Sunday, June 3, 2012

New Oceanfront Condo Tower Marks 32nd Project Proposed For South Florida



 MIAMI, FL --A 32nd new condo tower - this one proposed for an oceanfront site just south of West Palm Beach - is under construction in South Florida as the coastal market increasingly shows signs of recovering from the dramatic real estate crash that began in 2007, according to a new report from CondoVultures.com.

The proposed six-story 4001 North Ocean project is located on North Ocean Boulevard on the barrier island in the town of Gulf Stream between West Palm Beach and Boca Raton, according to the CondoVultures.com Preconstruction Condo Projects list.

With presale prices beginning at $550 per square foot, the 34-unit 4001 North Ocean project is slated to feature spacious floor plans ranging from nearly 2,800 square feet to more than 4,800 square feet each on a 3.2-acre site with 300 feet fronting the Atlantic Ocean, according to the licensed Florida brokerage CVR Realty™.


For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Condo Vultures® LLC is a real estate consultancy and marketing company based in the 225 Midtown Building at 225 NE 34th St., Suite 209B, Downtown Miami, Florida, 33137. Condo Vultures® LLC can be reached at 800-750-0517.

Marcus & Millichap Arranges Sale of Budget Host Inn & Suites in North Branch, MN



NORTH BRANCH, MN – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has announced the sale of the Budget Host Inn & Suites (top left photo), a 42-room economy hotel located in North Branch, Minnesota, according to Bryn D. Merrey, vice president and regional manager of the firm’s Tampa office.

 Jonathan S. Ruprai (middle right photo), a hospitality investment specialist in Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office, had the exclusive listing to market the property on behalf of the seller, a financial institution.  The buyer, a limited liability company, was also secured and represented by Ruprai. 

Dan Linnell (lower left photo), of the Minneapolis office, was the local Broker of Record on this transaction.

 Press Contact:  Bryn D. Merrey, Vice President/Regional Manager, Tampa,
(813) 387-4700



Marcus & Millichap Sells $29.5 Million Multifamily Property in Waukesha, WI



WAUKESHA, WI – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has brokered the sale of River’s Edge (top left photo), a 340-unit luxury apartment complex in Waukesha. The sales price of $29,500,000 equates to $86,765 per unit and $95 per square foot.

Matthew Whiteside (middle right photo), a vice president investments in Marcus & Millichap’s Milwaukee office, represented the seller, a Waukesha-based developer, and the buyer, a large Milwaukee-based owner.

“The property is a signature award-winning multifamily asset located in Waukesha County, the most sought-after county in Wisconsin,” says Whiteside. “Occupancy in the submarket is 98 percent and during the past six months, the average occupancy at River’s Edge has been 99.4 percent.”

The 310,679-square foot property is located on 5.2 acres at 100 Corrina Blvd. in downtown Waukesha on the banks of the Fox River and adjacent to 34.5-acre Frame Park.

River’s Edge was built in three phases in 1993, 1995 and 2007. The 11 floor plans range in size from 479 square feet to 1,314 square feet and include studios, one-bedroom/one-bath units and two-bedroom/two-bathroom apartments. Rents range from $610 to $1,195 per month.

Amenities at River’s Edge include a fitness center, community rooms, underground parking, in-unit washers and dryers, dishwashers, microwave ovens and large balconies with beautiful Fox River views.

 Contact: Stacey Corso,  Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. Arranges $11.5 Million Self-Storage Portfolion Loan

    

AUSTIN, TX – Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMCC) has arranged refinancing on a six-property, 2,109-unit self-storage portfolio located across the state of Texas. The loan totals $11.5 million. 

Michael Laurencelle (top right photo), an associate director in MMCC’s Austin office, who has an extensive background in self-storage financing, understood the concerns of the borrowers and identified the right capital source by utilizing the firm’s platform.

“The challenge was to secure a non-recourse loan without a lock box and cash-sweep management mechanism while securing a 10-year loan with a 30-year amortization schedule at a fixed rate of 5.41,” Laurencelle says.

MMCC’s ability to leverage existing relationships with the lenders in the self-storage sector was the key to completing this transaction.

 Contact: Stacey Corso,  Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

Sionic Mobile Selects Midtown Atlanta for Headquarters



 ATLANTA, GA – Sionic Mobile, an Atlanta technology start-up advised by Invest Atlanta, has moved into a new headquarters building in Midtown Atlanta and will release new smart phone apps for consumers and merchants on Monday.

