SILVER SPRING, MD. — A joint venture between Bernstein Management and Spectrum Partners has purchased the 288,392-square-foot Tech Center 29, a four-building office/flex portfolio located off Route 29 in Silver Spring, for $31.1 million from Cleveland-based DDR Corp. The portfolio is 93 percent leased. Jonathan Carpenter and James Wellschlager of Cassidy Turley represented the seller in the transaction.
Southeast
LEHIGH ACRES, FLA. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $4.9 million sale of the 74,315-square-foot Bealls and Save-A-Lot Center, a retail property located in Lehigh Acres. James Medefind and Michael Jaworski of Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa, Fla., office represented both the seller, a Texas-based limited liability company, and the buyer, a Florida-based private investor, in the transaction.
COLUMBUS AND MCDONOUGH, GA. — Franklin Street Real Estate Services has arranged the $3.2 million sale of two Georgia Family Dollar locations in Columbus and McDonough. Mac McCall and Bryan Belk of Franklin Street represented the seller, an Atlanta-based private developer, and the buyer, an undisclosed REIT, in the transaction.
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Capital Advisors has arranged $22 million in refinancing for the 228-unit Riverland Woods Apartments, located at 1001 Riverland Woods Place in Charleston. Cooper Willis of Capital Advisors arranged the 10-year loan with 12 months of interest-only payments and a 30-year amortization schedule on behalf of the borrower, Riverland LLC, through Walker & Dunlop.
ATLANTA — McCarthy Building Cos. has been selected to build the Georgia Institute of Technology’s new 200,000-square-foot Engineered Biosystems Building at a cost of $98 million. The building will be located on the northern end of Georgia Tech’s campus in Atlanta on a square block surrounded by 10th Street, Peachtree Place, State Street and Atlantic Drive. Targeted for a minimum LEED Gold certification, the building will feature shared laboratory facilities that foster the merging of engineering and interdisciplinary science neighborhoods. The project architect is Cooper Carry with Lake Flato. Completion is slated for late summer 2014.
KERNERSVILLE, N.C. — Hawthorne Residential Partners has purchased the 200-unit The Meadows apartment community, located in Kernersville, from Greenville, S.C.-based Meridia for $18.6 million. The Class A complex is 95 percent leased and features a resort-style swimming pool with a cabana and grilling area, fitness center, clubhouse with a billiards room and business center. Jordan McCarley with Southeast Apartment Partners' Charlotte, N.C., office represented the seller in the transaction.
MOBILE, ALA. — Burton Property Group has purchased the 70,819-square-foot BB&T Centre, a four-story office building located at 41 West Interstate 65 Service Road in Mobile. The building is anchored by BB&T and serves as the offices for the Mitchell Co., Wilkins Miller Hieronymus, Wells Fargo and Sen. Jeff Sessions. Josh Burmeister of SRS Real Estate Partners’ Mobile office represented Burton Property Group in the sale.
CHATTANOOGA, TENN. — Beech Street Capital has closed a $23.5 million HUD 223(f) loan to refinance the 316-unit Carriage Parc Apartments, located in Chattanooga. Chad Thomas Hagwood with Beech Street’s Birmingham, Ala., office arranged the 35-year loan with a 35-year amortization schedule.
CALHOUN AND RINGGOLD, GA. — Capital Advisors has arranged $7.5 million in refinancing for Ringgold Square in Calhoun and Red Bud Shopping Center in Ringgold, two 43,000-square-foot, Food Lion-anchored shopping centers. Matt Good of Capital Advisors arranged the 10-year loan with a 30-year amortization schedule on behalf of the borrowers, Red Bud Properties and Ringgold Partners, through CIBC.
We've all said time and again that the key to recovery in office real estate is continued and significant increase in employment rates. Like much of the rest of the country, Memphis has begun to see an uptick in employment in the professional and business sector. In the Memphis MSA, employment in this all-important sector for office real estate jumped from 73,400 to 87,100 during 2011, approaching pre-recession highs of 88,800. Additionally, on May 3, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that productivity in the U.S. fell at an annual rate of 0.5 percent for the first 3 months of 2012, after steady growth during 2011. This is the first sign that corporations have achieved the efficiency they desired and needed to weather the latest economic storm. As demand increases, corporations will be forced to hire to fill the gap between demand and capacity, so the good news for the market is that employment rates, the most fundamental drivers of office real estate, should continue to improve. There are a couple of black swan events, the outcomes of which will shape the immediate future of the office market in Memphis, and specifically the Central Business District. The first is …