Walker & Dunlop

PHILADELPHIA — Walker & Dunlop Inc. has arranged $40 million in limited partner equity and $135 million in construction financing for 5000 Richmond Street, a 750,000-square-foot, last-mile distribution facility in Philadelphia. The project will include two Class A buildings each with clear heights of 40 feet, a total of 112 loading dock doors, 206 trailer parking stalls and 759 car parking stalls. The site is within a Qualified Opportunity Zone and benefits from a long-term tax abatement from the city. The development will be situated six miles from Center City and offer immediate access to I-95, I-276 and I-476, which connect to New York City and Washington, D.C. Vacancy in the metro Philadelphia industrial market ticked up slightly in the first quarter to 4.4 percent, according to CBRE. But the market remains undersupplied, leading rents to gain upward momentum, states the brokerage. Aaron Appel, Jonathan Schwartz, Adam Schwartz, Keith Kurland, Mo Beler, Michael Diaz and Michael Ianno of Walker & Dunlop represented the borrower, DH Property Holdings LLC (DHPH). Barings provided the construction financing. “This multi-year effort began with our team sourcing limited partner capital to help DHPH acquire the land in the depths of COVID, and culminated in a …

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Brian Cornell Hotel to Mulitfamily conversion

Walker & Dunlop is finding financial success while helping to provide high-demand, affordable housing in key markets by converting hotel assets into multifamily buildings. Brian Cornell, managing director at Walker & Dunlop Investment Partners (WDIP), says his firm is identifying hotels that are already built out and can accommodate market-rate multifamily use. Extended-stay hotels have the best layout for this type of conversion because their footprint already includes the floor plans and many of the amenities that multifamily residents expect. “The units are typically one-bedroom, but with some two-bedroom suites and studios,” he outlines. “This creates a variety of unit types within the existing physical build-out of the property, and these assets can operate as true multifamily without having to combine walls and do extensive capital renovations.” When it comes to location, Cornell explains, “We prefer infill locations that have strong employment drivers and a dearth of affordable housing.” Underutilized Properties, Multifamily Strategies The three investments Walker & Dunlop has done in the past two years are in the heart of commercial corridors, in areas where there are limited multifamily projects within a two-to-three-mile radius offering rents that can support an 80 percent area median income (AMI) threshold. One is …

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Willy Walker Multifamily Investment

By Willy Walker, CEO of Walker & Dunlop I recently had the pleasure of sitting down to talk with some prominent members of the Walker & Dunlop team, including Kris Mikkelsen, executive vice president of investment sales, Aaron Appel, senior managing director of capital markets, and Ivy Zelman, executive vice president of research and securities. In this episode of the Walker Webcast, “State of CRE,” we covered some of the most prominent issues the commercial real estate industry is facing, as well as some headwinds it will continue to face in the future. Changes in Homebuilding and Consumer Spending Although homebuilders had to offer incentives when rates first started increasing last year, they are still seeing a steady demand for homes, as demand still heavily outpaces supply. This imbalance is seen in the new and existing home market. Single-family homes in many markets across the country are in multiple offer situations, indicating that single-family residential real estate is still strong. This is incredible, given the fact that many existing homeowners are locked into mortgage rates in the 2-5 percent range, giving them little reason to move out of their current home. How Mortgage Deals Are Currently Financed Although we are …

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2250-Aqueduct-Avenue-The-Bronx

NEW YORK CITY — Walker & Dunlop has arranged $81.7 million in financing for the development of three affordable housing projects totaling 179 units in The Bronx. The financing consists of $50.8 million in construction debt that was provided by CIT and $30.9 million in limited partnership equity with CBRE Investment Management. Aaron Appel, Mo Beler, Jonathan Schwartz, Adam Schwartz, Keith Kurland and Michael Ianno of Walker & Dunlop arranged the financing on behalf of the borrower, a partnership between Spaxel LLC and Atalaya Capital Management. Information on specific income restrictions and a construction schedule were not disclosed.

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Willy Walker webinar market quote

On the April 12 episode of “The Most Insightful Hour in CRE” webcast, Willy Walker, CEO of Walker & Dunlop, spoke to renowned economist Dr. Peter Linneman, founding principal of Linneman Associates, about pressing issues facing the economy, pandemic repercussions, market predictions and much more. The discussion began by diving into the economy and real estate market in its current state of flux, with many challenges facing both investors and developers. Walker outlines the unease created by the recent Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank crises. “One of the data points announced by the Fed is that since the crisis, bank lending in the United States has gone down by $110 billion over the two weeks since the Silicon Valley Bank collapse. Banks borrowed $160 billion in the two-week window prior. There’s a big drive toward liquidity; and yet there’s no new liquidity going out into the market.” “There’s 4.4 trillion dollars of commercial real estate (CRE) loans outstanding across all lending sources — CMBS, life insurance companies, banks, etc.,” continues Walker. “About half of that is non-multifamily properties. Banks hold about 40 percent of total outstanding loans on commercial properties.” If banks were to pull back from holding 40 percent …

