Property Type

ST. CHARLES, MD. — An affiliate of San Diego-based Strata Equity Group has purchased an 11-property multifamily portfolio in Suburban Maryland for $302 million. This is the first purchase in the Mid-Atlantic region for the privately held firm. Totaling 1,731 units, the properties are situated within St. Charles, a master-planned community roughly 30 miles south of Washington, D.C. The portfolio comprises Class A and B communities with an average unit size of 998 square feet. The buildings are 21 years old on average. Renovations have been ongoing since 2014, and Strata plans to complete all remaining interior rehabs while making other capital improvements. Each property is part of a neighborhood association that provides residents access to a community center and recreational facilities such as swimming pools, tennis courts and playgrounds. The seller, Federal Capital Partners (FCP), originally purchased the portfolio in 2009 for $43.6 million plus debt as part of its acquisition and privatization of American Community Properties Trust, which formerly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol APO. That acquisition included 11,000 residential units and 5 million square feet of commercial development, mostly in St. Charles and Puerto Rico. FCP has been repositioning and selling portions …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Reis Denham Quote

NEW YORK CITY — Despite a variety of tailwinds buoying the U.S. office sector, vacancy sill increased 10 basis points in the first quarter of 2018, according to New York-based commercial real estate data firm Reis. Across the 79 major metros tracked by Reis, office vacancy rose to 16.5 percent at the end of the quarter. That’s up from 16.4 percent at the end of the previous quarter and 16.3 percent one year earlier. The vacancy increase came about during a quarter that featured a strong job market, rising rents (asking rents rose 20 cents per square foot) and strong absorption (6.2 million square feet). Vacancy rates increased in 41 of the 79 metros, though, as new completions outpaced the rate of absorption. New construction during the quarter totaled 10.9 million square feet. Despite the slight uptick in the vacancy rate, Reis remains optimistic about the outlook for the office sector. “The first quarter tends to see the lowest [leasing] activity. Thus, this was a relatively strong quarter given the Nor’easters that plagued the Northeast,” says Barbara Byrne Denham, senior economist with Reis. Although absorption wasn’t able to keep up with new completions, the office sector absorbed nearly 300,000 square …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

NEW YORK CITY — Meridian Investment Sales has brokered the sale of an 18,860-square-foot, 29-unit apartment building in East Harlem for $14.2 million. The buyer was BEB Capital. Located at 238 East 106th St., the eight-story building was constructed in 2016 and features 29 one- and two-bedroom units. Amenities include a modern lobby, onsite laundry and balconies on all units. David Benharouch and Abie Kassin of Meridian represented the undisclosed seller and procured the buyer in the transaction. Meridian Investment Sales is the commercial property sales division of Meridian Capital Group.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

BOSTON — Fantini & Gorga has arranged $13.4 million in permanent financing for a five-story, mixed-use property located at 900 Beacon St. in the Audubon Circle neighborhood of Boston. The property, known as Gateway Boston, was completed in 2016 and features a mix of 32 residential units on four floors plus 4,500 square feet of street-level retail. Tim O’Donnell, Casimir Groblewski and Despina Hixon of Fantini & Gorga arranged the financing, a fixed-rate loan for a period of 15 years, with a life insurance company. The borrower was not disclosed.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

PENNSAUKEN, N.J. — Colliers International has negotiated the sale of three industrial buildings in Southern New Jersey for a combined $7.5 million. The three properties located in Pennsauken include: 9240 Commerce Highway, a 67,600-square-foot warehouse acquired by a private investor for $3.2 million; 6995 Airport Highway Lane, a 60,800-square-foot manufacturing facility purchased by Heat Makers Sense for $2.7 million; and 9265 Commerce Highway, a 33,500-square-foot warehouse acquired by Draco Broadcast for $1.6 million. The seller was the Bloom Organization. Ian Richman and Marc Isdaner of Colliers arranged the sale of the three properties.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Neeley-School-of-Business-Texas-Christian-University

FORT WORTH, TEXAS — The Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth will open a real estate center, according to the school’s website. The center, which has received more than $2 million in funding, will provide educational resources, research and networking opportunities for the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) real estate industry. The Neeley School of Business is currently undergoing a $5.5 million expansion project that should deliver new facilities by January 2020, and the real estate center is expected to be housed within the expanded space.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Loop-Central-Houston

HOUSTON — Dallas-based TIER REIT Inc. has sold Loop Central, a 575,000-square-foot office complex in west Houston, according to company filings. TIER REIT acquired the three-building property, which was built in 1985 and approximately 84 percent leased at the time of sale, in late 2007. The buyer was Griffin Partners, a Houston-based development and investment firm, according to realtynewsreport.com. HFF brokered the sale.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

DALLAS — Home décor retailer At Home will open a 108,000-square-foot store at the corner of President George Bush Turnpike and Firewheel Parkway in northeast Dallas. Situated on 11.1 acres, the store is expected to open during the fourth quarter. Michael Meaden and Andrew Wiley of JLL, along with Rich Flaten of CBRE, represented the partnership that sold the future site of the store. Karla Smith of CBRE represented the buyer in the land sale. Plano, Texas-based At Home operates approximately 115 stores across the country.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Hampton-Inn-&-Suites-Grapevine-Texas

GRAPEVINE, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has closed the sale of a 94-room Hampton Inn & Suites and a 96-room Comfort Suites, two hotels located in the Dallas metro of Grapevine. Chris Gomes and Allan Miller of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, Dallas-based Supreme Bright Grapevine II and IV LLC, in the transaction. The duo also procured the buyer. Other terms of sale were not disclosed.  

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

MCALLEN, TEXAS — Dallas-based brokerage firm STRIVE has arranged the sale of a Walgreens-leased store located in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) metro of McAllen. Will Merritt and Adam Gottschalk of STRIVE represented the seller, a New York-based investor. Merritt and Gottschalk also procured the buyer, a Michigan-based private investor that acquired the property via a 1031 exchange. At the time of sale, the property had 15 years remaining on its double net lease

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail