Grubb & Ellis|Commercial Florida Names Donald Lombardi to Head Tax Assessment Consulting Services in Tampa

TAMPA, FL - Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida has appointed Donald Lombardi (top right photo) director of Tax Assessment Consulting Services.

Jeffrey S. Sweeney, SIOR, president of Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida, which is associated with 130 Grubb & Ellis offices worldwide, said Lombardi holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees from California State University, Fullerton, and attended University of Florida for three years of post-masters studies.

Lombardi was formerly a vice president with CB Richard Ellis, and president of Lombardi Florida Land Consulting in Tampa prior to joining Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida.

“The economic downturn has generated an aggressive new attitude on the part of local government taxing authorities and most commercial property owners are seeing an expensive overlap between fair market values and assessed values,” said Sweeney.

He has a thorough understanding of real estate market forces and commercial real estate operations. His thorough understanding of property tax issues for all segments of commercial real estate will play a big role helping commercial property owners pay their fair share of taxes,” Sweeney said.

Lombardi will be working out of the Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida office in Tampa.

Contacts:

Jeffrey Sweeney, 407-481-5387
Donald Lombardi 813-639-1111

http://www.commercialfl.com/

Diminished Buyer Pool in Miami Presents Opportunities for Retail Investors

MIAMI, FL— Retail properties in Miami-Dade County recorded negative net absorption in the first quarter as accumulating job losses stymied retail spending and forced merchants to vacate, according to a second-quarter Retail Research Report by Marcus & Millichap, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm.

Additional increases in vacancy are expected during the remainder of 2009 as more tenants close and others reduce planned store openings.
“Investment activity has been quiet,” says Kirk Felici, (top right photo) regional manager of the Miami office of Marcus & Millichap.

“For prospective buyers, though, a lack of velocity and a thin investor pool could signal that now may be an opportune time to buy.”

Following are some of the most significant aspects of the Miami Retail Research Report:

· Employment in the county will decrease by 43,000 jobs, or 4.2 percent, in 2009, compared with a loss of 36,400 positions last year. Due to the decline in employment, retail spending is projected to fall approximately 10 percent this year.

· Developers have projects totaling 600,000 square feet slated to come online in 2009, which will expand retail stock 0.8 percent. In 2008, nearly 2.2 million square feet was completed.

· Supply growth will be minimal this year, but demand will remain soft, leading to a 180 basis point increase in the vacancy rate to 8.5 percent. Vacancy rose 160 basis points last year.

· Waning space demand will produce a 4.1 percent decrease in asking rents in 2009 to $23.59 per square foot, compared with a 1.4 percent rise last year. A 5.6 percent decline in effective rents to $20.36 per square foot is projected, one year after effective rents slid 1.7 percent.

For a copy of the complete Miami Retail Research Report, as well as reports on other markets nationwide, visit our website at http://www.marcusmillichap.com/.

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

Grubb & Ellis Promotes 11 Top Producers

CHICAGO, IL – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, has promoted 10 professionals to executive vice president from senior vice president and one professional to senior vice president status.

The new executive vice presidents are:

John Gavin (top right photo),
Jim Kerrigan (top left photo),
Paul Lundstedt (middle right photo under John Gavin photo),

Vineet Sahgal (middle left photo under Jim Kerrigan photo),
Jay Stewart (middle right photo under Paul Lundstedt photo),
Sven Sykes (middle left photo under Vineet Sahgal photo),
Tom Tunnicliff (middle left photo under Seven Sykes photo)

Tom Volini (middle right photo under Jay Stewart photo )
George Cushing (bottom right photo)

Tom Page (bottom left photo)

Jeff Perpich, new senior vice president, bottom left photo under Tom Page photo)

“The consistently high performance and commitment to superior client service demonstrated by these distinguished individuals set the standard for professionals throughout our company and the entire industry,” said Jack Van Berkel, chief operating officer of Grubb & Ellis and
president, Real Estate Services.

