DeKalb County Apartments Acquired by Cortland Partners; Deal is Firm’s Fifth Since June

ATLANTA, GA – Atlanta-based multifamily real estate firm Cortland Partners has acquired and will renovate a 276-unit apartment community in DeKalb County, Georgia.

The deal to acquire Woodhaven Apartments (top left rendering) closed November 24.

Cortland has now acquired a total of five communities since June.

The gated apartment community includes a mix of one, two, and three bedroom apartments, which Director of Acquisitions Mike Altman describes as an ideal mix for families.

Mutual of Omaha Bank, in conjunction with Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, capitalized the transaction.

 The $7.7 million project includes substantial upgrades including new siding, windows and doors. Interiors will get architectural upgrades, new cabinets, and appliances, as well as heating and air conditioning systems.

“Once renovated, the property will have a low life-cycle cost with high efficiency systems and low maintenance exteriors,” Altman says.

Woodhaven is located at 3800 Brockett Trail Road near Tucker. Being just off Stone Mountain Freeway (U.S. 78), the location provides easy access to the downtown Decatur and the Clifton Corridor job markets.

 The Centers for Disease Control (middle right photo), Emory University (middle left photo), and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (bottom right photo) provide about 30,000 jobs, making Woodhaven an excellent place for families to live and access these opportunities.

Having just been through foreclosure, Woodhaven was 73% occupied at closing, with 25% of the units off-line due to a lack of funding for maintenance and unit turnover.

 The renovation is expected to be complete in under nine months.

Altman adds that the firm will continue looking for new opportunities.

 “We are going to continue looking for great buying opportunities available during the market recovery,” he says.

Media Contact: Terri Thornton 404-932-4347 Terri@TerriThornton.com

Cortland Partners Acquires Marietta, GA Apartments; Stimulus Funds to be Used in Renovation

ATLANTA, GA– Cortland Partners, an Atlanta-based multifamily real estate firm, has acquired the 80-unit Harbour Oaks Apartments (top left photo) in Marietta, Georgia.

The project’s financing closed November 23. The total cost of the project, including the planned renovation of the foreclosed community, is $3.3 million.

Self-Help Venture Fund, a North Carolina-based credit union, is financing the project using federal stimulus funds from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). Twenty percent of the renovated community will be reserved for affordable housing.

“The architecture is traditional, and doesn’t require extensive exterior modifications,” says Director of Acquisitions Mike Altman. “This allows us to invest more into the interior finishes and energy efficiency.”

Harbour Oaks, located at 1565 Crider Road in Marietta, has 80 one and two-bedroom apartments in a quiet, neighborhood-like setting. The apartments will get new hardwood floors, bathrooms, and kitchens complete with Energy Star appliances.

Cortland will also renovate the clubhouse, swimming pool, and community green. Harbour Oaks’ location near Dobbins Air Reserve Base and South Cobb Drive provides easy access to all of the northwest Atlanta area.

Cortland originally purchased the delinquent note for Harbour Oaks from JP Morgan/Chase in June. Cortland worked with the borrower to negotiate a deed in-lieu of foreclosure in late October.

 Once Cortland owned the fee simple title, it was able to utilize the NSP funds to renovate the property and move forward with the project.

The renovation is expected to be complete in about nine months.

 For more information, visit http://www.cortlandpartners.com/

Media Contact: Terri Thornton 404-932-4347 Terri@TerriThornton.com

HFF arranges $15.6 million refinancing for Seattle, Washington area multi-housing community

PORTLAND, OR – The Portland office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has arranged a $15.6 million refinancing for Rainier Pointe (top left photo), a 241-unit multi-housing community in Fife, Washington. 

Working exclusively on behalf of a joint venture between Security Properties and Equity Resource Investments, HFF managing director Casey Davidson and director Tom Wilson placed the 35-year, fully-amortizing, 3.79% fixed-rate (excluding mortgage insurance premium) 223(f) FHA loan with AmeriSphere Mortgage Finance, LLC. 

The new permanent financing replaced anexisting short term bridge loan.  

“The 223f program offers multi-housing borrowers the highest leverage in the market at attractive long term rates,” said Davidson.  

Rainier Pointe is located at 6643 20th Street with direct frontage on Interstate 5 in Fife about six miles from downtown Tacoma and 30 miles from downtown Seattle. 

The property is currently undergoing renovations to the exterior as well as individual unit renovations.  The one-, two- and three-bedroom units average 751 square feet each and are 88% occupied.

“The borrower, a major institutional owner of multifamily across the nation, repositioned the asset for the long term by taking advantage of this historically low interest rate environment.

“ The FHA process is a long and arduous process versus other traditional financing options; however, for those multifamily borrowers who have patience and are seeking maximum leverage and a long term interest rate solution this is a very compelling loan program,”  added Wilson.

Security Properties Inc. (“SPI”) is a multi-faceted real estate enterprise with ownership responsibilities over a broad geographic portfolio of multifamily real estate properties. 

 Since its inception in 1969, SPI has sponsored the acquisition and/or development of over 420 properties located throughout the United States.  These SPI properties encompassed approximately 60,000 multifamily housing units - at times with associated commercial space - with an aggregate value at cost of approximately $2.9 billion.

Contacts:   

Casey P. Davidson, HFF Managing Director, (503) 224-0444, cdavidson@hfflp.com

Thomas F. Wilson, HFF Director, (503) 224-0444, twilson@hfflp.com

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

Marcus & Millichap Promotes Marc E. Strauss to First Vice President Investments

FT. LAUDERDALE,  FL  – The board of directors of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has promoted Marc E. Strauss (top right photo) to the position of first vice president investments.

This achievement is one of the highest levels of recognition the firm awards to its investment specialists. It represents excellence in the development and servicing of long-term client relationships, according to Gregory Matus (lower left photo), regional manager of the firm’s Fort Lauderdale office.

