Louisiana

WALKER, LA. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $4.6 million sale of Best Western Plus Regency Park, a 63-room hotel located at 13600 Hartman Lane in Walker, roughly 20 miles east of Baton Rouge. Manish Sthanki, Allan Miller and Chris Gomes of Marcus & Millichap arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, a private investor, and secured the buyer, an undisclosed limited liability company. The three-story hotel features complimentary breakfast, an outdoor pool, fitness center, laundry facilities and a business center.

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The greater metropolitan New Orleans office market contains approximately 15 million square feet of office space segregated into five distinct submarkets. Two major submarkets, the Central Business District (CBD) and Metairie (a suburban market), represent 94 percent of the total square footage. The occupancy rates of Class A properties in these two markets are 87.7 percent and 88.7 percent, respectively. These rates are 1.56 percent lower and 3.01 percent higher than the respective downtown and suburban Class A office averages nationally. The overall vacancy is limited to a select group of buildings resulting in limited options for tenants seeking more than 25,000 square feet of contiguous space. The New Orleans economy typically runs counter cyclically to the rest of the nation. It has enjoyed relative immunity from the lingering effects of the 2008 financial crisis and the relatively stagnant national economy. Over the last several years occupancy rates have trended above national averages and rental rates have experienced modest growth. New Orleans’ office market is performing well, consistently outperforming most national averages and rarely lagging far behind others. This track record of success can be attributed to several different factors. Due to geographic constraints there are limited sites available for …

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BATON ROUGE, LA. — Greystone has provided a $24.4 million HUD-insured loan to refinance The Highland Club Apartments, a 247-unit multifamily property in Baton Rouge. Jason Stein of Greystone arranged the 35-year fixed-loan. Other terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Greystone previously refinanced the property in 2012, and the new loan enables a combination of phased renovations and continued investment back into the property. The Highland Club Apartments is located roughly 15 miles from downtown Baton Rouge, and features a swimming pool, stocked lakes, putting greens, dog park, business center, fitness center and an on-site personal trainer.

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Take a look at the current retail landscape, not only in New Orleans, but far beyond the Big Easy, and you will find this sector has changed drastically over the past decade. Some argue retail is dead, while others cling to the notion that every market goes through cycles, and this has been going on long before the dawn of any Tricentennial festivities. Somewhere between these two extremes is the confluence of trends, data, outliers, gossip and pontificating cries, that when carefully dissected, should provide the necessary context to obtain an understanding of the current retail market in New Orleans, as well as the opportunities that exist in the future. Make no mistake, retail in New Orleans is changing, but the restaurant sector is a bedrock, creating fresh concepts, diversifying the city’s food offering and strengthening the overall retail market. It’s futile to deny the impact technology has had on the overall retail market, and New Orleans is no exception. Retailers that derive a large portion of revenues from the sale of goods that can be purchased online are finding it difficult to compete due to the cost of operating a brick and mortar location. Of course, this is only …

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Sometimes there is a “herding” mentality in real estate investment activity, but markets that do not make the headlines of news stories or appear on the top market lists are the ones investors should focus on. New Orleans is one such market, and while it might not be on everyone’s radar, it has the fundamentals and dynamics that are attracting investors’ attention. With a total inventory of approximately 55,000 units, demand for multifamily acquisitions in New Orleans and the Gulf South region overall remains strong. Over the past 24 months, the market has experienced heightened demand from national, regional and foreign investors. The investment community is attracted to the stability of the market, as well as its significant barriers to entry. What is attracting investors to metro New Orleans are higher cash on cash returns and cap rates than what they are finding in larger metropolitan areas. Investors feel confident in their ability to realize rent growth, given the high cost of single-family housing and the significant geographic barriers to entry. Developable land is scarce and has given multifamily owners a franchise of sort since the ability to increase the supply is limited. As New Orleans prepares to celebrate its …

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BATON ROUGE, LA. — CBRE has arranged a $29 million bridge loan for River House Apartments, a 224-unit multifamily community under construction in Baton Rouge. In addition to residential units, the property will include 35,000 square feet of office space and 16,000 square feet of retail space upon completion. Jonathan Rice of CBRE arranged the loan through Benefit Street Partners on behalf of the borrowers, Emanuel Organek and Marc Blumberg. River House is located roughly one mile from Louisiana State University and a half-mile from downtown Baton Rouge. The property is adjacent to the Water Campus, a 35-acre Mississippi riverfront research park dedicated to the study of coastal restoration and sustainability.

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LAFAYETTE, LA. — Edge Realty Capital Markets has brokered the sale of Parkway Plaza, a 112,108-square-foot shopping center in Lafayette. Brandon Beeson and Kevin Holland of Edge Realty Capital represented the seller, 1996 Parkway Plaza Partnership LLC. TCP Capital Partners LLC acquired the property for an undisclosed price. At the time of sale, the property was 98.3 percent leased to tenants including Citi Trends, Sears Outlet, It’s Fashion Metro, Dollar Tree, Kool Smiles and Rainbow.

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BATON ROUGE, LA. — Atlanta-based Audubon Communities, in conjunction with New York-based RCG Longview, has purchased St. Jean, a 624-unit apartment complex in Baton Rouge, for $33.3 million. The property will be renovated and renamed The Reserve at White Oak following significant damage from a flood in 2016. Constructed in 1997, the property comprises 66 buildings on 49 acres and includes two- and three-bedroom units averaging 1,100 square feet. Planned capital improvements include the complete renovation of damaged first-floor units, upgrades to second-floor units, the addition of granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in some units, a new standalone leasing office and two amenity buildings, energy efficient windows, new exterior doors and a new fitness center. A select number of units will be offered as affordable housing.

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HOUMA, LA. — Chase Properties Ltd. has purchased Magnolia Square, a 242,000-square-foot shopping center in Houma, located roughly 60 miles southwest of New Orleans. Retail Properties of America Inc. (RPAI) sold the asset for an undisclosed price. HFF brokered the transaction. The property is anchored by Ross Dress for Less, Michaels and PetSmart, and is shadow-anchored by Target. Magnolia Square is Beachwood, Ohio-based Chase Properties’ first acquisition in Louisiana.

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LAFAYETTE, SHREVEPORT AND SLIDELL, LA. — AVR Realty Co., a Yonkers, N.Y.-based multifamily investment and development firm, has sold a portfolio of nine multifamily properties totaling 2,079 units in Louisiana for approximately $250 million. Israel-based investment firm El-Ad National Properties purchased the portfolio. According to the company’s LinkedIn page, its portfolio of American properties consists of 12,700 apartment units, 1 million square feet of office space and several hotels. The holdings are spread across nine states and collectively valued at $1.2  billion. The sale represents the disposition of nine of AVR’s 11 multifamily assets in Louisiana. The portfolio includes four properties totaling 972 units in metro Lafayette, located approximately two hours west of New Orleans; three properties totaling 705 units in the metro of Shreveport in northwestern Louisiana; and two properties totaling 402 units in Slidell, approximately 30 miles north of New Orleans. Mike Kemether of Cushman & Wakefield’s Southeast Multifamily Advisory Group and Larry Schedler of Larry G. Schedler & Associates represented AVR in the transaction. El-Ad was represented internally. “This portfolio sale represents a substantial statewide multifamily investment and transaction,” says Schedler. “The high level of local and international investor interest was driven by the opportunity to purchase …

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