Friday, July 24, 2009

Foreclosure News Report Named Best Newsletter for 2009 by National Association of Real Estate Editors

IRVINE, CA– RealtyTrac®, the leading online marketplace for foreclosure properties, announced that its monthly newsletter for real estate investors — Foreclosure News Report — was recently honored as Best Newsletter for 2009 by the National Association of Real Estate Editors during the group’s 59th Annual Journalism Awards in Washington, D.C.

“This newsletter zeroes in on its readers’ need to know insider information and statistics from around the country,” the judges noted in their comments.

“We are extremely grateful to have our publication recognized by our peers in the real estate media, alongside an impressive list of award winners that includes BusinessWeek, Bloomberg News, MarketWatch, and the Chicago Tribune, ” said RealtyTrac Senior Vice President Rick Sharga, (top right photo) publisher of Foreclosure News Report.

“In the two years since it was first launched, the publication has evolved into an industry leader that is read by some 40,000 real estate investors, professionals and market analysts across the country every month.”

“I particularly want to recognize Managing Editor Daren Blomquist, staff writers Joel Cone and Octavio Nuiry, and Art Director Scott Woolsey for their continuing dedication to making Foreclosure News Report the quality product it is today,” Sharga continued.

A record number of entries were submitted in this year’s NAREE journalism competition, vying for prizes totaling $10,000 awarded in 30 various categories. Winners were selected by a panel of experts from the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University chaired by Professor Patrick S. Washburn.

Visit http://www.foreclosurenewsreport.com/ for more information about the newsletter.




Contact: Tammy Chan Atomic PR, Direct: 212-699-3646, Mobile: 408-802-8682
tammy@atomicpr.com


(http://www.realtytrac.com/gateway_co.asp?accnt=137300),

Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. Arranges Loans in San Diego and Vista, CA

San Diego Retail Center Receives $3.91M Loan

SAN DIEGO, CA – Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMCC) has arranged a $3.91 million fixed-rate loan to refinance Teirrasanta Gateway Shopping Center (top right photo) located at 5950 Santo Road in San Diego.

Chad O’Connor, a senior director in the firm’s San Diego office, arranged the financing package for the property.

Financing for this transaction was provided by commercial bank at a 6.62 percent fixed rate. Terms of the loan are for 15 years with a 30-year amortization schedule.

Vista, CA Apartment Complex Obtains $1.99M Loan

VISTA, CA – Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMCC) has arranged a $1.99 million non-recourse loan for the acquisition of a 31-unit apartment building, Park Vista Apartments, (bottom left photo) located at 700 Alta Vista Road in Vista, Calif.

Chad O’Connor, a senior director in the firm’s San Diego office, arranged the financing package for Park Vista Apartments.
Financing for the Park Vista Apartments was provided by a commercial bank at a 6.19 percent fixed rate. Terms of the loan are for 10 years with a 30-year amortization schedule.

Press Contact: Kathy Molitor, Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp., (925) 953-1704

Wyndham Hotel Group Appoints Chief Technology Officer

PARSIPPANY, N.J. (July 23, 2009) – Wyndham Hotel Group, a business unit of Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: WYN) and the world’s largest hotel company with approximately 7,000 hotels and 11 brands, has appointed Venky Rangachari (top right photo) as chief technology officer, responsible for the development and implementation of the company’s technology initiatives.

Rangachari will oversee the Hotel Group’s information technology department and will lead the overall strategic direction for the Hotel Group’s technology efforts, ensuring alignment of the company’s technology vision with its business strategy.

“Venky has extensive experience in hospitality and franchising, a combination that makes him an ideal addition to the Hotel Group’s leadership team,” said Robert Loewen, (bottom left photo) Wyndham Hotel Group executive vice president and chief financial officer. “

"As a global hospitality company that franchises and manages hotels in 66 countries, Wyndham Hotel Group requires an expert who is well-versed in implementing and managing initiatives in large, complex organizations.”

Most recently, Rangachari was chief information officer at StarCite, a global leader in meetings management solutions, where he developed technology strategy, reduced operating expenses by 20 percent and implemented a company-wide learning management system that helped prepare employees for the company’s next generation products.

CONTACT: Christine Da Silva, Director, Media Relations, Wyndham Hotel Group, 22 Sylvan Way, Parsippany, NJ 07054. PH 973-753-6590, christine.dasilva@wyndhamworldwide.com

Martin B. Jones Named Vice President, Food & Beverage for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Asia-Pacific

SINGAPORE, 24 July 2009 – Martin B. Jones (top right photo) has been named Vice President, Food & Beverage, for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific Division. In this role, Martin will continue to set strategic directions and have overall responsibility for Food and Beverage for Starwood Hotels & Resorts in Asia Pacific.

“The announcement today is timely as it kicks off the launch of newly created food and beverage restaurant concepts for our nine leading lifestyle brands, which will transform the industry’s food and beverage experience," said Miguel Ko, (bottom left photo) Chairman & President Asia-Pacific, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

"Martin has led the Starwood food and beverage 'movement' in the last few years and comes with over 20 years of professional experience in the industry. His creativity, expertise and insightful vision will be key to our continuous success in this area as we position Starwood as a market leader in the Food & Beverage arena.

"Martin has been instrumental in leading a number of successful new food & beverage initiatives for Starwood Asia Pacific, including a series of new restaurant and bar concepts, Best Breakfast initiatives and various new food & beverage programmes.
He has also been involved in the design and development of many of the restaurants and bars presently under construction and was also the recipient of the Starwood Business Excellence Award for “Most Creative Innovator”.

