Stan Johnson Co. Completes Sale of Two Garden Ridge Properties in Oklahoma for $19.6 million.

Garden Ridge retail center, 
701 S. Macarthur, 
Oklahoma City, OK

Ken Hedrick (left) and Jerry Hopkins

TULSA, OK(April 22, 2013) – Stan Johnson Company, one of the nation’s premier net lease brokerage firms, has completed the sale of two Garden Ridge retail stores for a total of $19.6 million. The properties are located at 11015 E. 51st Street South in Tulsa, OK, and 701 S. Macarthur in Oklahoma City, OK.  

Ken Hedrick, Andrew Ragsdale and Jerry Hopkins of Stan Johnson Company represented the seller, New York-based W.P. Carey Inc. The buyer was Arizona-based STORE Capital.

Andrew Ragsdale

Both properties are 100 percent leased by Garden Ridge Corporation under absolute bondable NNN leases, and have been occupied by Garden Ridge since 1996. The portfolio featured 11.5 years remaining of primary lease term, with four, five-year renewal options.

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

David Ebeling

Ebeling Communications

(949) 278-7851

Steady Progress: Industrial Real Estate Continues to Grow Healthier

Michael Bull in radio booth

 ATLANTA, GA (April 22, 2013) – Buoyed by improvements in the overall economy and the housing market, the U.S. industrial real estate sector continued to strengthen in first-quarter 2013 and is set for a promising future.

 That was the consensus of a panel of experts on the most recent episode of the “Commercial Real Estate Show” radio program, hosted by Michael Bull of Bull Realty. The episode provided an enlightening look at industrial real estate’s performance in the first quarter. Topics included vacancy rates, investment sales, active tenants and cap rates.

Net absorption of industrial real estate in the 54 largest U.S. markets totaled 25 million square feet in the first quarter, said Rene Circ, director of research for PPR, a CoStar-owned firm. That figure, while a good bit below the 40 million square feet of absorption typical of a pre-recession quarter, is still about three times larger than first-quarter 2012’s total, according to Circ.

Rene Circ

At the same time that demand is growing, new supply continues to remain “exceptionally low,” Circ said. About 13 million square feet of new industrial facilities were delivered in the United States during the first quarter, and roughly 38 million square feet of facilities were under construction at the end of March. Both figures are well below historical averages, Circ noted.

 Consequently, the national vacancy rate for the industrial sector dipped to 8.2 percent in the first quarter, a 20-basis-point decline from the preceding quarter and a 100-basis-point drop from one year earlier, Circ noted. The average rent increased by 2.5 percent on a year-over-year basis during the quarter.

Jim Brice

Overall, “we had a really good quarter during the first three months of the year,” Circ said. The national vacancy rate could drop to about 7.7 percent by year’s end, he added.

 Much of the tenant activity in the past two years has centered around e-commerce firms moving into large distribution facilities, said Jim Brice, a partner with Holt Lunsford Commercial, a Dallas-based commercial real estate firm. However, smaller tenants – those occupying 300,000 square feet or less – have started to return to the sector as suppliers respond to an improving housing market, he added.

  

Rob Riner

 “Everything that goes into a house has to be in a warehouse,” Brice said. “So as home-building increases, there’s no question [warehousing is] going to increase as well.”

 The industrial sector has improved to the point that some spec construction is taking place around the country, and REITs are responsible for more than 90 percent of that activity, according to Rob Riner, a partner in the Dallas office of Panattoni Development. “It’s easy for REITs since they don’t have to go do a normal bank loan that other equity sources will sometimes have to do,” Riner said.

 The entire episode on the U.S. industrial market is available for download at www.CREshow.com. The next “Commercial Real Estate Show” will be available April 25 and will examine the U.S. office market.

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

Stephen Ursery

The Wilbert Group

E-mail: sursery@thewilbertgroup.com

Office: (404) 965-5026

Cell: (404) 405-2354

www.thewilbertgroup.com

  

Cortland Acquires 2,237 Apartment Homes in Atlanta, GA and Dallas, TX for $244 Million

                            Lexington Farms Apartments, Alpharetta, GA

ATLANTA, GA (April 22, 2013) — Cortland Partners continued its expansion in the multifamily sector by acquiring five communities totaling 2,237 apartment homes in a series of transactions with a total capital investment of $244 million. Four of the communities are located in the Atlanta MSA and the fifth is in the Dallas MSA.

Steven DeFrancis

The Atlanta-based multifamily investment firm funded the acquisitions in part through equity provided by its new alliance with two institutional capital partners. Debt capital for the transactions was provided by Freddie Mac through Walker Dunlop ($75.85 million) and through a loan commitment led by Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation ($107.1 million).

 “We continue the execution of our strategic investment plan as we hit our stride with these acquisitions and new institutional capital sources. Our portfolio has grown from 1,900 apartment homes to just under 13,000 apartment homes during the past three years,” said Steven DeFrancis, CEO of Cortland Partners.

