District of Columbia

WASHINGTON, D.C. — HFF has arranged $96 million in joint venture equity for the development of a 176-unit apartment community in northwest Washington, D.C. Walter Coker, Brian Crivella and Stephen Conley of HFF worked on behalf of the developer, EastBanc Inc., to arrange a joint venture partnership with Mitsui Fudosan America Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of Japanese real estate company Mitsui Fudosan Co. Inc. Overall project costs will total approximately $110 million. The property will be constructed on a former surface parking lot next to the Scottish Rite Center at 2800 16th St. N.W. The Grimshaw Partners-designed building will feature an open-air courtyard, resort-style rooftop pool, fitness center and a residents-only café. The joint venture expects to break ground on the project in early 2019.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — JBG Smith has formed a joint venture with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) to develop and own 1900 N Street, a $225 million office development under construction in Washington, D.C.’s central business district. CPPIB will invest approximately $101 million in the 11-story building, giving it a 45 percent stake in the project. JBG Smith will continue to develop, manage and lease the asset. The property was 29.6 percent preleased as of the third quarter of 2017. International law firm Goodwin Procter LLP has preleased 80,329 square feet at the building, according to the Washington Business Journal. JBG Smith’s portfolio comprises more than 20 million square feet of office, multifamily and retail assets in the D.C. area. As of Dec. 31, 2017, the CPP Fund totaled $337.1 billion.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Natixis has provided a $46.3 million loan to Normandy Real Estate Partners for the refinancing of 1015 18th St. N.W., a 109,650-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C,’s Central Business District. A joint venture between Normandy Real Estate Partners and NTT Urban Development Corp. acquired the property in 2015, and renovated the asset from Class B to Class A. Originally constructed in 1970, the building was updated to include a new glass curtainwall façade, new two-story lobby, new base building mechanical and ventilation systems, renovated bathrooms and the addition of a 5,000-square-foot rooftop amenity suite and terrace. The building is situated three blocks from the White House, with immediate access to four Metro lines. The property features ground-level retail space, a fitness center, outdoor space and a below-grade parking garage with 118 spaces.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) forecasts the volume of commercial and multifamily mortgages maturing in 2018 will decrease by 42 percent. According to MBA’s 2017 Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Survey of Loan Maturity Volumes, 6 percent, or $102.2 billion, of the $1.76 trillion in mortgages held by non-bank lenders and investors will mature in 2018, down from the $175.9 billion that matured in 2017. “Because many commercial and multifamily mortgages are 10-year loans, and few loans were made in 2008 during the onset of the credit crunch, mortgage maturities will be 42 percent lower in 2018,” says Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research at MBA, a national real estate finance association based in Washington, D.C. “2017 marked the official end of the so called ‘wall of maturities.’” The loan maturities vary by investor group: 2 percent of mortgages held by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the FHA and Ginnie Mae will mature in 2018; 4 percent of life insurance companies’ outstanding mortgages will mature in 2018; 7 percent of loans held in CMBS will come due this year; and among mortgages held by credit companies and other investors, 22 percent will mature in 2018. Woodwell points out …

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CHICAGO — Chicago-based Brennan Investment Group LLC, in a joint venture with Arch Street Capital Advisors LLC, has acquired a 2.3 million-square-foot industrial portfolio located throughout four states in a sale-leaseback transaction. The sales price was not disclosed. The four buildings were net-leased back to the seller, BlueLinx Corp., a building and industrial product distributor. The buildings are located in Boston, Raleigh-Durham, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. Since 2011, Brennan and Arch Street have acquired more than $1 billion of single-tenant, net-leased industrial assets.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) projects commercial and multifamily mortgage originations will decline slightly in 2018, ending the year at $549 billion, down 3 percent from 2017. Looking further into its crystal ball, MBA forecasts origination volume to remain relatively flat in 2019. “There is a strong mix of both headwinds and tailwinds in the commercial real estate finance markets right now,” says Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research at MBA, a national real estate finance association based in Washington, D.C. “Our sense is that for commercial and multifamily mortgage borrowing and lending, the net effect is likely to be close to a wash.” Rising interest rates, slowing NOI growth, pressure on capitalization rates and fewer loan maturities are some of the factors that will be holding the real estate finance markets back, points out Woodwell. At the same time, continued economic growth, large amounts of investment capital looking for a home, plus the recent passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, may all propel the transaction markets forward, adds the veteran researcher. “The magnitude and opposing impacts of some of these changes, however, raises the level of uncertainty,” emphasizes Woodwell. Meanwhile, commercial/multifamily …

