Saturday, November 19, 2011

Regency Centers Announces Closing of $250 Million Unsecured Term Loan



 JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Regency Centers Corporation (“Company”) announced  that it has closed on a $250 million unsecured term loan (“Term Loan”). The Term Loan has a five-year term and matures on December 15, 2016, but can be paid off at par any time prior to maturity. The Term Loan will be funded in January 2012.

The interest rate on the Term Loan is equal to LIBOR plus a margin that is determined in accordance with the Company’s long-term unsecured debt ratings. At the time of the closing, the effective interest rate was LIBOR plus 145 basis points.

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC was Sole Lead Arranger and Bookrunner. Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, was Administrative Agent. PNC Capital Markets LLC was Syndication Agent. Regions Bank,
SunTrust Bank and US Bank National Association were Documentation Agents and Bank of Tokyo –
Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. was Senior Managing Agent.

Other lenders for the new Term Loan were Bank of America, N.A., Comerica Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA., Royal Bank of Canada and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.

CONTACT: PATRICK JOHNSON, 904) 598-7422

HFF closes portfolio sale of three iconic San Francisco Bay area hotels in four separate transactions



SAN FRANCISCO, CA – HFF announced that it has closed the portfolio sale of 398 rooms consisting of three iconic, generational hotels in the San Francisco Bay area – The Huntington Hotel (middle right photo) in San Francisco, and the La Playa Hotel and Cottages-by-the-Sea (top left photo) in Carmel-by-the-Sea, in which the seller held a fee interest in the properties, as well as the Galleria Park Hotel (middle left photo) in San Francisco, in which the seller held a leased-fee interest in the land beneath the hotel.

HFF marketed the hotels on behalf of the seller, Nob Hill Properties, Inc.  The properties were purchased by four separate investors.  Grace International Pte Ltd, based in Singapore, purchased The Huntington Hotel (140 rooms),

Classic Hotels and Resorts, a subsidiary of Grossman Company Properties purchased La Playa Hotel (75 rooms and one cottage), Carmel Cottages, LLC purchased Cottages-by-the-Sea (five cottages), and an affiliate of  Interwest Capital Corporation purchased the Galleria Park Hotel (177 rooms).

The Huntington Hotel, located at 1075 California Street atop Nob Hill in San Francisco, is situated adjacent to Grace Cathedral and Huntington Park as well as other luxury hotels including the Fairmont, Mark Hopkins and the Ritz Carlton. 

The 12-story property, which is a short distance from the Financial District and Union Square shopping area, has 140 rooms, conference and meeting room facilities, the “award winning” Big 4 Restaurant, and Nob Hill Spa, named by the San Francisco Chronicle as “one of the most luxurious spas in the city.” The hotel was sold unencumbered by management and any franchise affiliation.

La Playa Hotel, a boutique Mediterranean-style resort, is located two blocks from Carmel Beach and Ocean Avenue in Carmel-by-the-Sea.  The historic resort is also less than two miles from a number of “world-renowned” golf courses including Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Cypress Point.  La Playa Hotel has 75 rooms plus one, stand-alone cottage, the Terrace Grill and five meeting rooms.  The resort was sold unencumbered by management and any franchise affiliation.

Cottages-by-the-Sea is a cluster of five “very unique” one- to three-bedroom cottages ranging in size from 448 to 2,163 square feet.  Cottages-by-the-Sea is located across the street from La Playa Hotel and will be operated separately from La Playa Hotel.

The Galleria Park Hotel, located at 191 Sutter Street in San Francisco, is nestled between Union Square and the Financial District.  The 177-room hotel is managed by Joie de Vivre Hospitality.

The HFF investment sales team representing Nob Hill Properties, Inc. included senior managing directors Daniel Peek (lower right photo), Michael Leggett and Gerry Rohm and managing director Holden Lim.

