Top Stories

Blackstone Agrees to Acquire Apartment REIT AIR Communities for $10B, Take Company Private

by Taylor Williams April 8, 2024

NEW YORK CITY AND DENVER — Private equity behemoth Blackstone (NYSE: BX) has agreed to acquire AIR Communities (NYSE: AIRC) for $10 billion in an all-cash deal that would take the Denver-based multifamily REIT private. The deal is expected to close during the third quarter. AIR Communities, which is formally named Apartment Income REIT Corp., owns 76 multifamily properties totaling roughly 27,000 units across 10 states and Washington D.C. The properties are primarily concentrated in coastal markets such as Los Angeles, Miami and Boston. Under the terms of the deal, Blackstone will also assume all of AIR Communities’ outstanding debt. Blackstone also plans to invest more than $400 million to maintain and improve the existing communities in the portfolio. The purchase price of $39.12 per share represents a premium of 25 percent to AIR Communities’ closing share price on April 5, 2024, the last full day of trading prior to the announcement. The price also represents a 25 percent premium to AIR Communities’ weighted average share price over the previous 30 days. “AIR Communities represents the highest quality, large-scale apartment portfolio we have ever acquired and is located in markets where multifamily fundamentals are strong,” says Nadeem Meghji, global co-head …

April 8, 2024

Arizona California Company News Nevada Retail Texas Top Stories Western

Deep-Discount Retailer 99 Cents Only to Close All 371 Store Locations

by Jeff Shaw April 5, 2024

COMMERCE, CALIF. — 99 Cents Only Stores LLC has announced plans to close all 371 of its stores and wind down business operations. The company has entered into an agreement with Hilco Global to liquidate all merchandise and dispose of fixtures, furnishings and equipment at the stores. Sales under this agreement are expected to begin today. 99 Cents Only was founded in 1982 as a deep-discount retailer where every item cost less than a dollar. The company is headquartered in the southeast Los Angeles suburb of Commerce, and currently operates stores in California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada. The company consulted its financial and legal advisors to find a way to continue operating, but ultimately decided the wind-down was necessary and the best way to maximize the value of its assets. Hilco Real Estate will manage the sale of the company’s owned and leased real estate assets. The company has appointed Chris Wells, managing director at Alvarez & Marsal, as chief restructuring officer. Additionally, Mike Simoncic, interim CEO of 99 Cents Only and managing director at Alvarez & Marsal, will step down. “This was an extremely difficult decision and is not the outcome we expected or hoped to achieve,” said Simoncic. “Unfortunately, the …

April 5, 2024

Affordable Housing Loans Multifamily New York Northeast Top Stories

M&T Realty Capital Provides $414.8M Refinancing for Brooklyn Crossing Apartment Tower in New York City

by Jeff Shaw April 4, 2024

NEW YORK CITY — M&T Realty Capital Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Buffalo, N.Y.-based M&T Bank (NYSE: MTB), has provided a $414.8 million Freddie Mac conventional loan to refinance Brooklyn Crossing, a 51-story, 858-unit apartment tower in Brooklyn. The borrower is The Brodsky Organization, an owner and developer of luxury apartments, condos and retail properties in New York City. While the majority of the apartments at Brooklyn Crossing are luxury units, 258 are affordable. Located in the posh Prospect Heights neighborhood, the building is immediately adjacent to Barclays Center, home of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and WNBA’s New York Liberty. The property offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. Amenities include a screening room, large fitness center, rooftop terrace and lounge, and outdoor pool. According to the property website, studio apartments rent for approximately $3,500 a month and three-bedroom units rent for approximately $9,000 monthly. Robert Barry, senior vice president in M&T Realty Capital’s New York City office, led the refinancing. Andrea Wagonseller of M&T Bank led the initial construction loan, which this transaction refinanced. “With its unparalleled amenities and convenient access to multiple subway lines, Brooklyn Crossing has transformed the Prospect Heights neighborhood,” says Michael Edelman, CEO of …