The firm has moved into a 12,000-square-foot building at 909 W. Peachtree St. (top left photo) Sionic Mobile is leasing the building, which had stood vacant for several years, with intent to purchase. Invest Atlanta, the city of Atlanta’s economic development agency, assisted Sionic Mobile with site selection.

Invest Atlanta also partnered with the the Georgia Department of Economic Development and Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce’s technology team to provide Sionic Mobile with state and local incentives information and to provide assistance with permitting at City Hall.

“We are ecstatic about Sionic Mobile’s new location and the promise this company possesses both for the Midtown marketspecifically and the city of Atlanta as a whole,” said Brian P. McGowan (top right photo), president and CEO of Invest Atlanta. “They currently have 14 employees and plan to add 45 this year.”
 
McGowan added: “This is exactly the type of company that will further solidify Atlanta’s image as an innovation center, and Sionic Mobile’s story is a great example of how Invest Atlanta can pave the way for these types of firms to grow and prosper.”

Sionic Mobile’s new ION Rewards app for consumers and its new ION Loyalty app for merchants will be available for download in the iTunes App Store and Google Play on Monday. The apps are designed especially for intown environments and connect neighborhood merchants with nearby mobile customers.

Contact:

Tony Wilbert
Wilbert News Strategies
404-965-5022 (O)
404-405-3656 (C)

Post Properties, Inc. Announces At-the-Market Offering


ATLANTA, GA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Post Properties, Inc. (NYSE: PPS), an Atlanta-based real estate investment trust, today announced that it has filed a prospectus supplement under which it may sell up to 4,000,000 shares of its common stock from time to time through J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA), Inc., as sales agents.

As of May 31, 2012, approximately 136,500 shares of common stock remain available for issuance under the Company’s existing at-the-market offering previously announced on February 9, 2010.

 The Company expects to sell these remaining shares pursuant to its existing at-the-market offering before selling any shares pursuant to the new at-the-market offering announced today.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Post Properties, Inc.
Chris Papa,
404-846-5028

Mortgage Markets Benefiting From Weakened Stock Market, RECI Reports


CHICAGO, IL -- The Real Estate Capital Institute's Scoreboard reports the big news, of course, is another precipitous drop of treasury rates to record-low levels at the close of the month.

 The 10-year treasury plummeted by more than 40 basis points during the month, settling below 1.5%!   Mortgage markets continue benefiting from a weakened stock market, a recovering housing market and improved industrial output. Also, lower energy costs this past quarter continue helping to counterbalance markets woes and the Eurozone crisis.

The residential real estate markets are rebounding.   Developers started
more new home construction than expected, rising more than 2.5%. 

The recovery is sporadic and directly linked to job growth in various parts of the country.

Falling to a three-year low, the jobless rate hovers at about 8% anchored by improving fundamentals of the manufacturing sector. 

U.S. industrial production output in the U.S. climbed more to the highest levels since December, 2010, mostly fueled by automotive demand, according to the CensusBureau.  Yet economic expansion remains fragile as fewer than expected workers were hired.

The Fed confirmed its low-rate policy, planning to hold a steady monetary policy through 2014.  As a result, the benchmark 10-year treasury floated below two percent all month, helping mortgage rates stay low, accompanied by relatively tight spreads. 

Multifamily spreads over comparable-term treasuries hover at approximately, about 15 basis points wider than a month ago - although absolute rates are low due to benchmark treasuries.  

As for other commercial properties, retail and industrial properties are about 10 basis points wider than multifamily deals for lower leveraged transactions of 60% or less; office loans are priced about 20 basis points wider.

Generally speaking, most long-term multifamily rates are in the 4%-or-less range; commercial properties fall in the 4.25%-4.75% range.  Full leverage commercial properties are priced near five percent. 

 Capital remains available from Wall Street, Life Insurance and Agencies for well-underwritten properties.
  
Jeanne Peck (top right photo) of the Real Estate Capital Institute notes, "Multifamily continues to enjoy the best of all worlds:  rising rents, lower energy costs and record-low rates.  But investors are concerned with new construction activity in some of the gateway markets." 

She suggests, "On the other extreme, office property vacancies decreased to about fifteen percent, with inconsistent but improving results".

The Real Estate Capital Institute(r) is a volunteer-based research organization that tracks realty rates data for debt and equity yields.  The Institute posts daily and historical benchmark rates including treasuries, bank prime and LIBOR.

 Furthermore, call the Real Estate Capital RateLine at
7RE-CAPITAL (773-227-4825) for hourly rate updates.

The   Real Estate Capital Institute(r)
3517 West Arthington Street
Chicago, Illinois USA 60624

Contact:
Jeanne Peck, Executive Director