Most recently, Strauss held the title of vice president investments.

After joining the firm in February 1997 as an associate, Strauss was promoted to senior associate in February 2000. He was then named a senior investment associate in 2003 and vice president investments in 2008. He has also received 16 sales awards from Marcus & Millichap.

A 27-year veteran of the commercial real estate industry, Strauss specializes in the sale of retail and office properties. He is a senior director of Marcus & Millichap’s National Retail Group

. An active member of ICSC, Strauss has brokered the sale of more than $650 million in 220 transactions in 22 states since joining the company more than 14 years ago.

 Contact: Stacey Corso, Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

Marcus & Millichap Brokers Sale of $10.7 Million Walgreens in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, CA, Dec.15, 2010 – Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the nation’s largest real estate investment services firm, has brokered the sale of a 7,830-square foot Walgreens drugstore in Hollywood (top left rendering).

The sales price of $10,710,000 represents $1,368 per square foot, the highest price per square foot for a single-tenant net-leased drugstore in the United States in 2010, according to CoStar and Real Capital Analytics.

Mark Thiel (middle right photo), a senior associate in the firm’s San Diego office, represented the buyer, a private investor.

 “The property is located on a prime Hollywood corner; the site of a Del Taco that was scrapped,” says Thiel. “We closed the transaction pre-completion. The new Walgreens is due to be completed in the spring of 2011,” adds Thiel.

Located at the highly traveled intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Highland Avenue in Hollywood, the property’s address is 1050 North Highland Ave. in Los Angeles.

Contact: Stacey Corso, Public Relations Manager, (925) 953-1716

Chatham Lodging Announces Dividend, Provides Business Update

PALM BEACH, FL,  Dec. 16, 2010—Chatham Lodging Trust (NYSE: CLDT), a hotel real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on upscale extended-stay hotels and premium branded select-service hotels, today announced that its board of trustees has declared a common share dividend of $0.175 for the 2010 fourth quarter. 

Based on the company’s common share closing price of $17.19 at the close of business on December 15, the annualized dividend represents a yield of approximately 4.1 percent.

 The common dividend is payable January 14, 2011, to shareholders of record on December 31, 2010.

“Our initial 13 hotels are producing strong unleveraged yields that average approximately 8 percent, so our dividend is well covered by free cash flow from our hotels,” said Jeffrey H. Fisher (top right photo), Chatham’s chief executive officer.

  “We believe we are in the early stages of a lodging cycle recovery and that our unleveraged yields will continue to expand in 2011 as the industry rebound gains traction.  The completion of renovations at six of our 13 hotels in 2011 will position us to gain market share and will drive earnings and dividend growth.”

Year-end Outlook     

Pro forma revenue per available room (RevPAR) at the company’s 13 hotels was up approximately 5 percent for the fourth quarter through November had the company owned all the hotels for the entire period.

 “We are encouraged about the industry’s prospects for 2011 and beyond, due to forecasts for continued economic growth and limited new supply on the horizon,” Fisher commented.  “Our pipeline remains strong and at pricing that is consistent with our expectations.”

            The company accelerated the renovations that were scheduled to be completed on three of its Homewood Suites hotels, located in Billerica, Mass., Brentwood, Tenn. and Farmington, Conn.

“Given the strong forward outlook for the industry, we expedited those renovations where it made sense to accelerate displacement,” remarked Dennis Craven, Chatham’s chief financial officer.

 “While this will have a slight impact on RevPAR in the 2010 fourth quarter, we expect it to translate into even better performance in 2011.”

Contact:  

Jerry Daly, Carol McCune, Daly Gray Public Relations, (Media), (703) 435-6293, jerry@dalygray.com

Dennis Craven, Chief Financial Officer, (Company), (561) 227-1386  

dcraven@cl-trust.com                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Tolaris Homes Starts Construction of “Green” Waterfront Home at Lake Forest off SR 46 in Sanford, FL

 

 LAKE FOREST, FL – Tolaris Homes, a division of Tolaris International, which builds luxury custom homes throughout Central Florida, has started construction of a 5,751 square foot lake front luxury home at Lake Forest (typical community model homes top left and bottom right photos), the luxury gated community located off SR 46 west of Sanford.

 Richard Bavec, president of Tolaris Homes, said the energy efficient four bedroom, three bath home, priced at $1.12 million to be completed in mid 2011 will include the Tolaris Homes spacious interior design and custom-style touches.

 For more information, contact:

Richard Bavec, President Tolaris Homes/Tolaris Realty Group, 407-402-9866 rbavec@Tolarishomes.com;

 Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142 (fax: 4410) Lvershelco@aol.com.

C&W negotiates new lease for Learning Care Group in Maitland, FL

ORLANDO,, FL – Dec. 16, 2010–Cushman & Wakefield of Florida, Inc. (C&W) Office Brokerage Associate Joe Abascal announced a new lease for Learning Care Group in Southpoint Executive Center (top left photo), Maitland.

Mr. Abascal represented the tenant, in the three-year deal for 2,130 sf.

Micah Strader (middle right photo) of CB Richard Ellis represented the landlord New Boston Fund and Stiles Corporation in the deal.

The office will serve as the MichIgan-based company’s Southeast Accounting & Operations Center. Learning Care Group provides early education and care services to children between the ages of six weeks and 13 years under its umbrella of brands: The Children’s Courtyard, Childtime Learning Centers, La Petite Academy, Montessori Unlimited and Tutor Time.

Contact:

Brook Hines

Marketing Associate

Cushman & Wakefield

800 N. Magnolia Avenue, Suite 450

Orlando, Florida 32803

Tel: 407-541-4401

brook.hines@cushwake.com

www.cushwake.com