FORT WORTH, TEXAS — LG Electronics, a division of South Korean conglomerate LG Corp., has opened a 100,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Fort Worth for the assembly of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. According to local broadcast news outlet WFAA, the facility is located at 2153 Eagle Parkway in the Alliance submarket on the city’s north side. The facility will have an annual production capacity of more than 10,000 units and has been designed with support for future expansion in mind.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Locally based general contractor Linbeck has broken ground on the $25 million Annie Richardson Bass Lower School at the 104-acre campus of private school Fort Worth Country Day. When complete in spring 2025, the building will be home to about 350 students in grades first through fourth. Academic facilities will include a 2,130-square-foot library, two science labs, breakout study rooms and administrative offices for support counselors and healthcare personnel, as well as a playground with a sports court. San Antonio-based Lake|Flato Architects designed the project, and Dallas-based Hocker Design provided landscape architecture services.
DALLAS — BWE, the commercial lender formerly known as Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital, has provided $16.8 million in Freddie Mac permanent financing for Estates at Ferguson, a 164-unit affordable seniors housing project in Dallas. The property will offer 99 one-bedroom units and 65 two-bedroom units, with the majority of residences (148) reserved for renters earning 60 percent or less of the area median income. John Killough and John Roberts of BWE originated the loan, which carries a 15-year term and a fixed interest rate. The City of Dallas HFC also issued tax-exempt bonds as part of the project’s capital stack, and The Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs provided Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity. Construction is underway and expected to last about 15 months. The sponsor was not disclosed.
DALLAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of a portfolio of two multifamily properties totaling 130 units in the Knox-Henderson neighborhood of Dallas. Garrett Gardens totals 66 units, and Moser Gardens totals 64 units. The seller was a private partnership from out of state that had owned the properties for 33 years. The buyer was a Dallas-based owner-operator. Al Silva and Ford Braly of Marcus & Millichap represented both anonymous parties in the deal.
GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS — Illinois-based freight company RIM Logistics has signed a 75,123-square-foot industrial lease in the central metroplex city of Grand Prairie. The space is located within GSW Commerce Center at 161, a two-building, 465,195-square-foot speculative development by Illinois-based Molto Properties. Upon completion later this year, GSW Commerce Center at 161 will feature 36-foot clear heights, 180-foot truck court depths, ESFR sprinkler systems and parking for 116 trailers and 410 cars. Forshey Hoobler of KBC Advisors represented RIM Logistics in the lease negotiations. Brian Gilchrist, Steve Koldyke and Kacy Jones of CBRE represented Molto Properties.
HOUSTON — Pocas International has purchased an industrial building at 8008 W. Sam Houston Parkway S. in southwest Houston that totals 27,893 square feet, according to LoopNet Inc. The move represents an expansion for the food-and-beverage products distributor, which simultaneously sold its previous building, a 16,675-square-foot facility located at 711 Buffalo Run in nearby Missouri City. Wes Williams of Colliers represented Pocas International in both transactions. Travis Land of Partners Real Estate represented the seller of the Sam Houston Parkway building, an entity doing business as Ultra Houston Group LP. Harry Lou of Fidelity Realtors represented the buyer of the Buffalo Run building, Wellcom Realty LLC. Sales prices were not disclosed.
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Previous Year’s Challenges Shape 2024 Outlook for Cap Rates, Investment Activity, Distressed Properties
If NAI Global president and CEO Jay Olshonsky had to use one word to sum up the 2023 commercial real estate market, it would be “inactive.” The interest rate-fueled bid-ask spread stifled investment sales of all property types, and in the office sector especially, tenants avoided making any space decisions if they didn’t have to. One month into 2024, not much has changed. From an investment sales perspective, Olshonsky still sees properties offered at capitalization rates between 4 and 5 percent while interest rates are 6 percent or higher, which is prolonging the disconnect between buyers and sellers. Meanwhile, robust job creation well beyond today’s levels is needed to create the leasing demand that will reverse the office sector’s troubles in the new era of hybrid work. But that’s not likely to happen in 2024 as the tech sector, in particular, continues to lay off workers. “I’ve been in the real estate business a long time, and this is a cycle unlike most others,” says Olshonsky. “The biggest problem we have right now is mainly record-high office vacancy just about everywhere — certainly in the large cities — which we’ve never really seen before. On the investment side, lenders cannot …
HOUSTON — Eastham Capital and Mosaic Residential have acquired a 318-unit apartment community in Houston’s Westchase neighborhood. Sola Westchase was built in 1999 and offers one-, two- and three-bedroom units that range in size from 626 to 1,436 square feet. Amenities include a pool, outdoor BBQ pavilion, fitness center, clubhouse lounge and a business center. Sola Westchase was 95 percent occupied at the time of sale. The seller and sales price were not disclosed.
BRENHAM, TEXAS — SRS Real Estate Partners has brokered the $10.3 million sale of a 63,224-square-foot retail building in Brenham, about 75 miles northeast of Houston, that is leased to Academy Sports + Outdoors. The newly constructed building sits on a six-acre site at 1041 Nolan St. Matthew Mousavi and Patrick Luther of SRS represented the seller, a Texas-based developer, in the transaction and procured the buyer, a San Antonio-based private investor. Both parties requested anonymity.
RED OAK, TEXAS — Alabama-based general contractor Brasfield & Gorrie has topped out a 103,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Red Oak, about 20 miles south of Dallas. The facility is a build-to-suit for Schneider Electric, and the site is located near the campus of one of the company’s partners, Compass Datacenters. Full completion is scheduled for the second quarter.