April 4, 2024

Acquisitions California Industrial Top Stories Western

JLL Arranges $197M Sale of Commerce Way Distribution Center in Fontana, California

by Kristin Harlow April 3, 2024

FONTANA, CALIF. — JLL Capital Markets has arranged the $197 million sale of Commerce Way Distribution Center in Fontana, which is located about 50 miles east of Los Angeles in the Inland Empire. EQT Exeter was the buyer. Built in 2000, Commerce Way Distribution Center totals 819,004 square feet. Located on Santa Ana Avenue, the property features a cross-dock configuration and a clear height of 30 feet. JLL says the facility benefits from its location in the Inland Empire, the largest industrial market nationwide with immediate access to critical supply chain infrastructure and Southern California’s population of more than 25 million people. As of the fourth quarter of 2023, the vacancy rate for the Inland Empire industrial market was 5.9 percent, a 90-basis-point increase quarter-over-quarter due to a high volume of new industrial space delivered by developers, according to JLL. The market experienced positive net absorption despite the 10.5 million square feet of new space delivered in the quarter. Patrick Nally, Mark Detmer, Evan Moran and Makenna Peter of JLL represented the seller, Manulife Investment Management on behalf of clients, and procured the buyer. JLL’s debt advisory team on the deal included Kevin Mackenzie, Brian Torp and Samuel Godfrey. Mike …

April 3, 2024

Development Life Sciences Massachusetts Northeast Top Stories

Basis Investment Buys Minority Stake in Related Beal’s $416M Life Sciences Development in Boston

by John Nelson April 2, 2024

BOSTON — Basis Investment Group, a New York City-based commercial real estate debt and equity investment platform, has purchased an equity stake in Phase III of Innovation Square, a $416 million life sciences development in Boston’s Seaport District. The company purchased a minority stake of an undisclosed value from the developer, Related Beal, the Boston office of Related Cos. Located on a 1.8-acre site at 22 Drydock St., Phase III of Innovation Square will comprise a seven-story life sciences building totaling 340,000 square feet. Related Beal is leasing the site from the City of Boston for a 99-year term. The property’s life sciences space is fully preleased to Vertex Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company based in Boston. The company also fully occupies Phase II of Innovation Square, a four-story life sciences building located at 6 Tide St. in Boston. In addition to laboratories and offices for Vertex, 22 Drydock will include dedicated lab space for Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute, a nonprofit that provides hands-on training for careers in labs to veterans and neighborhood high school students. Related Beal says the project is the first LEED Platinum and zero-net-carbon life sciences building in Boston. A net zero carbon building is a highly efficient …

April 2, 2024

Acquisitions Loans Multifamily Southeast Top Stories Virginia

Berkadia Provides $157M Acquisition Loan for Mason at Van Dorn Apartments in Alexandria, Virginia

by Taylor Williams April 1, 2024

ALEXANDRIA, VA. — Berkadia has provided a $157 million Fannie Mae acquisition loan for Mason at Van Dorn, a 1,180-unit apartment community in Alexandria, located just south of Washington, D.C. The sales price was not disclosed, but the Washington Business Journal reports that the amount exceeded $200 million. The borrower and purchaser was a partnership between South Florida-based Shoreham Capital and Bridge Investment Group. The seller was Los Angeles-based investment firm CIM Group, which acquired the property in late 2017 and implemented various capital improvements during the course of its ownership. Mason at Van Dorn consists of 14 four- and five-story buildings on 30 acres at 140 S. Van Dorn St. The site is adjacent to WestEnd Alexandria, a 4 million-square-foot mixed-use destination that is a redevelopment of the former Landmark Mall. The 52-acre development will also be the future home of the Inova Alexandria Hospital Campus, which will employ more than 2,000 people. Originally built in 1972, Mason at Van Dorn offers studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments with an average size of 761 square feet. Amenities include two pools, a fitness center, tennis courts, courtyards, a business center, outdoor grilling and dining stations, game room, movie theater and a …

April 1, 2024

Acquisitions California Industrial Top Stories Western

Rexford Acquires 48-Property Southern California Industrial Portfolio from Blackstone for $1B

by Jeff Shaw March 29, 2024

LOS ANGELES — Blackstone Real Estate has sold a portfolio of industrial properties in Southern California to Rexford Industrial Realty Inc. (NYSE: REXR) for a total of $1 billion. The portfolio comprises 48 properties and approximately 3 million square feet, for a sales price of $332 per square foot. At the time of the sale, the portfolio was 98 percent leased. Almost all of the properties are located within infill submarkets in Los Angeles and Orange counties. A list of the properties was not released. Rexford Industrial, headquartered in Los Angeles, financed the transaction using proceeds from its recent exchangeable senior note offerings and cash on hand. According to Michael Frankel and Howard Schwimmer, co-CEOs of Rexford Industrial, the REIT’s current acquisition pipeline also includes $300 million of investments under contract or accepted offer. “Infill Southern California is the nation’s highest-barrier and lowest supply industrial market,” said Frankel and Schwimmer via a press release. “These strategic investments in exceptionally well-located, high-quality assets represent a significant opportunity to drive accretive cash flow growth, increased operating margins and long-term value creation.” Rexford is already a major industrial investor, with its entire 422-property, 49.1 million-square-foot portfolio located in Southern California. The company’s stock price closed at $50.30 per share …