  
Contacts:                                                   
Holden Lim                                          Gerry Rohm
CA Lic. (#01328565)                                       CA Lic. (# 01367742)                         
HFF Managing Director                          HFF Senior Managing Director         
(415) 276-6948                                      (415) 276-6935                                   
hlim@hfflp.com                                     grohm@hfflp.com           

Kristen M. Murphy, Associate Director Marketing, (713) 852-3500, krmurphy@hfflp.com

New 26-Story Tower Proposed For Downtown Fort Lauderdale, FL


 MIAMI, FL -- As developers work to sell off the remaining one percent of the Downtown Fort Lauderdale condos created during the last real estate boom, South Florida's biggest vertical residential developer - Jorge Perez (top right photo) of the Related Group - is proposing a 26-story rental tower on the south bank of the New River. 

A Related Group-controlled entity is proceeding through the governmental process in hopes of constructing the proposed 256-unit New River Yacht Club on a site just west of Andrews Avenue that had once been slated for a condo tower, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. 

As of Nov. 17, 2011, developers have proposed at least 14 new highrise condo towers with more than 3,600 units for the tricounty South Florida region of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach, according to the CondoVultures.com Preconstruction Condo Projects list.

"Market conditions in the Downtown Fort Lauderdale and Beach condo market are improving," said Peter Zalewski (middle left photo), a principal with the Bal Harbour, Fla.-based real estate consultancy Condo Vultures® LLC.

"Only about 65 of the condos that were created during the real estate boom in the Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach market - dating back to 2003 - have not yet been sold. On the rental front, the Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach market has about a 45-day supply of condos available for lease as of November 2011.

"Given the numerous new condo towers being proposed for South Florida, we would not be surprised to see additional projects being planned for the Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach market."    (Fort Lauderdale skyline lower right photo)

CondoVultures.com is scheduled to profile residential real estate trends in the third quarter of 2011 in the seven largest coastal condo markets in the tricounty South Florida region of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.   

Beginning the week of Oct. 20, 2011, the Condo Vultures® Market Intelligence Report™ began publishing a seven-part series analyzing new condo sales trends in Greater Downtown Miami, South Beach, Sunny Isles Beach, Hollywood / Hallandale Beach, Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Beach, Boca Raton / Deerfield Beach, and Downtown West Palm Beach and Palm Beach Island.  
  
Condo Vultures® LLC is a real estate consultancy and marketing company based at 1005 Kane Concourse, Suite 205, Bal Harbour, Florida, 33154. You can reach Condo Vultures® LLC at 800-750-0517.


Voit Real Estate Services Completes New 12,000-SF Office Lease in Orange County, CA



RVINE, CA -- Michael Hartel (middle left photo) and Kevin Turner (middle right photo) of Voit Real Estate Services’ Irvine office have successfully completed a new, ten-year, 12,000 square-foot office lease in Irvine for a total consideration of $1.4 million.

Hartel and Turner, both Senior Vice Presidents in Voit’s Irvine office, represented the lessor, REEF Brookhollow, Inc., a real estate investment company.

“The Voit team has successfully represented REEF Brookhollow as a landlord in the past, and in this instance we identified a local vocational school as the right fit for this long-term lease,” said Hartel.
  
 The lessee, Empire Academy, is a make-up artistry school that is relocating its headquarters from Costa Mesa and will fully occupy the newly leased building (top left photo)
.
“Vocational schools are excellent tenants, especially in this economy, when people are working to re-train themselves in order to find new jobs,” commented Hartel.

“Our team worked diligently to ensure the space would meet the needs of the tenant, including bringing in an architect to demonstrate the various layout options available. Ultimately, we were successful in solidifying a deal that is beneficial to both the landlord and tenant.”

 According to its website, Empire Academy is a school for individuals interested in pursuing a career as a professional makeup artist. The academy offers courses ranging from introductory level through advanced artistry for television, video, film, print, runway, bridal and special effects.

Ron Semon of Paradise Commercial represented Empire Academy as the lessee in the transaction. The property is located at 1544 E. Warner Avenue in Irvine, Calif.
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Further information is available at www.voitco.com.

Contact:
Judith Brower
Brower, Miller & Cole
(949) 955-7940