownership of a property with at least five units or more and excluded two- to four-unit properties. By expanding its borrower experience definition, Freddie’s SBL program increases opportunities for investors who focus on small multifamily housing to grow their portfolios by accessing financing outside of banks. What Qualifies as Experience? Here’s what you should know. Freddie Mac expanded their definition of multifamily experience to include borrowers who have a portfolio of two- to four-unit properties that meet the following criteria: The borrower must own at least 10 units total The borrower must have owned each property for at least two years The borrower must have a controlling interest in all 10 units The 10 units do not need to be contiguous or located in the same county The new requirements provide investors access to agency debt when beginning to invest in larger properties, such as those with five to 50 units, …
SAN DIEGO — Square Mile Capital has closed a $202.6 million loan to finance the construction of Bioterra, a life sciences development in San Diego’s Sorrento Mesa submarket. Bank OZK co-originated the loan. Longfellow Real Estate Partners is developing the 316,000-square-foot project. In August, Longfellow broke ground on the six-story campus that will feature lab and office space and three stories of subterranean parking. The property will offer a first-floor coffee bar, conference facilities, full-service gym with outdoor space for fitness classes and a full-service restaurant/café. Aldon Cole and Patrick Burger of JLL’s San Diego office arranged the financing.
MCCARRAN, NEV. — Mohr Capital has completed the development of a speculative cross-dock building, located at 1500 Waltham Way in McCarran. The 596,400-square-foot was fully leased during construction and sold to Dalfen Industrial upon its completion. ARCO Murray served as general contractor for the building, which will serve as a distribution facility. Additionally, Mohr Capital acquired two land sites in the North Valleys submarket and nearby Fernley for future industrial development.
LOS ANGELES — PSRS has provided $14.7 million in construction financing for a co-living development in Los Angeles. The property will feature 18 units and 79 beds. Jacob Lee of PSRS secured the 24-month, interest-only loan, which a bank provided. The borrower was not disclosed.
PHOENIX — Phoenix-based Citywide Commercial Real Estate has arranged the purchase of a five-building mixed-use portfolio located at the southeast corner of Indian School Road and 31st Avenue in Phoenix. Northgate – 72 LLC sold the business park to EL Camino Investment Co. for $7 million. Totaling 86,268 square feet, Thunderbird Business Park features five single-story, multi-tenant office, retail and industrial buildings. The property includes 35 individual suites that are fully occupied. The tenants are mostly small business owners and long-term tenants. El Camino Investment Co. plans to complete improvements to modernize the portfolio and enhance its presence in the community. Adam Shteir, Todd Hamilton and Chad Kirkorsky at Citywide represented the buyer in the acquisition.