Martin has 25 years of professional work experience in the hospitality industry. He joined Starwood since 1999, when he started as Director of Operations, Food and Beverage with The Westin Stamford & Westin Plaza Hotels in Singapore, before becoming General Manager of the W Seoul in Korea in 2002 and then subsequently General Manager of the Westin Kuala Lumpur.

Contact:

Hwee-Peng Yeo
Tel : +65 6335 4837; Cell : +65 9768 6087; +65 9248 0424
Fax : +65 6335 4820
http://www.starwoodhotels.com/; http://www.starwoodpressclub.com/

Holiday Inn Relaunches 1000th Hotel

New Holiday Inn Express(R) in Times Square, New York, opens as part of the biggest relaunch in hospitality history

NEW YORK, July 24, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG, NYSE: IHG (ADRs)], the world's largest hotel company, today announced the opening of its 1000th relaunched Holiday Inn hotel - the Holiday Inn Express New York City Times Square. (middle left photo)

The $1 billion relaunch of Holiday Inn is the largest in the history of the hospitality industry, with more than 3,200 hotels around the world being updated - improving quality and driving consistency at Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express hotels from Boston to Beijing.

In addition to the 3,200 open hotels, there are another 1,050 in the development pipeline, due to open with the relaunched branding in the next three to four years.

The relaunch program, combined with new openings and continued removal of lower quality hotels, will completely rejuvenate the Holiday Inn estate over the next few years.

Andy Cosslett, (top right photo) IHG's CEO, said, "The opening of our 1000th relaunched Holiday Inn hotel is the latest milestone on our three year journey and demonstrates the momentum behind the program.

"Despite the tough economic climate, we've relaunched, on average, four hotels a day for the past six months, and we're committed to completing the global relaunch by the end of 2010.

"Relaunched hotels are benefiting from improved guest satisfaction and an average RevPAR (revenue per available room) outperformance of more than 5%.

"And the feedback we're getting from our guests and hotel owners tells us it's the right time to be doing this.

"The economic environment has changed since we started the program, but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to show people that the Holiday Inn they came to know and love over the last 50 years is still a hotel that's right for them today."

"The Holiday Inn Express New York City Times Square represents the substantial changes we are making to improve the experience our guests have at each of our hotels around the world," said Kevin Kowalski, senior vice president, Global Brand Management, Holiday Inn Brands.

"As a key market for the brand, New York City is the perfect backdrop for this global milestone in the Holiday Inn brand relaunch and further strengthens our position in the industry."

On average, 26 million people a year visit New York's Times Square, and the 210-room Holiday Inn Express New York City Times Square is surrounded by the city's biggest tourist attractions including Broadway, Rockefeller Center and the Empire State Building.

The hotel is located at 343 West 39th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues in midtown Manhattan, with LaGuardia (LGA) and JFK International (JFK) both less than 30 minutes away.

To make a reservation, please call 1-800-HOLIDAY or visit http://www.holidayinn.com/.

The Holiday Inn Express New York City Times Square is owned by M&R Hotel, LLC, and managed by Hersha Hospitality, under a license agreement with a company in the InterContinental Hotels Group.

CONTACTS:
Sarah-Ann Soffer, Holiday Inn, +1-770-604-2707, Sarahann.soffer@ihg.com,
Andrew Bard, Weber Shandwick, +1-212-445-8368, abard@webershandwick.com

Post Properties Completes Sales of Post Ridge® in Atlanta, GA and Post Forest® in Fairfax, VA


Net Proceeds of Approximately $100M Used to Repay Line of Credit and to Add to Cash Balances

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Post Properties, Inc. (NYSE: PPS), an Atlanta-based real estate investment trust, announced today the sale of its Post Ridge® apartment community located in Atlanta, GA for a gross sales price of $44.8 million.

Post Ridge® (top left photo) is a garden-style apartment community, consisting of 434 units, and was completed in 1998.

The buyer was an entity affiliated with Centennial Holding Company, LLC of Atlanta, GA. CB Richard Ellis, Inc. brokered the transaction.

The Company also announced on Monday that it recently closed the sale of its Post Forest® (bottom right photo) apartment community located in Fairfax, VA for a gross sales price of $57.5 million. Post Forest® is a garden-style apartment community, consisting of 364 units, and was completed in 1990.

The buyer was an entity affiliated with Pantzer Properties, Inc. of New York, NY. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. brokered the transaction.

The Company expects to report net gains of approximately $54 million in the third quarter relating to these two sales.

Said David P. Stockert, (top right photo) CEO and President of Post, “Completing these two sales in a difficult transaction environment reflects the quality of the assets and the strength of the Post® brand.

"Net proceeds will be used to bolster our balance sheet and our cash balances, enhancing the Company’s financial strength and flexibility through the current economic cycle.”
Post Properties owns 19,864 apartment units in 55 communities, including 1,747 apartment units in five communities held in unconsolidated entities and 1,736 apartment units in five communities currently under construction and/or in lease-up.

The Company is also developing and selling 362 for-sale condominium homes in three communities (including 129 units in one community held in an unconsolidated entity) and is converting apartment units in two communities initially consisting of 349 units into for-sale condominium homes through a taxable REIT subsidiary.

Contacts
Post Properties, Inc., Dave Stockert, 404-846-5000