Wegmans to Open 84,000 SF Store in Northwest D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Wegmans Food Markets is opening its first store in Northwest Washington, D.C. at City Ridge. Located at the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and Rodman Street, the Wegmans Wisconsin Ave. store will be part of the historic building formerly occupied by Fannie Mae’s headquarters. Roadside Development and North America Sekisui House LLC are the developers of the City Ridge development.Wegmans Wisconsin Ave. is part of the $640 million City Ridge development, which …

October 21, 2021Development, District of Columbia, Retail, Southeast

FHFA Raises Multifamily Loan Purchase Caps for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac to $78B in 2022

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has set the 2022 multifamily loan purchase caps for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be $78 billion for each agency for a combined total of $156 billion. The 2022 caps are based on FHFA’s projections of the overall growth of the multifamily originations market. This year the caps are set at $70 billion a piece for both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.The FHFA wants the agencies to keep their focus on providing liquidity for affordable …

October 14, 2021District of Columbia, Loans, Multifamily, Southeast

Easterly Government Properties to Acquire 10-Property VA Portfolio for $635.6M

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Easterly Government Properties Inc. (NYSE: DEA) has entered into an agreement to acquire a 1.2 million-square-foot, 10-property portfolio of facilities leased to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for $635.6 million. The properties will be purchased in a joint venture with an undisclosed global investor, with Easterly retaining a 53 percent stake in the portfolio. Two of the properties are open, while the other eight are currently under …

October 14, 2021Alabama, Arizona, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Healthcare, Kansas, Midwest, Southeast, Tennessee, Texas, Top Stories, Western

US Economy Adds 194,000 Jobs in September, Much Lower than Expected

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. economy added 194,000 jobs in September and the unemployment rate dropped by 40 basis points to 4.8 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had predicted there to be an increase of 500,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 5.1 percent, according to CNBC.In addition, the total job gains for August were revised upward from 235,000 to 366,000. These numbers from the past two months were much lower than in …

October 8, 2021District of Columbia, Southeast

Enterprise Community Development Reopens $51M Affordable Housing Community in D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Enterprise Community Development (ECD) has reopened Randle Hill Apartments, a $51 million affordable housing property in Washington, D.C.’s Congress Heights neighborhood that was recently renovated. The property includes 195 apartments, including 20 set aside for formerly homeless individuals and families.Located at 3300 6th St. SE, Randle Hill is a nine-building complex with one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The renovations on the property include updated kitchens …

October 4, 2021Affordable Housing, Development, District of Columbia, Multifamily, Southeast

Skanska Invests $216M for Development of Office Project in Downtown Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Swedish developer Skanska is investing $216 million in U.S. dollars for the development of 17xM, an 11-story office project in the central business district of Washington, D.C.Located at the intersection of 17th and M streets, the building will span 334,000 square feet. Construction is scheduled to begin this fall with completion slated for 2024.More than 50 percent of the project is pre-leased. Global law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP has signed a 16-year …

October 4, 2021Development, District of Columbia, Office, Southeast, Top Stories

JLL Arranges $168.3M Sale of Retail Portfolio Across Mid-Atlantic

WASHINGTON, D.C. — JLL Capital Markets has arranged the sale of a portfolio of eight infill neighborhood retail assets totaling 695,991 square feet in Washington, D.C., northern Virginia and southern Maryland.Stephen Conley, Danny Finkle, Jordan Lex and Kim Flores of JLL represented the D.C.-based seller, WashREIT (NYSE: WRE), which sold the portfolio for $168.3 million. The buyers were Rosenthal Properties and an undisclosed institutional partner, according to the Washington Business …

September 24, 2021Acquisitions, District of Columbia, Retail, Southeast, Top Stories

JBG Smith, Landmark Partners Sell 500 L’Enfant Plaza Office Building in D.C. for $167M

WASHINGTON, D.C. — JBG Smith and Landmark Partners, an Ares Co, have sold 500 L’Enfant Plaza, a 215,000-square-foot office property in Washington, D.C. The buyer, which purchased the property for $167 million, was not disclosed. Jim Meisel and Matt Nicholson of JLL represented JBG Smith in the sale.Delivered in 2019 and designed by ZGF Architects, 500 L’Enfant Plaza is a LEED Gold-certified property. The plaza was 96 percent leased to seven tenants at the time of the sale. The …

September 22, 2021Acquisitions, District of Columbia, Office, Southeast

Uptick in August Retail Sales Bodes Well for Consumer Spending in Fourth Quarter, Says NRF Economist

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. retail sales increased in August as consumer demand outweighed the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions and other factors that affected spending. Even though there was a decrease in car sales due to shipping problems and product shortages, the U.S. Commerce Department reported that the sales for retailers and restaurants increased by 0.7 percent in August.The chief economist for the National Retail Federation (NRF), Jack Kleinhenz, says …

September 17, 2021District of Columbia, Retail, Southeast

US Economy Adds 235,000 Jobs in August, Much Lower Than Previous Months

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. economy added 235,000 jobs in August and the unemployment rate dropped by 20 basis points to 5.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. The economy added much fewer jobs in August compared to July, which was revised up by 110,000 to a total of a little over 1 million jobs. Nonfarm employment has increased by 17 million jobs since April of last year, but is still 5.3 million below the total workforce in February 2020, the last month before …

September 3, 2021District of Columbia, Southeast