“We are very proud of what they have achieved during their careers and couldn’t be more pleased to have them on our team.”

Lundstedt and Gavin, comprising one of the leading institutional investment teams in the Chicago area, joined Grubb & Ellis’ Institutional Capital Markets group in February of 2009 from Cushman & Wakefield, where they served as executive directors in the Capital Markets Group and were consistently ranked as top producers nationally.

Lundstedt and Gavin have participated in major disposition and recapitalization projects with a total value in excess of $15 billion and $10 billion, respectively.

Kerrigan joined Grubb & Ellis in September of 2008 to lead the company’s National Data Center practice group.

Previously, he was a principal with Staubach and then Jones Lang LaSalle, where he represented clients such as DuPont Fabros, Equinix and SAVVIS Inc.

Kerrigan is a member of the data center organization 7x24 Exchange International, the Chicago Office Leasing Brokers Association, and is a director on the University of Illinois Real Estate Forum.

Sahgal, who joined Grubb & Ellis in 2005, represents a number of national tenants in multiple markets, including Careerbuilder.com, for which he negotiated the lease for the company’s 150,000-square-foot downtown Chicago headquarters in 2008.

Previously, he was senior vice president of the Corporate Advisory/Tenant Representation practice at Jones Lang LaSalle, where was elected to the Jones Lang LaSalle Club recognizing the top five percent of the firm’s officers.

Sahgal has transacted over 6 million square feet of lease transactions in his career and has been consistently recognized at Grubb & Ellis Company’s Circle of Excellence.

Stewart and Tunnicliff, who joined Grubb & Ellis in 2007, are one of the most successful tenant representation teams in the metropolitan Chicago area.

Representative clients include Harley-Davidson Financial Services, Inc., Environ International, Forsythe Solutions Group, Inc., Summit Marketing, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Wells Fargo and Xchanging, Inc.

Previously, Stewart and Tunnicliff were executive vice presidents with Trammel Crow Company, and principals and managing directors at the John Buck Company.

Sykes, a director in the company’s Tenant Advisory Group, represents clients on a national basis including Hallmark Corporation, NAVTEQ and HNTB.

Over the course of his 24-year career, he has completed more than 800 office leasing assignments totaling more than 18 million square feet. Prior to joining Grubb & Ellis in 2003, Sykes was an executive director of Insignia/ESG’s Chicago office.

Volini joined Grubb & Ellis’ Tenant Advisory Group in 2001 and represents office tenants on a national basis. A 15-year veteran of the industry, Volini has completed tenant representation assignments totaling more than 8 million square feet with total consideration in excess of $2 billion.

Since 2003, he has consistently been an honoree at Grubb & Ellis' Circle of Excellence awards, ranking him among the top brokerage professionals companywide.

“George (Cushing) and Ken (Page) have demonstrated high integrity and consistently excelled throughout their careers,” said Berkel. “We are very proud of what they have achieved as industry professionals and couldn’t be more pleased to have them on our team.”

With more than 32 years of experience, Cushing specializes in the sale of retail investment properties. He has qualified six times for the Circle of Excellence, which recognizes the company’s top brokerage sales professionals, and serves as a member of Grubb & Ellis’ Brokerage Leadership Board.

Since the year 2000, Cushing has facilitated the sale of 97 shopping centers throughout Texas and the U.S. He was ranked the No. 1 broker in Houston four of the last six years, ranked No. 1 in Texas in 2008 and has ranked nationally in the company’s top 10 brokers three of the last five years.

Page, a 25-year veteran of the commercial real estate industry, is responsible for real estate investment banking activities, including the marketing of investment property for sale in the Southwest region.

He is a member of Grubb & Ellis’ Institutional Capital Markets Group. He has sold more than 30 million square feet of space throughout his career and since 2006, space valued at approximately $1 billion.

Jeff Perpich, one of the premier management services and asset management professionals in the Midwest, has joined the firm as senior vice president, director of Management Services, effective immediately.

