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Moss & Associates finished construction of the CityPlace South Tower (pictured), a $106 million mixed-use development in West Palm Beach, Fla.The 20-story condominium tower, developed by The Related Group, offers 380 units and 40 private villas, as well as 9,300 square feet of street-level commercial and retail space.  An adjoining 8-level parking structure with 685 spaces is topped by a 22,900-square-foot recreation deck that features resort-style pool and spa.  The property is located in downtown West Palm Beach across from the CityPlace mixed-use center, the Kravis Performing Arts Center, and east of the Palm Beach County Convention Center.    The project…

With the U.S. economy battered by the credit crisis and jobs continuing to evaporate, a somber mood permeates the Americas Lodging Investment Summit in San Diego. But while the recession will continue to suppress both leisure and business travel, some hotel companies see this down period as an excellent time to do business while their competitors sit on the sidelines. Concord Hospitality Enterprises is continuing to develop hotels, and recently secured a $13.4 million loan to build a 124-room Courtyard by Marriott in Pittsburgh, a market that is outperforming many cities in the U.S., in terms of occupancy. “Surprisingly, Pittsburgh…

As the financial markets and economy continue to struggle, the multi-family real estate sector remains relatively healthy. According to Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, rental growth for multi-family properties nationwide grew 3 percent in 2008, and rental growth is expected to increase by about 1.5 percent this year. Occupancies nationwide stood at about 94 percent last month, and Marcus & Millichap is predicting a drop in that figure of only about 1 percent in 2009. None of that makes multi-family finance deals easy, however. “There’s no such thing as a routine deal any more, not in the current…

Despite the turbulent times, big real estate loans are still being made and Pittsburgh-based PNC is among those that are actively doling out financing. PNC Real Estate Finance has arranged a $214 million construction loan for The Monaco, a luxury apartment project in Jersey City, N.J., with PNC Capital Markets L.L.C. leading the syndication of the deal with six other banks. Monaco North Urban Renewal L.L.C.–a joint venture involving Roseland Property Co., Prudential Insurance Co. of America, Garden State Development Inc. and Hartz Mountain Industries Inc.–was the recipient of the three-year loan. Roseland is the developer for the joint venture…

The latest S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks housing prices in 20 major U.S. metro areas, fell 18.2 percent year-over-year in November, the largest drop since the creation of the index 21 years ago. Certain markets took the largest hits. In fact, it was a case of rounding up the usual suspects: Phoenix, Las Vegas and San Francisco have seen declines since this time last year of more than 30 percent. Miami and Los Angeles saw drops in the high 20s. All this is bad news for those who bought houses two or three years ago, especially upper-end dwellings acquired…

The National Association of Realtors reported Monday that December existing home sales nationwide did not, in fact, decline as expected. The number of home sales was up 6.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.74 million. The reason why might lie in a combination of low mortgage rates, for those borrowers who can get mortgages, and geography. The Western states, which saw the most precipitous drop in prices since the housing bubble burst, saw existing-home sales rise 13.6 percent. The Northeast, by contrast, saw a drop in sales of 1.4 percent, which may hint that asking prices are…

Undaunted by floundering economies around the world, Carlson Hotels Worldwide, after adding 89 new properties to its portfolio in 2008, is continuing its expansion across the globe, with plans to debut 300 new properties between this year and 2013. Last year was a lucrative one for Carlson Hotels. The company saw record revenues of $7.5 billion across its five brands, marking an 8 percent increase from 2007. Carlson managed to come out on top during a time when the hospitality industry, as a whole, experienced–and continues to soldier through–one of its most difficult cycles. According to a report released yesterday…

This week promises a heapin’ helpin’ of gloomy economic news. Twelve Dow Jones companies and 137 companies listed on the S&P 500 are slated to make quarterly reports. Many industries will be represented: manufacturing (Caterpiller), energy (Exxon-Mobil), financial (Amex), Internet (Yahoo!) and even fast food (McDonald’s). Except for the likes of McDonald’s, things aren’t looking so good, so the markets might take it hard. On the other hand, everyone’s expecting poor numbers, so the markets might not take it so hard. Yo-yoing is entirely possible in any case.As a bonus extra, the government will release fourth quarter U.S. GDP figures…

The U.S. Department of Commerce has reported that construction of new houses dropped more than 15 percent in December, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 550,000. The issuance of new building permits nationwide for residential projects also contracted–down 12.3 percent for single-family houses and 10.7 percent for apartments. These are the lowest figures since Commerce began keeping track of housing, and it’s playing as bad news, but considering how few houses are selling nationwide, that might be considered good news for the wider market, if not for homebuilders. The yo-yo week continued Thursday on Wall Street, with the indexes…

Toronto-headquartered RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust has just struck a deal to take six grocery-anchored shopping centers in suburban Montreal off the hands of ING Real Estate Canada L.P. RioCan REIT will shell out $67.5 million for the portfolio, which encompasses an aggregate 454,000 square feet. “These are safe assets you buy for the income with a little bit of growth through rent,” Jonathan Gitlin, vice president of investments for RioCan REIT, told CPN. Sicard Centre in Sainte-Thérèse and Saint-Jean Centre in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu are the two largest assets in the group, featuring approximately 107,000 and 103,000 square feet, respectively. The…