the Editors of Commercial Property Executive
New Website Aims to Match Investors, Developers
Similar to an Internet dating service, a new Website is designed to introduce commercial real estate developers to investors and private equity companies looking for opportunities. Equity Interface is an online real estate investment service designed to connect developers and accredited investors. The site was launched six months ago and currently represents about $640 million of equity available, Nikolas Kron, founder & CEO of EquityInterface.com, told CPN. “There is not as much fluidity in the equity marketplace as we would like. Many developers are looking for equity partners as part of their general business structure. It is hard to identify…
Circuit City to Shutter Remaining 567 U.S. Stores
Electronics retailer Circuit City Inc., which filed for bankruptcy in November, will close all 567 of its remaining U.S. stores and liquidate the entirety of its inventory after failing to reach agreements with creditors that would have allowed the company to continue operations. Circuit City entered a filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Virginia’s Eastern District that said the firm had agreed to liquidate its assets. The sale will begin Saturday and run through March. When initially filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Nov. 10, the company hoped to keep its stores open while undergoing a corporate restructuring. However,…
Benchmark Hospitality Adopts New Business Intel System
Sometimes you have to invest money to save money, and it appears Benchmark Hospitality International has adopted that philosophy with the purchase of Pittsburgh-headquartered Aptech Computer Systems Inc.’s Execuvue Business Intelligence System. With Execuvue, Benchmark, which operates a portfolio of 30 independent hotels for various owners, will be able to automate and consolidate the data gathering and performance management processes for its properties at a central point, thereby acquiring a precise view of which activities or procedures are cost effective and which are not. With the economy in a tailspin, commercial real estate is being hit hard, and the hotel…
CBRE Investors Grabs 1 MSF Office Portfolio
CB Richard Ellis Investors is definitely in the mood for shopping and has just snapped up a three-property Class A office portfolio totaling approximately 1 million square feet for its Strategic Partners U.S. Value 5 Fund. The seller, ING Clarion, had acquired the Los Angeles, East Rutherford, N.J., and West Palm Beach assets separately in 2005 and 2006 for an aggregate $365 million. The off-market transaction was an all cash deal. Both CBRE Investors and ING Clarion are remaining mum on the subject of the portfolio’s price tag, but fund principal Mike Burrichter told CPN that “it’s been a long…
Citigroup Troubles, Retail Woes Roil Market
Wall Street has been shrugging off bad economic news for a while now, but Wednesday felt like the good old days of last September and October, when the Panic of 2008 was in sell! now! mode. The Dow dropped more than 300 points briefly, ending down 248.42 points, or nearly 3 percent. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq lost even more by the end of the day, in terms of percentage: 3.35 percent and 3.67 percent, respectively. What spooked the markets? News about Citigroup, for one thing–gee, the bailout didn’t seem to help Citi all that much, it turns out. Citigroup’s…
CBRE Finds Silver Linings in Cloudy NYC Forecast
Silver linings are hard to find in today’s dismal Manhattan market outlook, but local leaders from CB Richard Ellis Inc. found a few to point out today. In an earlier generation, the financial services sector thrived after the disappearance of one-time giants like Drexel Burnham Lambert and Solomon Brothers, noted Robert Alexander, chairman of CB Richard Ellis’ tri-state region, at a briefing this morning. During the current restructuring of the finance industry, some 15 million square feet will return to the market, according to CBRE’s projections. That will create considerable challenges for owners, but there may also be long-term benefits…
JV Leases Out 133,400 SF in Dallas
A joint venture between KDC and Spear Street Capital has leased 133,400 square feet to four companies at the redeveloped 1.2 million-square-foot Campus at Legacy in Dallas.Bear Transportation Services L.P. signed a 81,100-square-foot lease at 5340 Legacy Drive. The company plans to move into its new location in spring and will occupy two full floors. “Since May 2008, we have leased more than 245,000 square feet at The Campus at Legacy,” John Brownlee, senior vice president at KDC noted in a release. “Activity took off as we were finishing the renovation of 5360 Legacy Drive and opened up the space…
Chase to Invest in California Retail Branches
The equity markets seemed to be headed for positive territory on Tuesday, or at least they did in the morning, but slumped in the afternoon. In the end, the Dow Jones index was down a minuscule 25.41 points for the day, or 0.3 percent. The S&P 500 nudged up slightly for the day, 0.18 percent, and the Nasdaq likewise exhibited a small gain of 0.5 percent. In a refreshing bit of real estate news, J.P. Morgan Chase, which swallowed Washington Mutual and its many, many retail branches last year, has said that it’s going to spend a fair amount of…
Denver Flex Portfolio Trades for $66M
SVN Equities has pocketed $66.5 million on the disposition of three flex/industrial buildings in the Denver area. The Irvine, Calif.-headquartered private real estate investment and development firm, which shelled out an aggregate $40.3 million to purchase the properties in 2004 and 2005, sold the 485,000-square-foot portfolio to Houston-based Hines Real Estate Investment Trust Inc. “It’s the largest Class A flex portfolio ever sold in the Denver area,” Jason Addlesperger, senior managing director with commercial real estate services firm Frederick Ross, told CPN. Frederick Ross represented both SVN Equities and Hines REIT in the transaction. Two of the buildings are located…
Calkain Forms Group for Distressed Assets
Real estate brokerage and advisory firm Calkain Cos. has established a new division aimed at aiding clients in dealing with adverse investment situations on net lease properties. The group, dubbed Calkain Opportunity Services, will be headed up by Todd Harrison (pictured), who will serve as managing director of the new entity. Calkain said it formed the division as a result of the increase in debt restructurings, failed investments and transaction-related litigation in the current environment of economic turmoil. “For those…. involved in less than ideal situations, Calkain will be able to formulate a plan on how to exit their challenging…