“The Chicago market has one of the deepest pools of real estate talent in the country, and we had a lot of very qualified candidates to choose from,” said Eric Forshee, executive managing director, Grubb & Ellis Management Services, Inc. “Jeff quickly rose to the top of our list because of his vast experience in every aspect of our selection criteria. We are happy he decided to join our growing team of professionals.”

In this new position, Perpich will lead Grubb & Ellis’ property management team in Chicago and oversee and expand the company’s Management Services business in the Midwest markets.

Contacts:

Erin Mays, 312.698.6735, erin.mays@grubb-ellis.com

Julia McCartney, 714.975.2230, julia.mccartney@grubb-ellis.com

Damon Elder, 714.975.2659, damon.elder@grubb-ellis.com

Marcus & Millichaps Promotes 3 to Regional Manager Posts

DAN COLACHICCO IS NEW REGIONAL MANAGER OF ORLANDO OFFICE

ORLANDO, FL-- Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has named Dan Colachicco (top right photo) regional manager of the firm’s Orlando office, according to Harvey E. Green, (bottom left photo) president and chief executive officer.

“Dan’s extensive commercial real estate brokerage skills and sales management expertise make him an invaluable resource to our agents and clients throughout Central Florida,” says Green.

Colachicco joined the Orlando office of Marcus & Millichap in 2004 as an office, industrial and retail investment specialist. He achieved associate status and earned a sales recognition award in 2007. Most recently, Colachicco was the sales manager in the Orlando office.

Prior to joining the firm, Colachicco owned and operated a commercial brokerage and development firm in Longwood, Fla. He also was the national site selector for a global executive suite company. As site selector, he expanded the company’s office portfolio from nine to 41 locations.

J. MICHAEL WATSON NAMED REGIONAL MANAGER IN AUSTIN

AUSTIN, TX--Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has named J. Michael Watson (middle left photo) regional manager of the firm’s Austin office, according to Harvey E. Green, president and chief executive officer.

“Michael has been serving as the regional manager of the San Antonio office since May 2008 and he will now manage both offices,” comments Green. “His extensive management experience and his highly successful track record as an investment specialist make him an invaluable resource to our clients and agents in Austin, San Antonio and throughout Texas.”

Watson joined the Austin office as a sales associate in 2003. He was named a director of the firm’s National Multi Housing Group (NMHG) in 2006 and was promoted to senior associate. Watson became a member of the firm’s prestigious Seven Figure Club in 2007. He is the recipient of one National Achievement Award and three Sales Achievement Awards.

In November of 2007, Watson joined the management team as sales manager of the Houston office. Prior to joining Marcus & Millichap, Watson served as a U.S. Marine Corps officer for over 13 years, both on active duty and reserves, and also worked as a finance controller at Advanced Micro Devices in Austin. He holds a bachelor’s degree in geology and an M.B.A. from Texas A & M University.

BRENT SMITH GETS REGIONAL MANAGER JOB IN HOUSTON

HOUSTON, TX– Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has named Brent Smith (bottom right photo) regional manager of the firm’s Houston office, according to Harvey E. Green, president and chief executive officer.

“Brent’s extensive experience in sales management and his successful track record as an investment specialist make him an invaluable resource to our clients and agents in Houston, throughout Texas and the southwestern United States.”

Most recently, Smith was the sales manager of the Austin office. He joined Marcus & Millichap in 2003 as an investment specialist focusing on shopping centers in southern Texas.

During his first year as a broker, he generated marketing assignments in excess of $28 million and closed more than $17 million in transactions. Also in 2003, Smith opened the firm’s San Antonio office. In 2004, he achieved associate status and in 2005, he was promoted to sales manager of the Houston office.

Prior to joining the firm, Smith spent eight years in the marketing. He co-founded the Yehti Corp., a software company for which he helped raise more than $2 million in private startup capital. He also managed product marketing for Dell Computer Corp.’s $4.5 billion Dimension product line and served as an operations manager for United Parcel Service.

Smith received a bachelor’s degree in finance and an MBA from The University of Texas.