                                Coventry at Cityview Apartments, Fort Worth, TX

“We have improved our economies of scale in Texas with the addition of Coventry at Cityview in Fort Worth, enhanced our allocation in the Atlanta market, which is poised to outperform the national economy, and continued to evolve the capital structure of the firm.”

 The new alliance with two institutional capital partners provides Cortland a total of $200 million ofequity capital to acquire communities in its selected markets throughout Texas and the Southeast. The first five of these investments include the following:

                                Idlewylde Apartments, Duluth, GA

·      Coventry at Cityview in Fort Worth with 360 apartment homes.

·      Idlewylde in the Duluth area of Atlanta with 843 apartment homes. Cortland intends to operate this investment as two separate communities, consistent with the original development of the two-phased community. The seller was Associated Estates, a NYSE-traded REIT.

·      Promenade at Peachtree in the Brookhaven/Chamblee area of Atlanta with 406 apartment homes.

·      Lexington Farms in the Alpharetta area of Atlanta with 360 apartment homes.

·      Longwood in the Decatur area of Atlanta with 268 apartment homes.

Promenade at Peachtree,Lexington Farms and Longwood were sold by Equity Residential, a NYSE-tradedREIT.

                                    Promenade at Peachtree Apartments

                                    Brookhaven/Chamblee area of Atlanta, GA

Cortland plans to invest in various interior and exterior upgrades to the communities consistent with its value-add investment strategy. “We have $140 million of equity capital for future investments through this new equity capital alliance. We are actively seeking investments that meet our value creation criteria throughout our targeted markets,” DeFrancis said.

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

Stephen Ursery

The Wilbert Group

E-mail: sursery@thewilbertgroup.com

Office: (404) 965-5026

Cell: (404) 405-2354

www.thewilbertgroup.com

Tony Wilbert

The Wilbert Group

404-965-5022 (O) 404-405-3656 (C)

twilbert@thewilbertgroup.com

www.cortlandpartners.com

HFF Washington, D.C. expands retail investment sales group

John Owendoff

WASHINGTON, D.C. – HFF announced today that it has hired John Owendoff  in its Washington, D.C. office to focus on retail property investment sale transactions throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.  Owendoff will team up with Jordan Lex, who has been with HFF since 2006. 

                Owendoff and Lex will be part of a national retail investment sale team that closed $12.1 billion of sales in 383 million square feet over the last 10 years. 

The new team will work closely with Danny Finkle and Barry Brown who co-head the HFF retail effort nationally.

Jordan Lex

 HFF was ranked #3 Top Retail Broker in 2012 by Real Capital Analytics and #3 Top Broker of Shopping Centers in 2012 by Real Estate Alert and  is one of the leading retail intermediaries in the U. S. as ranked by the Mortgage Bankers Association. 

                Owendoff joins HFF from Cushman & Wakefield, where he was most recently a senior director in the capital markets group. 

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

Kristen M. Murphy

Associate Director

HFF | 9 Greenway Plaza, Suite 700 | Houston, TX 77046

tel 713.852.3500 | cel 617.543.4873 | fax 713.527.8725 | www.hfflp.com

krmurphy@hfflp.com

HFF closes $24.3 million sale of Seattle area multi-housing community

                  Watercrest Apartments, 14812 Bothell Way, Lake Forst Park, WA

PORTLAND, OR – HFF announced today that it has closed the sale of Watercrest Apartments, a 174-unit, garden-style multi-housing community in Lake Forest Park, a suburb of Seattle, Washington.

Ira Virden

                HFF marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Guardian Real Estate Services. Weidner Apartment Homes purchased the property for $24.3 million free and clear of existing debt.

                Watercrest Apartments is located at 14812 Bothell Way less than 1,000 feet from the north shore of Lake Washington in Lake Forest Park.  Built in 1968 and most recently renovated in 2008, the property features lake views and 174 one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging approximately 906 square feet each.  

Dean Weidner

Community amenities include a swimming pool, sauna, 24-hour fitness center, covered parking and clubhouse.

                The HFF investment sales team was led by director Ira Virden and senior real estate analyst Kerry Hughes.

“This property offered investors an excellent opportunity to acquire a well-located, recently renovated asset with value left to be created.  This property will benefit from the booming economic climate in Seattle, which will further drive NOI growth,” commented Virden.

                Established in 1971 and headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Guardian Real Estate Services has evolved into a leading management, development and investment firm. 

  The company offers a diversified real estate service platform including property management, investments, development and advisory services.  Guardian delivers custom solutions by offering a higher level of expertise, resources and creative capacity to develop a unique approach for each client. 