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Commercial and multifamily mortgage originations for all of 2017 increased 15 percent on a year-over-year basis, bolstered by the strength of the multifamily, industrial and office sectors, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The preliminary estimate was released Sunday during MBA’s Commercial Real Estate Finance/Multifamily Housing Convention & Expo 2018 in San Diego. The estimate is based on the MBA’s Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations. The MBA reported that originations totaled $491 billion in 2016. Breaking down the numbers Originations for hotel properties increased 26 percent in 2017 over the prior year, the MBA reports, followed by industrial (+22 percent), multifamily (+17 percent), office (+12 percent) and healthcare (+9 percent). On the flip side, originations for the retail sector declined 21 percent in 2017 due in part to the dramatic growth of e-commerce. Even so, it was banner year overall for the mortgage banking community. “Based on these preliminary numbers, 2017 was a record year for borrowing and lending backed by commercial real estate properties,” said Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research for MBA, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C. “The increase was driven by multifamily lending, particularly for Fannie Mae …

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Meridian Group has signed a 103,300-square-foot office lease with Baker Botts LLP, an international law firm, in Washington D.C.’s East End. The firm’s new office will be located at Anthem Row, a four-building office complex currently under development. The Meridian Group is underway on an extensive renovation of the 12-story building at 800 K St. The original building had a large floor plate with two cores and one main lobby. Upon completion, the property will function as two office buildings with separate main lobbies and separate addresses — 700 K St. and 800 K St. In addition, the buildings will include three levels of retail space totaling 80,000 square feet. Baker Botts, which signed a 17-year lease, will occupy the top four floors of 700 K, beginning March 2020. Evan Behr and Doug Mueller of JLL represented Meridian in the lease transaction, and Randy Harrell and Lara Nealon of CBRE represented Baker Botts. In December, fitness company Equinox announced it will open a 33,817-square-foot full-service health club at Anthem Row. In September, Truluck’s Seafood, Steak & Crab House announced plans to open a 10,313-square-foot restaurant at the project.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — A partnership between Urban Investment Partners (UIP) and Atalaya Capital Management has acquired Onyx on First, a 266-unit apartment community located in Washington, D.C.’s Capitol Riverfront neighborhood for $95.5 million. The seller was J.P. Morgan, according to the Washington Business Journal. Constructed in 2008, Onyx on First was originally developed by Faison Development as condominiums, but was converted to rental apartments upon delivery. The property is located at 1100 First St. S.E., two blocks from Washington Nationals Park and near the Navy Yard Metro station. The community features shared amenities including a rooftop deck and pool, fitness center, picnic area with grills, courtyard, underground parking and controlled-access entry. The new ownership will update the property by installing cell phone repeaters to improve cell phone service, expanding the outdoor kitchens, installing dog runs and adding other building enhancements. Upon closing, UIP and Atalaya separated the land and building and sold the land to Safety, Income & Growth Inc. (SAFE), a publicly traded owner of ground-net leases. SAFE then leased the land to UIP under a 99-year ground lease. Andy Weiss of Gem Equity structured the placement of the ground lease. Jacob Katz of Meridian Capital represented Capital One and Fannie Mae …

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — ASB Real Estate Investments has sold 900 G Street N.W., a 112,635-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C.’s East End submarket, for $144 million. The firm completed the transaction on behalf of the Allegiance Fund, its $7.4 billion core investment vehicle. Eastdil Secured LLC arranged the transaction on behalf of ASB, and DLA Piper LLC served as ASB’s counsel. An affiliate of Masaveu Real Estate US, advised by EXAN Capital, acquired the building. Masaveu is a subsidiary of Corporacion Masaveu of Spain. ASB developed 900 G Street in partnership with MRP Realty, and subsequently acquired MRP’s interest after the project reached stabilization in 2016. The Gensler-designed building was 95 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants including Simpson Thacher, Swiss RE, Rin Tinto, Herman Miller, Truth Initiative and BMW.

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