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

Marcus & Millichap Sells 4,152-SF Single-Tenant Net-Leased Building in Sarasota, FL

SARASOTA, FL, June 5, 2009 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has announced the sale of Valley National Gas, (bottom left photo) a 4,152 square-foot single-tenant net-leased property located in Sarasota, Florida, according to Bryn D. Merrey, (top right photo) Regional Manager of the firm’s Tampa office.

The asset commanded a sales price of $330,000.

Michael Jaworski, (middle right photo) an investment specialist in Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office, had the exclusive listing to market the property on behalf of the seller, a private investor.

The buyer, a partnership, was secured and represented by Ronald Schultz, an investment specialist in Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office.

The tenant was recently purchased by Matheson Tri-Gas, a subsidiary of Japan-based Taiyo Nippon Sanso Group.

“This greatly improved the credit of the existing tenant and made the deal extremely attractive to the buyer”, states Jaworski.

This free-standing, single-tenant, triple-net leased industrial property was built in 1982 and is located at 6671 15th Street East in Sarasota, Florida. Valley National Gas has been in business for over 50 years and operates in 18 states with 90 locations.

Press Contact: Bryn D. MerreyRegional Manager, Tampa(813) 387-4700

Liberty Property Trust Receives Leed Gold Core and Shell Certification for Tampa Building

TAMPA, FL-- Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LRY), the real estate investment trust that owns and manages nearly 2.8 million square feet of office and industrial properties in Tampa, announced that its 4631 Woodland Boulevard (top right photo) building has earned LEED Gold-CS (Core and Shell) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

This project marks the first speculative office building in Tampa to receive LEED-CS Gold certification.

“Our team was very diligent from the onset of this project, initially with its design to meet LEED-CS certification and through the development process,” said Jody Johnston, (middle left photo) vice president and city manager, Liberty Property Trust.

“During construction we recycled 96% of all building materials, diverting waste to overcrowded landfills. Our team also paid very close attention to energy and resource conservation, indoor air quality and tenant exposure to natural light.

"We project an estimated 20% savings in energy costs by using high energy-efficient HVAC equipment and a 50% reduction in water usage using water reducing fixtures - these are significant savings.”

“This building represents a new era in office space options within the Tampa market,” said Liberty’s LEED consultant Joanna Switzer, (botom right photo) senior consultant at Green Building Services.

"Liberty has demonstrated a commitment to their tenants by offering a building with ample access to views, daylight, and optimal air quality.

"Liberty has also incorporated sustainable principles into their own office suite within the building and provided educational information to tenants regarding the importance of using low-VOC products and energy efficient systems designs to further contribute to the long-term health and performance of the building.”

Contacts:

General Inquiries: Jody Johnston, Liberty Property Trust, 813/881-1776

Media Contact: Margo Hunt Winans, a.s.a.p.r., 757/404-8653

Junior Achievement and Gensler Announce Groundbreaking of “Junior Achievement Finance Park” in Fairfax County, VA

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA--Junior Achievement and Gensler announce the groundbreaking of the Junior Achievement Finance Park (top left rendering) on June 11, 2009, from 10:30 – 11:30 a.m.

On-site camera and interview opportunities will be available with state and local officials, Fairfax County middle school students, and officials from Junior Achievement, Fairfax County Public Schools, Gensler and Capital One Financial Corporation.

Finance Park represents Junior Achievement’s major commitment to financial literacy education to Greater Washington and underscores the importance of its vision to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy.

Junior Achievement (JA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to teaching workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy to students through experience-rich, hands-on programs. Their student programs have been so successful that Fairfax County Public Schools has made the Junior Achievement curriculum mandatory for all Fairfax County students.

Junior Achievement Finance Park will be located on the campus of Frost Middle School in the heart of Fairfax County and is scheduled to open in early 2010. Finance Park will teach students the important guidelines of personal budgeting and real-life adult responsibilities through an experience similar to a “mini-city”.

