The Raleigh-Durham region’s continued strong job growth is fueling sustained demand from tenants, keeping the office market firmly in favor of landlords despite a notable increase in construction activity in recent months. The region added 26,500 jobs between October 2017 and October 2018 for a growth rate of 3 percent. Unemployment fell from 3.8 percent to just 3.0 percent during this time, hitting its lowest level since 2000. Despite not making the final cut for massive headquarters expansions from Amazon and Apple, Raleigh-Durham experienced significant economic development wins in 2018. Major job announcements came from office-using tenants such as Advance Auto Parts (435 jobs), Pendo (590 jobs), Arch Capital Services (365 jobs), Ipreo (250 jobs) and LabCorp (422 jobs). As in many markets across the United States, co-working operators significantly increased their presence in the region in 2018. Spaces has signed leases at five Raleigh-Durham properties, and WeWork committed to two locations and has stated that it plans to triple its local footprint in the near term. In November 2018, Forbes ranked North Carolina the nation’s No. 1 state in which to do business, and Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers named Raleigh-Durham the No. 3 U.S. market in their Emerging …
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Hunt Real Estate Capital has provided a total of $21 million in acquisition and renovation financing for Village 1373, a 332-unit apartment complex in Greensboro. The asset consists of 17 two-story buildings that were built in 1987 and 1996. RJ Guttroff of Hunt Real Estate Capital said the undisclosed borrow plans to rebrand the property and implement more than $4 million worth of upgrades. Interior upgrades will include granite countertops, new cabinets, stainless steel appliances, wood-vinyl plank flooring, painting and new fixtures. Exterior improvements will include new signage, security gate, landscaping, replacing and painting exterior siding, replacing sliding glass doors and windows, asphalt repairs, roof access repairs and amenity upgrades to the fitness center, clubhouse and pool area, including the addition of a dining area with grills. The property was 90 percent occupied at the time of sale.
RALEIGH, N.C. — CBRE | Raleigh has signed Petco, Ulta Beauty and Five Below to leases at Pleasant Valley Promenade in Raleigh. Petco signed a 13,600-square-foot lease, Ulta signed a 10,718-square-foot lease and Five Below signed an 8,474-square-foot lease. The new tenants are expected to open this year and will join Dick’s Sporting Goods, Ross Dress for Less, Marshalls, Bed Bath & Beyond and Fitness Connection. Pleasant Valley Promenade offers more than 362,000 square feet of retail space and is situated about seven miles northwest of downtown Raleigh. Cristi Greene and Reagan Crabtree of CBRE | Raleigh represented the landlord, Kimco Realty, in the transactions.
HIGH POINT, N.C. — Dominion Realty Partners (DRP) has acquired Mendenhall Business Park, a six-building, 386,844-square-foot office park in High Point. The business park is situated about 12 miles west of downtown Greensboro and was 69 percent leased at the time of sale. DRP plans to make significant investments in building renovations and capital improvement projects to enhance the overall appeal and marketability of the buildings. The sales price was not disclosed, though Triad Business Journals reports the asset sold for $25 million. The seller was not disclosed.
With 3.2 million square feet of new office space under construction, much of it in the city’s urban core, Charlotte’s skyline is in the midst of a significant transformation. Due to strong preleasing activity and solid economic underpinnings, however, the city’s office vacancy rate is projected to remain stable over the coming months as many of those projects deliver. Approximately 60 percent of Charlotte’s construction pipeline has been preleased, according to JLL research, and 2.3 million is concentrated in the city’s central business district. In Uptown Charlotte, the 33-story Legacy Union office tower recently topped out, signaling the end of vertical construction. The 850,000-square-foot development by Lincoln Harris is scheduled to deliver early next year and will be anchored by Bank of America, which has signed a lease for 550,000 square feet. Lincoln Harris recently revealed plans for a second office tower with 388,835 square feet of office space and 22,763 square feet of retail space at the high-profile site, which was once home to The Charlotte Observer. Across the street from Legacy Union, construction is also underway on Ally Charlotte Center, a 26-story, 742,000-square-foot office tower by Crescent Communities. Last year Ally Financial announced that it had leased 400,000 …
RALEIGH, N.C. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the sale of Legacy at Brier Creek, a four-story, 117,138-square-foot office building in Raleigh. Legacy at Brier Creek delivered in December 2017 and was fully leased at the time of the sale and anchored by Infosys, an Indian multinational corporation that provides business consulting, information technology and outsourcing services. The asset is situated about 13 miles northwest of Raleigh and about nine miles southeast of Durham. David Finger, Sara Owen, David Meline and Samir Idris of Cushman & Wakefield represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. Zurich Alternative Asset Management LLC represented the buyer, a member company of Zurich North America, in the transaction. The sales price was not disclosed.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Asheville has long been a destination for visitors seeking finely crafted furniture and decorative arts, dating back to the city’s preeminence in the early 20th century international arts and crafts movement and extending to Asheville’s current prominence as one of the country’s most lauded destinations for travelers. Indeed, Travel + Leisure magazine recently named “artsy Asheville” to its list of the “Top 15 Cities in the United States.” Asheville Outlets has created a home furnishings niche that taps into the region’s love of furniture and crafts, featuring stores including Restoration Hardware Outlet, West Elm Outlet, Le Creuset and Kirkland’s, all of which opened between 2015 and 2016. The stores benefit from strong demographics and purchasing behavior as residents within the center’s trade area spend $1.02 billion annually on home furnishings. The region’s 11.1 million visitors provide another strong base of consumers. “There is a strong demand for beautiful and affordable home furnishings and decorative accessories in our market area and these stores offer the right mix for every style and budget,” says Sharon Morgan, general manager of Asheville Outlets. RH Outlet Restoration Hardware at Asheville Outlets carries a range of distinctive, high-quality items for the home, including …
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Midas Hospitality has opened its third Residence Inn by Marriott hotel in Charlotte. The four-story, 119-room The Residence Inn Charlotte Steele Creek is located at 5110 Trojan Drive, about 10 miles south of downtown Charlotte and seven miles south of Charlotte Douglas International Airport. The 82,000-square-foot hotel offers studio, one- and two-bedroom suites. Henry Schmidlin and Sue Wing of Midas will serve as general manager and director of sales, respectively. Midas’ sister company, MC Hotel Construction, served as the general contractor.
DURHAM, N.C. — A joint venture between Trinity Capital Advisors, Wheelock Street Capital and SLI Capital has announced a mixed-use building in downtown Durham’s Venable Center. Located at 464 Pettigrew St., the Roxboro at Venable Center will feature 202,000 square feet of office and ground-level retail space spanning eight floors, as well as 200 apartment units. Amenities will include a sky deck lounge, fitness center and a conference center. Venable Center is currently an 87,000-square-foot historic and revitalized campus situated at the intersection of South Roxboro and East Pettigrew streets. The campus is home to the headquarters of Precision BioSciences. Brad Corsmeier and John Brewer of CBRE | Raleigh will handle leasing efforts for The Roxboro.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — CBRE has arranged the $29.9 million sale of the Chamber Building, a five-story, 65,444-square-foot office building located at 330 S. Tryon St. in downtown Charlotte. The asset was fully renovated in 2015 and includes a parking garage on a half-acre lot adjacent to the building. Tenants at the time of the sale included the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, Perkins & Will, Compass Bank, Famous Toastery and Progressive AE. Patrick Gildea, Matt Smith and Grayson Hawkins of CBRE represented the seller, Grubb Properties, in the transaction. Ferncroft Capital purchased the property.