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MARYSVILLE, OHIO — Walker & Dunlop has arranged $69.5 million in construction financing for a 1.3 million-square-foot industrial facility in the Columbus suburb of Marysville. The property is a build-to-suit for Scotts Lawn Care, a full-service landscaping company specializing in commercial and residential lawn services. The project site at 12575 Industrial Parkway is minutes away from Scotts’ national headquarters. Chad Kiner and AJ Mangan of Walker & Dunlop arranged the financing on behalf of the developer, Crawford Hoying. Centennial Bank was the lender.

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NEW YORK CITY — Walker & Dunlop’s capital markets team has arranged $94 million in construction financing for the development of College Point Logistics Center in the College Point neighborhood of Queens, just across Flushing Bay from LaGuardia International Airport.  A joint venture between Wildflower Ltd. and Drake Real Estate Partners is developing the project, with construction costs estimated at $146 million. College Point Logistics Center will be a ground-up warehouse and structured parking facility. The property will feature 81,000 square feet of rentable industrial space, as well as 160,000 square feet of enclosed parking across two floors and 68,000 square feet of surface-level parking. Wildflower designed the project with ground-floor warehouse space and multi-story parking to maximize the project’s efficiency and meet the needs of modern industrial and logistics tenants. College Point Logistics Center is located alongside the Whitestone Expressway, making it accessible to LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airports, the New York and Atlantic Railways and the Red Hook Container Terminal. Development of the facility is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2024. Jonathan Schwartz, Aaron Appel, Mo Beler, Ari Hirt and Triston Stegall led the Walker & Dunlop team in securing the floating-rate loan on behalf of …

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BETHESDA, MD. — Walker & Dunlop has provided a $46 million HUD-insured loan for the refinancing of a portfolio of four assisted living facilities totaling 244 beds that are located throughout Vermont and New Hampshire. Woodstock Terrace and Valley Terrace respectively comprise 42 and 61 beds and are located in Woodstock and White River Junction, Vt. Wheelock Terrace and Windham Terrace respectively total 70 and 71 beds and are located in Hanover and Windham, N.H. Frank Cassidy of Walker & Dunlop originated the financing through HUD’s 232/223(f) program on behalf of the locally based borrower, Terrace Communities.

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OAKLAND PARK, FLA. — Walker & Dunlop has arranged $51 million in construction financing for Sky Building, a mixed-use development located in the South Florida city of Oakland Park. The borrower, locally based NRI Investments, previously signed a development agreement, lease agreement and purchase and sale agreement for the 2.1- acre site with the City of Oakland Park. Sky Building will house 136 affordable and workforce units, which are connected by a skybridge to the City of Oakland Park’s new City Hall, alongside roughly 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space. The site is within an opportunity zone approximately three miles north of downtown Fort Lauderdale. Jeremy Pino, Livingston Hessam, Carl Passmore, Kyle Miller, David Strange and Keith Melton of Walker & Dunlop arranged the financing via senior construction lenders and debt and equity funds. The financing was underwritten at 80 percent loan-to-cost and is non-recourse through the capital stack, according to Walker & Dunlop. The construction timeline for Sky Building was not disclosed.

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23-10-42nd-Road-Queens

NEW YORK CITY — Walker & Dunlop has arranged a $131 million construction loan for a 240-unit multifamily project that will be located in the Long Island City area of Queens. The site at 23-10 42nd Road lies at the convergence of the borough’s Court Square and Queens Plaza districts. Preliminary sitework was completed last fall, and the development team expects to fully deliver the building in summer 2025. Apartments will be available in studio, one- and two-bedroom formats and will feature Class A finishes. Residents will have access to more than 15,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities, including a fitness center, coworking spaces, sky lounge and multiple amenity terraces, all with views of the Manhattan skyline. A syndicate led by Corebridge Financial (formerly AIG) and Los Angeles-based PCCP LLC provided the floating-rate loan, specific terms of which were not disclosed. The borrower is locally based developer Werwaiss Properties, which has partnered with Albanese Development Corp. on the project. “This thoughtfully conceived residential tower in one of New York’s most rapidly growing, transit-rich neighborhoods will help create additional market-rate and attainable housing options in New York City,” says Brian Haber, managing director at PCCP. Jonathan Schwartz, Aaron Appel, …

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