How long will the scorching hot multifamily market hold up? The transactional markets continue to be bolstered by low interest rates, as well as an insatiable appetite from both private and institutional equity. I don’t believe the multifamily market will cool off in 2015. Our HFF multifamily team in Philadelphia will soon be shattering price per unit records in both the suburbs and in Center City Philadelphia. Interestingly enough, half of our transactions will be purchased by new buyers, meaning buyers new to our market, new start-up companies, or established funds that are new to the multifamily arena. As is typically the case, attractive debt and abundant equity are fueling the fire. With respect to multifamily debt, it has been encouraging to see some true competition back in the market. We enter 2015 with an extremely robust debt environment wherein the agencies are being forced to compete with regional banks, life companies and CMBS options. Back in October, HFF brokered the sale of Yardley Crossing in Bucks County. This 196-unit, Class B asset, built in the early 1970s, was priced slightly below a 6 percent cap rate and roughly $170,000 per unit, but still commanded 25 tours and 15 offers. …
PORTLAND, ORE. — M&C Properties has acquired the 324-unit Jory Trail at the Grove apartments in Portland for $59 million. The community is located at 8750 Southwest Ash Meadows Road. The property sits adjacent to Interstate 5 in the Wilsonville submarket, which is less than 20 miles south of Downtown Portland. It is situated within the Grove master-planned community. Notable employers in the area include Xerox, Mentor Graphics, Fir Systems and Rockwell Collins. Jory Trail was completed in 2012. It is currently 94 percent leased. Community amenities include walking trails, Wi-Fi access in all units and public spaces, a 24-hour fitness center, pool and sundeck with heated hydrotherapy spa. The seller, a partnership between Holland Partner Group and the Carlyle Group, was represented by HFF’s Ira Virden and Kerry Hughes. HFF also secured a $44.2-million, fixed-rate loan for M&C through Freddie Mac’s (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation) CME Program. The securitized loan will be serviced by HFF through its Freddie Mac Program Plus® Seller/Servicer program. The HFF debt placement team was led by Charles Halladay, Tom Wilson, Sebastian Trujillo and Charlie Watson.
PASADENA, CALIF. — Laurus Corp. has purchased a 163,194-square-foot office building in Pasadena for a reported $52.5 million. The Class A building is located at 199 S. Los Robles Ave. The property is situated between the cross streets of Cordova and El Dorado, just one block south of the Paseo Colorado lifestyle center. It sits adjacent to the Pasadena Convention Center, near Old Town Pasadena, the Lake Avenue Business and Shopping District and the Del Mar Metro Gold Line Station. Notable employers in the area include the California Institute of Technology, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Art Center College of Design, Bank of America, OneWest Bank, Tokio Marine Insurance and Western Asset Management.
SACRAMENTO, CALIF. — Virtú Investments has purchased The Eleven Hundred Apartments, a 565-unit apartment community in Sacramento, for a reported $44 million. The garden-style community is located at 1100 Howe Ave., within the city’s Arden Arcade neighborhood. The property was built in 1962. It was 96 percent occupied at the time of sale. Mark Leary and Kyle Suryan of ARA Pacific represented both the buyer and seller, Acacia Capital, in this transaction.
TEMPE, ARIZ. – ConneXion, a 49,464-square-foot office building in Tempe, has sold to ViaWest Group for $5.2 million. The building is located at 7855 S. River Parkway in the ASU Research Park. The property was formerly known as Transamerica Research Center. The seller, Aegon USA, was represented by Glenn Smigiel, Bob Young, Steve Brabant and Rick Abraham of CBRE’s Phoenix office, along with Andrew Cheney and Craig Coppola of Lee & Associates. ViaWest plans to hold the property. It will serve as the property manager and asset manager.
PHOENIX – Orsett Acquisitions LLC has purchased the Siete II building, a 54,072-square-foot office building in Phoenix, for $3.2 million. The Class B building is located at 3707 North 7th Street. It was built in 1988. Phil Breidenbach, Peter Nieman, Kathy Foster and Lindsey Carlson of Colliers Office Solutions Group represented both the buyer and seller, UFB Development Corporation, in this transaction.
PORTLAND, ORE. – A 165-room Embassy Suites has opened in Portland’s Silicon Forest neighborhood, which is known as a local tech hub. The hotel is located at 20001 NW Tanasbourne Drive. It is the first and only full-service hotel in the area. The Embassy Suites is owned by Hillsboro Hotel Partners II LLC, developed by Thackeray Garn Company LLC and managed by Western States Lodging and Management.
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIF. – University Square Plaza in San Luis Obispo has received seven new tenants. The new tenants include Rite Aid, Lassen’s Natural Food & Vitamin, Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen, Domino’s Pizza, The Pita Pit, Supercuts and a 5,000-square-foot microbrewery/restaurant that has yet to be named. University Square Plaza is located on the corner of Santa Rosa Road and Foothill Boulevard. It is currently undergoing a remodel that should be complete this spring or summer. Clarice Clarke and Steve Leider of Lee & Associates – Central Coast handle the center’s leasing efforts.
LOS ANGELES – UrbanBlox has acquired a 51,055-square-foot office building in Downtown Los Angeles’ Jewelry District for $8.5 million. The building is located at 718 S. Hill Street. The firm plans to redevelop the building into creative office space with ground-floor retail. This is UrbanBlox’s 12th acquisition in the past 15 months. The firm has been purchasing creative, mixed-use and multifamily properties in the LA River, Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood and Silver Lake areas. UrbanBlox was represented by JLL’s Mike Condon Jr. The seller was BRC Advisors.
SAN DIEGO – United Trust Fund (UTF) has acquired and leased back a 27,340-square-foot office building in San Diego. The office building is fully leased to a large construction company that holds a 15-year net lease at the property. UTF also owns the company’s regional headquarters in Arizona, Chicago and Massachusetts. The property’s address and price were not disclosed.