Thursday, March 26, 2015

RealtyTrac Finds Spokane County, Washington is Top Investment Market


IRVINE, CA -- The 16 teams that survived the manic first rounds of the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament are diverse both in geography, conference affiliation, and size — from the smaller private Xavier University in Ohio, with less than 5,000 undergraduate students, to the mammoth University of California in Los Angeles, with more than 30,000 undergraduates.

All these diverse schools have enough talent, athleticism and coaching acumen to win their next game, and maybe the next, and end up in the Final Four, where all bets are off.

Brackets based on real estate

University of California, Los Angeles, CA
But if the brackets are filled out based on real estate investing metrics, the outcome of each matchup becomes much easier to predict. Real estate when done right can be a science.

Starting with the existing Sweet 16, RealtyTrac has filled out the remaining brackets based on four key factors to fundamentally sound real estate investing in the counties where the college towns are located.

Those four factors are unemployment rate, foreclosure discount, gross rent yields and average gross profit on flipping.

Based on this methodology, the clear champion is Spokane County, Washington, home to Gonzaga University.

University of Oklahoma
A slightly higher than average unemployment rate of 7.1 percent didn’t slow down this team’s victory with a strong foreclosure discount rate of 27.6 percent coupled with a nice gross rent yield of 8.4 percent and finally a hefty average gross profit on flipping.

 Spokane County wins thanks to an average gross profit return on property flips of $64,704 — compared to $47,657 for its opponent in the real estate investing championship game, Hamilton County, Ohio, home to the Xavier University.

Xavier University 
In the Final Four, Xavier University’s Hamilton County, Ohio, beats out Monongalia County, West Virginia, home to West Virginia University, thanks to a high gross rent yield of 11.6 percent above Monongalia County’s 7.1 percent. 

Meanwhile Spokane County, Washington, home of Gonzaga University, beats out Cleveland County, Oklahoma, home to Oklahoma University with a gross rent yield of 8.4 percent compared to 7.6 percent for the Sooners.

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

Jennifer von Pohlmann
Sr. Data PR Manager
Office: 949.502.8300 ext 139

IDI Gazeley Taps JLL to Manage 47 MSF Industrial Portfolio Across Nine States


Dan Pufunt
ATLANTA, GA - IDI Gazeley Brookfield Logistics Properties, a leading global investor and developer of logistics warehouses and distribution parks, has tapped JLL to manage 47 million square feet of industrial real estate located in Atlanta, Southern Florida, Cincinnati, Memphis, Chicago, New Jersey, central Pennsylvania, Southern California and several Texas markets.

The commission represents the firm’s largest industrial property management assignment in the United States.


“High-touch customer service, consistency and value creation are all values that IDI Gazeley and JLL share, creating an ideal collaboration and setting the stage for efficient management of a significant number of industrial assets,” said Dan Pufunt, President, Property Management at JLL.

“We have the right industrial experts on the ground in each of these markets to execute our client’s strategy and to help increase the value of the portfolio.”
The assignment totals 47 million square feet across 165 properties with the average property totalling 285,000 square feet.

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

Savannah Duncan • The Wilbert Group
1720 Peachtree St., Suite 350 • Atlanta, Ga. 30309
O: 404-343-0870  • M: 404-901-4433

George Smith Partners Secures $21 Million in Construction Financing for New Los Angeles Multifamily Development


Jonathan Lee
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (March 2, 2015) – Commercial real estate investment banking firm George Smith Partners has successfully arranged $21 million in financing for its client, Elite Real Estate, LLC, for the ground-up construction of  a 49-unit apartment community at 11965 – 11973 Montana Avenue in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.

The development is planned to be one of the largest multifamily projects built in Brentwood in the past decade, totaling more than 80,088 square feet of living space, according to George Smith Partners’ Senior Vice President Jonathan Lee. 

Lee was assisted in the transaction by George Smith Partners Analyst, Adam Candler.

            “The Brentwood area has seen little development over the past ten years, fueling pent-up demand for high quality rentals in this affluent marketplace,” explained Lee.

 “This luxury, Class A development is well-positioned to be competitive in the market.  The project will feature units that are built to condominium specifications, resulting in large unit sizes when compared to neighboring communities.”

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

Corynne Randel/ Jenn Quader
Brower, Miller & Cole
(949) 955-7940