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BETHESDA, MD. — Walker & Dunlop has arranged financing for five properties in Florida, Texas and North Carolina, totaling $110 million, through its joint venture with brokerage firm ARA. The joint venture, known as ARA Finance LLC, arranged a total of $615 million in financing and sales activity last year. In 2012, ARA brokered the sale of $9.5 billion in multifamily properties, and Bethesda-based Walker & Dunlop originated $8 billion in multifamily financing. “These deals show the strength of ARA Finance, where two of the largest companies in their respective sector of the multifamily market come together to provide clients with the best execution available,” says Tom MacManus, ARA finance president and chief operating officer. David Gahagan, senior vice president of Walker & Dunlop, led the team in arranging acquisition financing for Park Colony Apartments, under Freddie Mac's Capital Markets Execution program (CME). ARA has since brokered the sale of the 316-unit property, which is located in Hollywood, Fla., close to I-95. The property features a clubhouse, two swimming pools and tennis courts. Financing for Polo Glen Apartments in Rockledge, Fla., was also structured under Freddie Mac's CME program. ARA's Orlando office brokered the sale of the 252-unit property, which …

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Summit Hotel Properties Inc. (NYSE: INN), a hotel investment REIT based in Austin, has purchased a portfolio of five unencumbered hotels in Louisiana for $135 million. An affiliate of Marriott International Inc. will operate the hotels, which total 823 rooms, under their current franchise flags. “These hotels are very well-positioned throughout the diverse areas of the New Orleans metropolitan market,” says Dan Hansen, president and CEO of Summit Hotel Properties. The five hotels include: the 153-room Courtyard by Marriott in Metairie the 120-room Residence Inn by Marriott in Metairie the 202-room Courtyard by Marriott in New Orleans near the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center the 208 SpringHill Suites by Marriott in New Orleans near the convention center the 140-room Courtyard by Marriott in downtown New Orleans near the French Quarter “From the suburban community of Metairie to the bustling convention center to the heart of the French Quarter, these hotels will allow us to take advantage of the substantial business and leisure demand in this market,” says Hansen. Summit Hotel Properties funded the acquisition with available cash and borrowings from its senior secured revolving credit facility. As of today, Summit’s portfolio includes 91 hotels totaling 10,309 rooms …

LOS ANGELES — An affiliate of Oaktree Capital Management LP (NYSE: OAK), in partnership with National Financial Realty Inc. (NFR), has acquired a portfolio of 40 office buildings for $240 million. The acquisition of the 3.4 million-square-foot office portfolio, which is 90 percent leased to Wells Fargo Bank, establishes NFR as the largest privately held investment firm focused on acquiring and operating properties leased to regulated financial institutions. The seller is First States Investors B LP, an affiliate of Newport Beach, Calif.-based KBS REIT I, a nontraded REIT. KBS said a year ago that it was selling assets to pay down debt and return money to investors, according to Bloomberg. “The acquisition is another example of Oaktree’s commitment to relationship-based transactions with well-positioned strategic operating partners like NFR, in addition to lenders and borrowers in need of capital solutions,” says John Brady, managing director and head of global real estate for Oaktree. Properties in the portfolio are leased on a long-term basis to Wells Fargo and include mission critical operations facilities as well as branch offices in eight Eastern and Southeastern states: North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Georgia. North Carolina is home to the …

LOS ANGELES — In a blockbuster deal, Singapore-based Overseas Union Enterprise Ltd. (OUE) has agreed to acquire the U.S. Bank Tower as well as Maguire Gardens and a parking facility in downtown Los Angeles for $367 million. The sale is expected to close June 28. OUE, through its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary Beringia Central LLC, acquired the properties from Library Square Associates LLC, a subsidiary of MPG Office Trust Inc. (NYSE: MPG). OUE has made a non-refundable deposit in the amount of $7.5 million. U.S. Bank Tower is a Class A office property located at the foot of Bunker Hill, a neighborhood that separates downtown Los Angeles from the rest of the city. The 72-story, 1.4 million-square-foot office tower, includes six levels of underground parking, and was 56.3 percent leased at the time of sale. The building was completed in 1989. Net proceeds from the sale are estimated to be $103 million and will be used for general corporate purposes, including potential loan rebalancing for the refinancing of the MPG Office Trust’s upcoming 2013 debt maturities. The purchase is part of OUE’s efforts to strengthen its portfolio of commercial properties and enhance long-term shareholder value, says OUE Executive Chairman Dr. …

PHOENIX — Cole Credit Property Trust III Inc. (CCPT III) has executed a definitive merger agreement to acquire Cole Holdings Corp., a Phoenix-based real estate investment management firm that manages more than $12 billion in assets. CCPT III is a real estate investment trust focused on net-leased properties. The company’s portfolio includes approximately 1,000 retail, office and industrial properties throughout the U.S. CCPT III will change its name to Cole Real Estate Investments Inc. upon completion of the transaction. The company will also seek a listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Following a listing, Cole Real Estate Investments will be the second largest publicly traded REIT in the net-lease sector. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2013. “Through this compelling combination, we have the opportunity to realize the vision of creating a world-class real estate platform and provide investors the benefits of owning high-quality, income-producing real estate leased long term to credit-worthy corporations,” says Christopher Cole, founder and executive chairman of Cole Holdings. The acquisition of Cole Holdings provides CCPT III with more than 350 employees, as well as a real estate investment management platform of more than 2,000 properties with over 76 …