Gensler designed a gracious, modern facility that will house a marketplace of branded storefronts. The city atmosphere will allow students the opportunity to apply financial and economical decision-making skills in a real world, but safe “city” setting.

Contact: Julia Chappell, Gensler, 202-721-5341, julia_chappell@gensler.com

CBRE's Shelton Granade Name to 40 Under 40 List

ORLANDO, FL– The Orlando office of CB Richard Ellis is pleased to announce that Shelton Granade, (top right photo) First Vice President and head of the Central Florida Multi-Housing Group, has been named to Real Estate Florida Magazine's "40 Under 40" list.

The "40 under 40" list honors select men and women under the age of 40 who are helping to shape the future through their business and community involvement.

Granade and the CBRE Central Florida Multi-Housing Group have been recognized as the top apartment sales team in Orlando over the last several years. The Group has closed more than $3 billion in local apartment sales over the last five years, and Granade was CBRE's top apartment broker in Florida in 2008.

Contact: mrose@cbremarketing.com

RealtyTrac and Keller Williams Realty Launch New Strategic Partnership

IRVINE, CA – RealtyTrac™ (http://www.realtytrac.com/), the leading online marketplace for foreclosure properties, and Keller Williams Realty Inc., the third-largest residential real estate franchise in the United States, announced today a new strategic partnership where RealtyTrac will provide comprehensive national foreclosure data on KW.com, the company’s national Website.

“This is an exciting new partnership with one of the nation’s leading real estate franchises and we are thrilled to be providing Keller Williams Realty with foreclosure data,” said Rick Sharga, (top left photo) senior vice president of RealtyTrac.

“We plan to grow our partnership with Keller Williams Realty by adding educational content on foreclosures and other valuable resources to help the company’s associates and customers.”

As part of the new partnership, RealtyTrac will provide real-time foreclosure search capabilities to KW.com, so that visitors to the Website can access pre-foreclosure, auction and bank-owned foreclosure properties.

“We are excited to add foreclosure data to KW.com,” said Cary Sylvester, (middle right photo) executive director of technology at Keller Williams Realty International. “By adding foreclosure data to our website, we are adding a valuable tool to enable home sellers, home buyers and our associates to get a great snapshot of the current foreclosure landscape.”

Contact: Tammy Chan Atomic PR. Direct: 212-699-3646. Mobile: 408-802-8682, tammy@atomicpr.com

Stan Johnson Co. launches new website focused on providing real time information

TULSA, OK – Stan Johnson Company, one of the nation’s premier net lease brokerage firms, has launched a new website – http://www.stanjohnsonco.com/ – that focuses providing real time information to investors, brokers and those interested in the net lease and commercial real estate industry.

“We’ve designed our new website to be resourceful to the commercial real estate investment savvy, and provide answers to questions relating to the what's happening in the commercial real estate market today and tomorrow,” said Tamra Davis, (top right photo) marketing manager, Stan Johnson Company.

Some of the new features include:

· Net Lease Perspectives Blog: Updated weekly by Stan Johnson Company CEO, Stan Johnson to address what its net lease specialists are experiencing in today’s market in terms of cap rates, property valuation, credit trends and more. Join other commercial real estate professionals and investors in our discussion on the hot topics of today.

· Cap Rate Forecast: A forecast of what Stan Johnson Company predicts where cap rates will be in 90 days and what are the major drivers.

· Opinion Polls – An opportunity to vote and view the results to polls related to where you think the net lease sector is heading.

Additionally, the new website contains an enhanced property search feature as well as a cleaner, simpler layout that allows you to quickly locate information with fewer steps.

Contact: David Ebeling, Ebeling Communications, (949) 278-7851. david@ebelingcomm.com

Sluggish New York City Home Sales Market Throws Curve at Treasury Secretary Geithner

LARCHMONT, NY—The nation’s bloggers are having a field day today. They are poking fun at Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner—not because of any new government policy decision but at Geithner’s unsuccessful efforts to sell his home.

Geithner, however, has proven he is a savvy real estate market watcher.