March 29, 2024

Company News Development Retail Texas Top Stories

Academy Sports + Outdoors Plans to Expand by 160 to 180 Stores Over Next Five Years

by Katie Sloan March 28, 2024

KATY, TEXAS — Sporting goods retailer Academy Sports + Outdoors has announced plans to open 160 to 180 new stores over the next five years. Half of the new stores are expected to open in markets where the retailer has an existing footprint. The remaining 80 to 90 stores are planned for new and adjacent markets, with a focus on expanding to smaller and mid-sized markets. The company sees these locations as offering higher opportunities for profit despite lower sales volumes. These openings will increase the Katy-based retailer’s footprint from 282 stores across 18 states to between 442 and 462 nationally. The company will begin this effort by opening 15 to 17 new locations in 2024. The first of these stores recently opened in Knightdale, N.C. Another location is set to open on April 12 in Greenwood, Ind. The company, which sees 95 percent of its sales fulfilled in brick-and-mortar locations, concurrently announced plans to enhance its omnichannel shopping experience by improving its mobile application and search capabilities, increasing the speed of online check-out, and offering more payment options. Academy Sports + Outdoors was founded in 1938 and offers a full range of outdoor and sports apparel and footwear; hunting, …

March 28, 2024

Development Mixed-Use Texas Top Stories

Lincoln Plans Four-Acre Mixed-Use Development in Uptown Dallas

by Kristin Harlow March 27, 2024

DALLAS — Lincoln Property Co. has acquired a four-acre site at 2500 Cedar Springs Road in Uptown Dallas. The firm plans to develop a Class A mixed-use project with approximately 400,000 to 500,000 square feet of office space, 250 luxury apartment units, a 200-room hotel, 25,000 square feet of food-and-beverage retail, and ample green space. The project site is near the Crescent office and hotel, the Ritz-Carlton hotel, the Katy Trail, Klyde Warren Park, Victory Park, the American Airlines Center and numerous restaurants. Although a seller was not disclosed, the Dallas Business Journal reports that an entity connected to Greenway Investment Co. previously owned the property, a retail strip built in the 1950s. A timeline for development has yet to be finalized, according to Chase Prospere, senior vice president and office market leader at Lincoln in Dallas. “Complex developments like this are years in the making and it’s very early in the process, but we intend to move at pace to get to groundbreaking,” says Prospere. “We are actively marketing the project to prospective anchor tenants and expect leasing activity to be strong given the unique location and amenities of the project.” The Uptown submarket of Dallas posted an office …

March 27, 2024

California Development Loans Multifamily Top Stories Western

R&V Management, TCR Receive $200M in Financing for Alexan West End Apartment Development in Long Beach, California

by Amy Works March 26, 2024

LONG BEACH, CALIF. — R&V Management and Trammell Crow Residential (TCR) have obtained $200 million in financing for the development of Alexan West End, a multifamily community in downtown Long Beach, approximately 20 miles south of Los Angeles. The financing package includes a $166 million construction loan from Kennedy Wilson and a $34 million mezzanine loan from an unnamed national life insurance company. Located at 600 W. Broadway, Alexan West End will feature 600 apartments spread across four seven- or eight-story buildings. The community will offer a mix of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans, averaging 767 square feet. Initial plans call for first units to be ready for occupancy by May 2026, with final completion planned for March 2027. Community amenities will include multiple club lounges equipped with gourmet kitchens; coffee lounges; an indoor and outdoor fitness center; resort-style pool and spa; sky deck with various entertainment areas; and a pet spa with a grooming station. Alexan West End will be situated on a 5.6-acre site adjacent to the Hilton Long Beach hotel and One World Trade Center. Other nearby attractions include the Los Angeles River, Port of Long Beach, Queensway Bay and Santa Cruz Park. Bill Chiles, …

March 26, 2024

Newer Posts

Older Posts