SAN DIEGO — Seniors housing defies the old axiom that real estate is all about location, location, location. Just ask Curt Schaller, co-founder and principal of Chicago-based Focus Healthcare Partners LLC, a private investment and asset management firm. To achieve a healthy return for its investors, Focus Healthcare must partner with the right operator or suffer the consequences. “The scariest thing about seniors housing, for me, is when you go into a market and see the beautiful building on Main and Main that is four years old, 80 percent occupied and struggling. And then behind a shopping center is a 20-year-old building that you have to use a one-lane street to get to, and it’s kicking the newer building’s butt [in terms of performance],” said Schaller. “It gets right down to operations, and very often it gets right down to the executive director in that building.” Schaller’s comments came Wednesday during a panel discussion titled “Tapping Into Private Equity” as part of the 2013 NIC Regional Conference at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel. Approximately1,150 industry professionals have registered for the two-day conference, which has attracted owners, operators, debt and equity providers and intermediaries, appraisers, legal experts and others with …

HOUSTON — Hines, a Houston-based international real estate firm, has sold the 64-story Williams Tower in Houston through Hines Real Estate Investment Trust (Hines REIT) to Invesco Real Estate for $412 million. Invesco, also based in Houston, is a real estate investment firm with more than $49.9 billion in its portfolio. Williams Tower is a 1.4 million-square-foot, Class A office building. The tower was the tallest skyscraper in the world outside of a Central Business District when it was constructed in 1983. The office building is more than 95 percent leased to tenants such as Williams Corp., Hines, NextiraOne, Rowan Cos., Quanta Services and Cadence Bancorp. “Williams Tower is a world-class building that has been one of Hines REIT's most significant investments,” says Charles Hazen, president and CEO of Hines REIT. “It is also a very important property to Hines as a firm and to the city of Houston. This has been a great investment that delivered strong cash flows and a positive return to Hines REIT.” Hines has managed the property for three decades and will continue to manage it once it trades hands. Hines REIT acquired the property in 2008. Additionally, the office tower serves as Hines’ corporate …

FORT RILEY, KAN. — Picerne Military Housing, a division of the Corvias Group, has completed construction on a 328-acre master-planned community at Fort Riley. The Forsyth Neighborhood is part of $550 million master-planned community.The newspaper also reported the neighborhood’s 1,389 new homes sit on land that used to be filled with World War II barracks and includes ball fields, a new elementary school, a fitness center, a dog park and community gardens. A master-planned community is defined as a development that is designed for self-sufficiency, providing housing, educational, commercial and recreational amenities that are not typically included in a normal housing subdivision. “We were able to turn a raw piece of land into its own small town with amenities within walking distance for our residents,” says Brian Beauregard, program director for Picerne Military Housing. “Families should not have to trade comfort and amenities when they choose to live on post. This community provides it all for our military families — the comfort, quality and convenience.” Through its partnership with the U.S. Army, Picerne began construction of Forsyth in March 2007 as part of its development plan for Fort Riley’s family housing areas. Picerne managed the entire construction process from land …

JOPLIN, MO. — McCarthy Building Cos. has topped out the new 875,000-square-foot Mercy Hospital Joplin for Mercy, a Chesterfield, Mo.-based Catholic health care system. The company broke ground on the seven-story, 260-room hospital in January 2012 with a construction budget of $335 million. The facility replaces the former St. John’s Mercy Regional Medical Center, which was demolished in an EF-5 tornado on May 22, 2011. Members of Mercy and the Joplin community, along with the design and construction team, signed the final steel beam in honor of the former hospital. McCarthy and Mercy began working together just days after the tornado struck, establishing a temporary 60-bed field hospital so that Mercy could continue to serve the residents of the community. “McCarthy has given us what we’ve really needed most. They know how to make things happen,” says John Farnen, executive vice president of planning, design and construction for Mercy. “We went from the initial design to breaking ground in just five months.” The hospital will include medical, surgical, critical care, women’s, behavioral health and rehab facilities. The lower three floors of the development include hospital space, with a seven-story patient tower and four-story clinic tower located above. A separate 30,000-square-foot …

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Hines, an international real estate developer, has increased its ownership of the $700 million, mixed-use CityCenterDC project in Washington, D.C., after buying the ownership interest of its partner Archstone. Hines announced the acquisition a day after apartment owners AvalonBay Communities Inc. (AVB) and Equity Residential (EQR) said they completed their purchase of Archstone in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $16 billion. The total deal included the assumption of approximately $9.5 billion in debt. “We have enjoyed working with Archstone and are proud to complete and manage this momentous development for D.C.,” says Jeff Hines, president of Houston-based Hines. “The project's momentum in office leasing, strong residential condominium sales and widespread interest among retailers and restaurants make CityCenterDC an excellent vehicle for further investment.” The CityCenterDC project includes a mix of condominiums, apartments, offices, public spaces, restaurants, shops and a hotel. Neil Brown, Archstone's chief development officer, adds, “Archstone and Hines have worked together hand-in-glove on this project for the last decade, and there is no better outcome for the project than for Hines to assume full oversight of this massive mixed-use development.” In addition to increasing its ownership in the mixed-use project, Hines will assume development responsibility …