After three months of no-takers for his five-bedroom, 78-year-old home in the north New York City suburb of Larchmont, NY, the treasury secretary has rented the Tudor-styled property for $7,500 a month or $90,000 on an annualized basis.

That revenue will cover Geithner’s annual property tax bill of $27,000 but still won’t be enough to match his monthly mortgage payments on two loans totaling $1.25 million, according to published reports.

However, persons in a position to know doubt seriously that Geithner will be seeking temporary relief on the mortgage payments from his lender.

He makes $191,300 as Secretary of the Treasury, the same as his boss, Fed chairman Ben S. Bernanke. Last year, as president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, Geithner earned $398,000. President Barack Obama makes $400,000 a year.

Geithner and his wife, Carole Sonnenfeld Geithner, paid $1.6 million for their home in 2004, according to Westchester County real estate records. After being named Treasury Secretary in January of this year, the Geithners put their home on the market with an asking price of $1.635 million.

Three weeks later, they dropped the price to $1.575 million. On May 21, they rented the house to an undisclosed tenant. The name of the Geithner’s real estate agent also was not disclosed.

The median home price in Westchester County in the first three months of this year was $532,000, according to the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. Only a few sales in the $1 million-plus category have been closed to date.

Westchester County Realtors don’t expect prices to stabilize this year because of the surplus of available properties, according to published reports. That means more Westchester home owners will be renting rather than selling over the next 12 months, they estimate.

The Geithner home has a Larchmont mailing address but the property is actually nearer to the town of Mamaroneck, according to local Realtors. The Winged Foot Golf Club, home of frequent golf championship events, is located in Mamaroneck.

HFF arranges sale and financing of The Livingston in Plano, TX

DALLAS, TX – The Dallas office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it has closed the sale of and arranged acquisition financing for The Livingston, (top right photo) a 180-unit, Class A multifamily community built by local developer Tonti Properties in Plano, Texas.

The HFF investment sales team was led by managing directors Bill Miller (middle left photo) and Roberto Casas (bottom right photo) who marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Tonti Properties.

Sunstone Realty Advisors purchased The Livingston for an undisclosed amount free and clear of debt.

“The sale of The Livingston went very smoothly and closed in just over 60 days. Sunstone bought a great asset in an excellent location just off Wyndhaven and the North Dallas Tollway.

Tonti Properties’ strategy of holding their assets for the long-term is evident in the quality of the assets they develop,” said Miller.

Senior managing director John Brownlee (bottom left photo) handled the debt portion of the transaction on behalf of Sunstone Realty Advisors, arranging the $12.845 million loan through Wachovia Multifamily Capital, Inc. – FNMA.

The financing has a seven-year term and a 5.38 percent fixed-rate. Loan proceeds were used to acquire the property.

The Livingston is located at 6301 Windhaven Parkway adjacent to the Dallas North Tollway in the northern Dallas suburb of Plano.

The 96.7 percent leased property has one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging 1,188 square feet each. Community amenities include a swimming pool, fitness center, laundry facility and 190 attached garages.

“The Livingston’s location in West Plano is ideal. It is close to numerous corporations including EDS, Frito-Lay, Pizza Hut, PepsiCo, Dr Pepper/Seven Up, JCPenney and Mary Kay,” added Brownlee.

“In addition, West Plano led the Dallas/Fort Worth metro in multifamily demand during the last 12 months ending third quarter 2008, and forecasts predict the submarket will remain one of the metro’s demand leaders during the next 12 months.”

Tonti Properties focuses on the development, acquisition, management and ownership of multifamily apartment communities throughout the Southeast and Southwest.

Headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Sunstone Realty Advisors invests in multifamily assets throughout Canada and the United States.

