Sale of Metropolitan at Pentagon Row in DC closed by HFF

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Washington, D.C. office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has closed the sale of Metropolitan at Pentagon Row,(top right photo)  a 326-unit, luxury multi-housing high-rise in Arlington, Virginia.

The HFF investment sales team was led by directors Dave Nachison (middle left photo)  and Alan Davis, (bottom right photo)  who marketed the property on behalf of a partnership between Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, a national commercial real estate advisor with approximately $8 billion of assets under management, and their locally based partner, Kettler.

Equity Residential purchased the Class A high-rise for nearly $100 million free and clear of any existing financing.

“The sale of Metropolitan at Pentagon Row signifies that there is tremendous demand for best-of-class multi-family properties in metro Washington, D.C. Investors clearly hold Washington in the highest regard among very few recognized ‘core’ investment markets nationally and globally,” said Nachison.

“Investor interest was deep and from a broad mix of institutional and private equity players including prominent interest from off-shore investors,” added Davis.

Completed in 2004, Metropolitan at Pentagon Row offers studio, one- and two-bedroom units averaging 870 square feet each. Community amenities include a rooftop resident’s lounge with kitchen, cyber café, billiards room, rooftop swimming pool, business center, fitness center, massage room, and controlled access garage parking.

There is a virtual concierge 24 hours a day, seven days a week and a 24-hour front desk and call center. The 95% leased property is located at 1401 South Joyce Street in the Pentagon City/Crystal city neighborhood of Arlington, close to downtown Washington, D.C., the Pentagon, and Reagan National Airport.

“Adjacent to the Nordstrom and Macy-anchored Fashion Center at Pentagon City and leading lifestyle retail at Pentagon Row, the neighborhood amenity base is among the very best in the region,” added Nachison.

Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers was established in 1994 to provide private real estate equity investment management services for its parent, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, and other institutional clients including public and corporate pension funds, endowments, foundations, and insurance companies.

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is the largest publicly traded owner, operator and developer of multifamily housing in the United States with more than 501 properties in 23 states and the District of Columbia.

Contacts:

David R. Nachison, HFF Director, (202) 533-2536, dnachison@hfflp.com
Alan M. Davis, HFF Director HFF, (202) 533-2508, adavis@hfflp.com
Kristen M. Murphy, Associate Director, Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com

Crossman & Co. Announces Redevelopment of City Plaza at Tampa Palms, FL

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Crossman & Company, one of the largest third-party retail leasing and management firms in the Southeast, will be redeveloping City Plaza  at Tampa Palms (rendering middle left)  in Tampa.

As part of the redevelopment, Crossman & Company has negotiated a new 20-year lease with Publix Super Markets for a new 54,340 square foot facility, which will replace an existing 49,300 square foot facility Publix occupies at the center.

“We are thrilled to be working to redevelop another Publix-anchored shopping center,” said John Crossman, (top right photo)  president of Crossman & Company.

Crossman & Company recently completed redevelopment of another Publix at Southgate Shopping Center (bottom right photo)  in Lakeland.

City Plaza at Tampa Palms, located at 16041 Tampa Palms Blvd., is part of the Tampa Palms master planned development in the Bruce B. Downs Blvd. corridor, which at final build-out will include 8,400 residential units, almost one million square feet of retail space and 59,000 square feet of office space.

About Crossman & Company:

Crossman & Company is one of the largest third-party retail leasing and management companies in the Southeast with over 16 million square feet under leasing and/or management.

Founded in Orlando in 1990, Crossman & Company is a full service commercial real estate firm that advises its clients in leasing, management, development and investment sales of retail and office properties and serves clients including Publix Super Markets, Inc., Lake Nona, PREIT, and LaSalle Investment Management.

 Please visit http://www.crossmanco.com/, or call 407-423-5400 for more information.

For more information, contact:

John Crossman CCIM, President, Crossman & Company, 407-581-6218; jcrossman@crossmanco.com
Justin Greider, Senior Associate, Crossman & Company 407-581-6225; jgreider@crossmanco.com
Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142

(Bottom left photo, Publix, Plant City, FL)

Auction of 61,545-SF 10th Floor in the Plaza could bring new Boutique Hotel to Downtown Orlando

ORLANDO, FL --- Bidders eyeing the bankruptcy auction Nov. 19 of 12 office condominium suites that total 61,545 square feet of space on the 10th floor of The Plaza towers (top right photo) on Church St. and Orange Ave. in downtown Orlando may bring a new boutique hotel to downtown Orlando.

Lori Chipps, (bottom left photo)  auctioneer with Worldwide Auction Realty Services, the firm auctioning the property, said developer Cameron Kuhn (middle left photo) originally developed a concept plan for the space---the largest single floor plate available in the downtown Orlando area---as a boutique hotel.

“The hotel concept plan that was generated offers 64 studio and one bedroom hotel suites, front desk lobby, bar/lounge, service area and housekeeping space,” Chipps said. “This would make a very nice size boutique hotel or possibly even a condominium hotel, especially when you consider that The Plaza is within two blocks of the event center and Performing Arts Center.

The Plaza towers also offer restaurants, cafés, retail, and a 12-screen cinema.

Commercial condominiums to be auctioned range in size from 2,585 square feet to 7,285 square feet including four private balconies, and feature floor-to-ceiling window views of the downtown Orlando skyline.

“The space to be auctioned spans both the north and south towers including the connecting area between the two towers,” said Chipps.

The bankruptcy absolute auction will accept bids on individual suites, multiple suites or bulk purchase of all 12 suites.

Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty Auction Services conducted an auction of 55,000 square feet of office condominium space in the Plaza towers in May of 2008 that brought an average sale price of $162 per square foot.

The Plaza’s two towers total 394,000 square feet of office space, 105,000 square feet of retail/restaurant space, the 12-screen Plaza Cinema and café on the ground floor and 306 residential condominiums in the Solair tower.

The auction will be conducted live on site starting at 5 p.m. and bids will be accepted by telephone and on the Internet. For more information about the auction or to register to bid live or online, telephone 800-327-1048 or visit http://www.wwauctionservices.com/.

For more information, contact
Lori or Jon Chipps, Worldwide Auction Realty Services, 800 327-1048;
Roger Soderstrom, Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty, 407-581-7890;
Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407 644-4142.

Osceola County, FL Pays $775,500 for Three-Acre Tract in Orlando, FL

ORLANDO, FL--Daryl M. Carter, Trustee, et al., recently sold a 3± acre parcel along Narcoossee Road (Highway 15) to Osceola County for $775,500.00 cash. The parcel is located on the east side of Narcoossee Road, just north of Cyrils Drive. Daryl M. Carter (top right photo)  with Maury L. Carter & Associates, Inc. represented the Seller.

Contact: Joan M. Fisher, Maury L. Carter & Associates, Inc., (407) 581-6207 direct, (407) 422-3144 office, (407) 422-3155 fax, jfisher@maurycarter.com

CB Richard Ellis Orlando Brokers Sale of Manatee Woods Apartments in Bradenton, FL

CB Richard Ellis is pleased to announce the recent sale of Manatee Woods apartments, (top right photo)  a 226-unit rental community in Bradenton, Florida.

Completed in 1993, the property features 1, 2, and 3 bedroom floor plans averaging 898 SF. The property was 92% occupied at closing.

Shelton Granade (middle left photo), Luke Wickham, (bottom right photo)  Jim Bobbitt, and John Selby of CBRE exclusively represented the seller in the transaction.

Including the sale of Manatee Woods this month, CBRE’s Central Florida Multi-Housing Group has closed nearly $93 million of the approximately $134 million in apartment transactions in Orlando so far this year.

Multi-housing sales activity has continued to increase throughout the year. CBRE’s Central Florida Multi-Housing Group has closed more multi-housing properties locally in 2009 than any other company, and continues to be the market leader in Orlando.

For further information, please contact the Central Florida Multi-Housing Group of CB Richard Ellis.

Shelton Granade, Senior Vice President , Central Florida Multi-Housing Group,T 407.839.3103, shelton.granade@cbre.com

 Luke Wickham, Director of Operations, Central Florida Multi-Housing Group, T 407.839.3130,
 luke.wickham@cbre.com

Marcus & Millichap Sells $22M REO Apartment Community in Suburban Chicago

WAUKEGAN, IL – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has brokered the sale of Northgate Apartments, (top left photo) a 363-unit REO apartment community in Waukegan. The sales price of $22 million represents $60,606 per unit and $63 per square foot.

Scott Harris, a senior vice president investments and senior director of the firm’s National Multi Housing Group in Oak Brook, represented the seller, an East Coast-based lender. Harris also represented the buyer, an LLC organized by Monarch Investment and Management Group, a private investment group based in Colorado.

“Despite reports to the contrary, commercial real estate transactions are still closing,” says Harris. “On this transaction, the seller’s cooperation with our marketing efforts made it possible to generate significant interest in the property. In 30 days, we scheduled 30 showings of the asset and obtained 12 offers from qualified investors,” adds Harris.

The 348,930-square foot property is located on 10.76 acres at 2330 North Samson Way in Waukegan, a northern suburb of Chicago on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Northgate Apartments has a strong unit mix of 15 small one-bedroom/one-bath units, 45 large one-bedroom/one-bath apartments, 108 two-bedroom/one-bath units, 90 large two-bedroom/two-bath apartments, 90 extra-large two-bedroom/two-bath units and 15 three-bedroom/two-bath apartments.

Built in 2001, Northgate Apartments is in very good condition. Each unit has a washer, dryer, a walk-in closet in the bedroom and a balcony. Shared amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center, playground, swimming pool and tennis court.

Press Contact:  Stacey Corso, Communications Department, (925) 953-1716

Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. Names Michael Balan Associate Director of Miami Office

MIAMI, FL– Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMMC) has named Michael Balan (top right photo) an associate director of the firm’s Miami office, according to William E. Hughes, (bottom left photo) senior vice president and managing director of MMCC.

“Michael has an impressive track record of arranging commercial real estate financing on a national scale,” says Hughes. “He brings a wealth of knowledge in arranging debt and equity finance transactions for multifamily, office, retail, industrial, and hospitality properties to his new position.”

Balan brings more than 20 years of commercial finance experience to the firm. He has been involved in more than $500 million in finance transactions. Prior to joining MMCC, Balan was the president of U.S. Capital Advisors Inc. Before that, he was vice president and lender for Amresco Commercial Finance Inc. and Bank of America.

Balan is a graduate of the University of Maryland and holds a bachelor’s degree in business management. He has a Florida mortgage broker’s license and belongs to the Mount Sinai Medical Center Foundation and Business Networking International.

Balan is a Leadership Miami Outstanding Community Service Project award recipient and is active with The Miami Beach JCC and Habitat for Humanity of Greater Miami.

Contact:  Stacey Corso, Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation,  (925) 953-1716