CHICAGO — Newcastle Ltd. has acquired Belle Plaine Plaza Shopping Center, a 16,000-square-foot retail property located at 4066 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago, for $3.3 million. The center features two single-story retail buildings, which are fully occupied by Dollar Tree, Subway and AthletiCo Physical Therapy. Newcastle acquired the property from Midwest Real Estate Equities on behalf of the firm’s $500 million Chicago investment platform. Midwest was represented in the transaction by Tyler Quast of Zifkin Realty & Development.
CHICAGO — Chicago-based Newcastle Ltd. has acquired the historic Belmont House, a 269-unit apartment tower located at 3170 N. Sheridan Rd. in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, for $56 million. The 13-story, 315,000-square-foot building also contains 9,000 square feet of retail. The property was acquired by Newcastle from Wexenthaller Realty Management on behalf of the firm’s $500 million Chicago investment platform. The Belmont acquisition was part of an 896-unit, seven-property portfolio purchase from Wexenthaller; the other six buildings should close in the next 30 days. Newcastle was represented by The Kiser Group.
CHICAGO — Chicago-based Newcastle Ltd. has acquired a three-story multifamily building, located at 2200 N. Clark St. in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago, for $8 million. The 29,546-square-foot building features 28 loft-style apartments and six commercial spaces. The property was acquired by Newcastle on behalf of the firm’s $500 million investment platform. Kiser Group represented the undisclosed seller.
WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. — Kaplan Career Academy has signed a 15-year, 38,500-square-foot lease in Wappingers Falls, about 85 miles north of New York City. The school, which is part of the Greenburgh North-Castle Union Free School District, will relocate from nearby New Windsor to the building at 29 Marshall Road. The new space will serve as the new home for the Special Act School, which serves students with disabilities. Stephen Powers, Alexander Smith and Kate Whitman of OPEN Impact Real Estate represented Kaplan Career Academy in the lease negotiations. Thylan Associates represented the undisclosed landlord.
DALLAS — Virginia-based multifamily REIT AvalonBay Communities (NYSE: AVB) has agreed to acquire a portfolio of six multifamily properties totaling 1,844 units in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex for $431.5 million. The seller is BSR REIT, and the deal is expected to close in the second quarter. The properties — Auberry at Twin Creeks, Satori Frisco, Vale Frisco, Aura Benbrook, Lakeway Castle Hills and Wimberly — were all built between 1995 and 2021 and range in size from 216 to 349 units. AvalonBay acquired the portfolio in conjunction with two Austin-area communities that sold for $187 million.
They may not be ready to do cartwheels and pop champagne, but when it comes to business expectations for 2025, commercial real estate professionals in the Northeast have a decidedly brighter outlook than in recent years. The last two years have been defined by barriers to economic growth on numerous levels. Pick your post-COVID geopolitical or macroeconomic poison — stubborn inflation, crushing interest rate hikes, multiple wars, restarting of global supply chains — all culminating with an incredibly heated U.S. presidential election. Is it any wonder that “survive till ’25” became the rallying cry of the commercial real estate industry? And while 2025 has arrived, the election has been decided and the Federal Reserve has strung together a series of small, yet meaningful cuts to short-term interest rates, the hangover from the aforementioned disruptors has not fully evaporated. Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office brings a fresh slate of questions about how certain policies — namely tariffs and mass deportations, will impact business at both the national and local levels. And the expectation-smashing December jobs report proved sufficient to immediately pause the Fed’s would-be pattern of rate cuts. And it’s only been one month. As such, cautious optimism is …
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA. — Cohen Investment Group has obtained a $51.5 million financing package for the refinancing of Castleton Commerce Center, a 470,618-square-foot industrial complex in Virginia Beach. Eastern Union arranged the financing through Bank of America, which refinanced a $58.2 million bridge loan that Eastern Union originated when Cohen Investment Group purchased the property in 2021. Castleton Commerce Center features 409 self-storage units, 375 warehouse units totaling nearly 330,000 rentable square feet and 190 boat and RV parking spaces.
LEWISVILLE, TEXAS — Locally based developer Bright Realty has sold Valor at The Realm, a 260-unit multifamily property in the northern Dallas suburb of Lewisville. Built in 2021 within the 324-acre Realm at Castle Hills mixed-use development, the property offers one- and two-bedroom units. Amenities include a pool and a yoga studio, and the building also houses approximately 35,000 square feet of retail space. Weidner Apartment Homes purchased Valor at the Realm for an undisclosed price. JLL brokered the deal.
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — LEGOLAND California Resorts, with McCarthy Buildings Cos. as design-builder, is developing a 372,000-square-foot parking structure at LEGOLAND California Resort in Carlsbad. The team has topped out the four-story project, which is slated for completion in late 2025. The $20 million project will feature 1,130 stalls, including 57 electric-vehicle (EV) ready stalls with the option to add an additional 56 EV stalls. McCarthy’s design-build services for the project include preconstruction, marketing, scheduling, VDC, McCarthy Mapping, Castle Contracting, self-perform concrete and yard site services.
SAN ANTONIO — South Carolina-based investment firm Ziff Real Estate Partners has sold Castle Hills Market, a 97,682-square-foot shopping center in the northern-central area of San Antonio. According to LoopNet Inc., the center was built in 1986 and is home to tenants such as Allstate Insurance Co., Alamo Bridal, Edward Jones and Rainbow Language Academy. The buyer was an undisclosed Dallas-based investor. John Indelli, Whitney Snell, Chris Gerard, Ryan West and Gianna New of JLL brokered the deal. Ziff acquired the property in 2020 and implemented a value-add program prior to the sale.