Weidner Apartment Homes, founded in 1977 by Dean Weidner, is an owner, investor and manager of multi-housing properties. Currently ranked #36 on the NMHC Top 50 list of apartment owners, Weidner owns more than 35,000 units throughout the United States and Canada.

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

Kristen M. Murphy

Associate Director

HFF | 9 Greenway Plaza, Suite 700 | Houston, TX 77046

tel 713.852.3500 | cel 617.543.4873 | fax 713.527.8725 | www.hfflp.com

krmurphy@hfflp.com

HSA Commercial Breaks Ground on a 270,000 SF Adaptive Reuse Retail Development in Suburban Milwaukee, WI

The Mayfair Collection rendering, Wauwatosa. WI  

CHICAGO, IL (April 22, 2013)— Officials from HSA Commercial joined leaders from the City of Wauwatosa to celebrate the groundbreaking of Phase I of The Mayfair Collection, a large-scale, mixed-use development at Highway 45 and Burleigh Street in suburban Milwaukee, Wis.

Timothy C. Blum

Phase I of the project will consist of adaptively repurposing functionally obsolete warehouse buildings along Highway 45 into new, contemporary retail environments that, through innovative design, celebrate the property’s industrial heritage.

 The Mayfair Collection project has attracted interest from unique, best-in-class retailers seeking their first locations in suburban Milwaukee and in the trade area of nearby Mayfair Mall, the primary regional shopping destination in the state of Wisconsin.

Nordstrom Rack, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Ulta Cosmetics, and other category-leading retailers have signed leases for the development’s first phase which is scheduled to open in the summer of 2014.

 “Our leasing efforts target the best possible retailers that will keep the Mayfair Mall trade area at the center of the retail universe in Wisconsin,” said Tim Blum, executive vice president with HSA Commercial.

 “Attracting that type of regional traffic will be essential in kick-starting a long-term development plan that achieves the ambitious vision that we share with the community of Wauwatosa.”

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

Mark Thomton,

mthomton@taylorjohnson.com,

(312)-267-4523    

Modus Hotels Partners with Alex. Brown Realty to Acquire The Normandy Hotel in Dupont Circle, Washington, D.C.

                          Normandy Hotel, 2118 Wyoming Ave. NW, Washington, DC

Washington, D.C.  (April 22, 2013) -  Modus Hotels, the Washington, D.C.-based owner and operator of lifestyle hotels and Alex. Brown Realty (ABR), a Baltimore, Maryland-based real estate manager, have acquired the 75-room Normandy Hotel for $16 million, or a cost of $213,000 per key. 

Aaron Katz

ABR Chesapeake Fund IV, a value-added real estate fund sponsored by ABR, invested in the venture.

Located in the Kalorama and Dupont neighborhoods of Washington, D.C., the acquisition brings Modus’ growing portfolio to thirteen hotels, with seven in the metro D.C. area.

  “Recently having undergone a $6 million renovation, The Normandy reflects a sophisticated personality and style and is a perfect complement to our expanding collection of distinctive, lifestyle hotels,” commented Aaron Katz, president and CEO of Modus Hotels.

Avenue Suites Georgetown, Washington, DC

 “We continue to have a strong appetite for properties in destination marketplaces with high barriers to entry at below replacement costs where we feel we can add value through a combination of superior management and, when necessary, material property improvements.”

                                   Brookshire Hotel and Suites, Baltimore, MC

 Located at 2118 Wyoming Avenue, N.W., The Normandy Hotel joins the Modus Hotels’ collection of upscale lifestyle properties operating in D.C., Baltimore, Chicago and Philadelphia, which include such hotels as The River Inn, Avenue Suites Georgetown, The Quincy, The Windsor Suites and The Brookshire Hotel and Suites, Inner Harbor Baltimore.

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

Chris Daly

President

Daly Gray, Inc.

Ph: 703-435-6293

Cell: 703-864-5553

www.abrealty.com

http://modushotels.com

Ackerman & Co. Sells Fresh Market in Winston Salem, NC for $4.6 Million

     

                                            Fresh Market, Winston Salem, NC

Atlanta, GA– Ackerman & Co has brokered the sale of a 21,018-square-foot grocery store in Winston Salem, NC for $4,640,000 to The Fresh Market.

Sean Patrick

Part of the Mount Tabor Place Development, the  property is located along the busy Robinhood Road Corridor near Wake Forest University and is adjacent to major retailers CVS, Starbuck’s, PNC Bank.

The Ackerman & Co. investment sales team of Sean Patrick and Jason Powell represented the seller (and developer), Mount Tabor Place II, LLC in the transaction.

Jason Powell

The property was purchased by COLE Capital. This sale represented unique ability to purchase a single-tenant Fresh Market with great sales in a strong submarket. 

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

Fara Wilson,

VP of Marketing

770. 913.3904  | 

fwilson@ackermanco.net

 www.ackermanco.net