Contacts:

John S. Brownlee, (214) 265-0880, Senior HFF Managing Director, jbrownlee@hfflp.com

William D. Miller, (214) 265-0880, HFF Managing Director, bmiller@hfflp.com

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

HFF secures financing totaling nearly $50M on behalf of Trammell Crow Residential

HOUSTON, TX – The Houston and Dallas offices of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that they has secured nearly $50 million in financing on behalf of Trammell Crow Residential for Alexan Woods (top right photo) and Alexan Main Street, (middle left photo) two Class A multifamily complexes in Houston, Texas.

Working exclusively on behalf of the borrower, HFF executive managing director Jody Thornton (middle right photo) and associate directors John Ahmed and Matt Kafka (bottom left photo) placed two, seven-year adjustable-rate loans with Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation).

A $22.16 million loan was secured for Alexan Woods and a $27.63 million loan was arranged for Alexan Main Street. Proceeds will be used to retire the existing construction loans, while recapitalizing both assets with assumable, non-recourse financing and flexible prepayment structures.

“Despite an extremely challenging capital markets environment, Freddie Mac never wavered in their focus or in their commitment to these deals,” said Kafka.

Alexan Woods is located in The Woodlands, approximately 25 miles north of downtown Houston.

Completed in 2007, the property has 280 units with 99 percent of the units currently occupied.

Community amenities include a swimming pool, clubhouse, business center, fitness center and covered parking.

Currently 98 percent occupied, Alexan Main Street was also completed in 2007 and has 286 one- and two-bedroom units, averaging 983 square feet each. Residents have access to a resort-style pool, business center and athletic club.

Located at 8333 Braesmain Drive, the property is located at Braesmain Drive and South Main Street in Houston, adjacent to the Texas Medical Center.

“As the majority of sales today have some measure of assumable debt and/or seller financing, TCR was very astute in structuring these properties with attractive, non-recourse debt in-place,” added Ahmed.

Trammell Crow Residential entities develop and acquire multifamily rental communities throughout the United States.

Contacts:

Matt Kafka, HFF Associate Director, (713) 852-3500, mkafka@hfflp.com

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

Grubb & Ellis Completes Disposition of Danbury Corporate Center

SANTA ANA, CA (June 4, 2009) – Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced it has completed the disposition of Danbury Corporate Center, (top left photo) located in Danbury, Conn., to an entity of The Matrix Realty Group Inc. for $72.4 million.


The approximately $12.5 million in net proceeds from the sale will be used to pay down the company’s revolving credit facility.

With the Danbury Corporate Center transaction complete, Grubb & Ellis is actively engaged in seeking the disposition of the four remaining real estate assets currently held on the company’s balance sheet.

Contacts:
Damon Elder, 714.975.2659, damon.elder@grubb-ellis.com
Janice McDill, 312.698.6707, mailto:hjanice.mcdill@grubb-ellis.com

Bainbridge Management Opens New Office in Metro DC Area

HERNDON, VA– Bainbridge Management, a subsidiary of Florida-based Bainbridge Properties, is opening a new headquarters in the Metro D.C. area.

The new office will serve as the hub of the property management firm’s operations. Bainbridge Management chose the Washington, D.C. area to position itself for growth across the Mid-Atlantic region, where it currently operates, as well as for expansion across the rest of the East Coast.

The new office, located at 560 Herndon Parkway in Herndon, replaces a previous satellite office.

In addition, the firm has promoted Shane Gillman to Regional Marketing Manager for the Mid-Atlantic region.

“The firm’s goal is to grow its fee management business aggressively as property owners look for strong operators in these challenging markets,” said Kevin Sheehan, (top left photo) the President of Property Operations for The Bainbridge Companies.

“Bainbridge has implemented a very successful strategy of innovative marketing, dynamic pricing, effective operating controls, and hands-on management. This is exactly what property owners are seeking right now.”

The firm currently manages properties in Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Florida, including garden-style communities as well as urban high-rises.

It is actively expanding its property management portfolio, with deals pending in several new markets, including Atlanta.

The Bainbridge Companies are based in Wellington, Florida with offices in North Carolina and the Washington, D.C. metro area.

Contact: Terri Thornton, Thornton Communications, (404) 932-4347 Terri@TerriThornton.com