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NEW YORK CITY AND PALM BEACH, FLA. — Two real estate investment trusts, NorthStar Realty Finance (NYSE: NRF) and Chatham Lodging Trust (NYSE: CLDT), have formed a $1.3 billion joint venture for 51 hotels known as the Innkeepers portfolio. NorthStar purchased a 89.7 percent stake in the joint venture from Chatham’s previous joint venture partner, Cerberus Capital Management. NorthStar and Chatham will co-own 47 of the 51 hotels, which total about 6,100 rooms. Approximately 83 percent of the hotels are affiliated with the Marriott and Hilton brands and are located mostly on the East and West coasts. Chatham will pay approximately $341.5 million to Cerberus for the four remaining hotels: four Residence Inn hotels in Silicon Valley that total 751 rooms. Chatham plans to invest $59 million to redevelop the hotels, which will include new lobby and public spaces in each hotel. Chatham will also expand the hotels’ room counts by 272 rooms combined. “The Cerberus/Chatham joint venture has been a great partnership and has proven to be a highly successful investment, turning our initial $37 million investment into distributions of approximately $114 million and profits of approximately $77 million, or $2.90 per share, in less than three years,” says …

NEW YORK — New York-based real estate private equity and asset management firm Savanna has acquired 110 William Street in the heart of Manhattan’s financial district in a joint venture with KBS Capital Advisors for $261.1 million. The property is a 32-story, 928,000-square-foot office tower located at the corner of William and John streets. Savanna and KBS purchased the building from Swig Equities and the Dubai Investment Group for $281 per square foot. Douglas Harmon and Adam Spies of Eastdil Secured were exclusive advisors for the transaction. Laurie Grasso and Susan Saslow of Hunton & Williams represented Savanna in the acquisition and Carl Schwartz of Hunton & Williams represented Savanna in the joint venture with KBS Capital Advisors. “It's an exciting time to be investing in downtown Manhattan as the long transformation has arrived, with over $30 billion in capital invested in downtown from both the public and private sector over the last 10 years,” says Adam Spies of Eastdil Secured. “As downtown has become the epicenter of the region’s vast pool of high-value knowledge workers, the demand for office space continues to increase, evidenced by a 22 percent year-over-year increase in rental rates as of the first quarter of …

LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas Arena Co., owned by AEG and MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM), has commenced construction on a privately funded $375 million indoor arena set to open in spring 2016. Located west of the Las Vegas Strip, between New York-New York and Monte Carlo resorts, the new 20,000-seat arena will host boxing, UFC and other sporting events, headline entertainment, awards shows and special events. “We are committed to ensuring that Las Vegas retains its title as ‘Entertainment Capital of the World’ for generations to come,” says Jim Murren, chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International. “The addition of this world-class arena, which will attract new events to the market and enable existing events to grow in scale, is an integral component in that strategy.” The arena is expected to host more than 100 events annually. The property will house multiple locker facilities, dressing rooms, broadcast facilities and staging innovations that will bring sporting and entertainment events to Las Vegas. Additionally, sports architecture firm Populous designed the arena to achieve LEED Gold certification. Upon completion, the arena will feature 50 luxury suites, more than two dozen private boxes and other hospitality offerings that have never been featured in …

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (NYSE: WRE) has acquired a 185,000-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C., for $104.5 million. The 11-story building is located at 1775 Eye Street, NW at the intersection of 18th and Eye streets in the central business district. It sits directly across from Farragut West (blue and orange lines) and two blocks from Farragut North (red line) Metro stations. The property was 62 percent leased at the time of sale. It is currently undergoing its second renovation, which includes a modernized lobby, common areas and fitness facility. The building was originally constructed in 1964. It received its first renovation in 1997 when the owner replaced the façade, storefronts and all of the building systems. “Acquiring 1775 Eye Street is yet another example of Washington REIT executing on its stated office strategy acquiring high-quality, well-located urban and metro centric assets,” says Paul McDermott, the REIT’s president and CEO. “This value-add acquisition further increases our downtown footprint at a prime location that provides a tremendous opportunity to create value for our shareholders through effective leasing of this property above its current level.” This is Washington REIT’s third acquisition in downtown Washington, D.C., this year. It …

NEW YORK CITY — Studley, a New York-based real estate brokerage firm specializing in tenant representation, will merge with London-based advisory firm Savills plc in a transaction valued at $260 million. The combined company, to be known as Savills Studley, will have more than 500 locations worldwide. Current Studley Chairman and CEO Mitchell Steir will serve in those same roles for Studley Savills. Studley President Michael Colacino will also retain his position in the new entity. Additionally, Steir and Colacino will share a seat on the Savills group executive board. “This is a great opportunity for us to build on our strong position in the market and benefit from being part of one of the leading global brands in the industry,” says Steir. “Studley and our clients will benefit from being part of an international firm with the ability to capitalize on cross-border opportunities in Europe and Asia.” In addition to brokerage and tenant representation services, Studley provides project management, corporate services and strategic portfolio solutions. Founded in 1954, the company currently has 25 offices nationwide. Savills, established in 1855, operates and maintains offices in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Traded on the London Stock Exchange under …

HOUSTON — Mattress Firm Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: MFRM) has entered into an agreement to acquire substantially all of the mattress specialty retail assets and operations of Mattress Liquidators Inc., a private company that operates Mattress King retail stores in Colorado and BedMart retail stores in Arizona. The Houston-based mattress retailer will add approximately 75 specialty retail stores in markets where it currently operates — primarily Denver, Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz. The aggregate purchase price is approximately $35 million. The closing of the acquisition is expected to occur by the end of the second fiscal quarter of 2014 and will be funded by cash reserves and revolver borrowings, as well as a $3.5 million seller note that is payable in quarterly installments over two years. “We are excited to further expand our position in the Denver, Phoenix and Tucson markets,” says Steve Stagner, president and CEO of Mattress Firm. “We believe that the acquisition of the Denver stores will allow us to leap into a strong position in that market, building on the foothold established by the acquisition last month of the formerly franchised Mattress Firmstores in Denver. The additional stores in Phoenix and Tucson will supplement the existing base of …