Real Estate Alert 12 RANKINGS: TOP OFFICE SALES in 2016 Deal Database, Which Tracks Sales of at Least $25 Million
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JANUARY 25, 2017 Office Sales Drop 5%; Eastdil’s Share Grows Large office-property sales dipped 5% last year, but a surprisingly strong fourth 8 RANKINGS: OFFICE BROKERS quarter left market pros optimistic about activity this year. A total of $103.7 billion of office properties traded in 2016, down from the post- 9 RANKINGS: OFFICE SALES BY MARKET crash high of $108.8 billion recorded the previous year, according to the Real Estate Alert 12 RANKINGS: TOP OFFICE SALES IN 2016 Deal Database, which tracks sales of at least $25 million. The 2016 decline marked the end of a six-year run of increases. 2 Upgraded San Diego Rentals for Sale Perennial winner Eastdil Secured retained the brokerage crown, increasing its sales by 8%, to $36.6 billion. It handled 40.1% of brokered trades, almost double the 2 Two West Loop Offices Up for Grabs market share of runner-up CBRE. 2 Well-Leased Oakland Offices on Block The year was marked by uncertainty and the unexpected, including worries about whether the market runup had peaked, fluctuations in the financial markets 4 Savanna Fund Lines Up Initial Equity and the election of President Donald Trump. “The two words to describe 2016 in the end: unpredictable and resilient,” said 7 TerraCap Starts Marketing 4th Fund See OFFICE on Page 9 7 Capri Maps Workforce Housing Fund 7 Hotel Conversion Play in Chicago Star Power Propels Newmark to Sales Gains 13 Northwestern Offers Atlanta Complex Paying big bucks for superstar brokers translated into a big boost in office sales for Newmark Grubb last year. 13 Chicago-Area Supermarkets for Sale The firm closed $5.2 billion of office deals worth $25 million or more in 2016, up from $1.6 billion the previous year, according to Real Estate Alert’s Deal Data- 14 Central Pa. Warehouses Offer Upside base. That whopping 231% increase followed the late-2015 hirings of the high- 15 MARKET SPOTLIGHT producing teams headed by Robert Griffin in Boston and Kevin Shannon in Los Angeles. The year-to-year jump was the biggest, by dollar total or percentage, of any major THE GRAPEVINE broker, coming as overall sales volume dropped 5% (see ranking on Page 8). More than $3 billion of Newmark’s $3.6 billion increase came in the markets overseen by Newmark Grubb last week named Griffin and Shannon. veteran apartment broker Blake Okland Newmark’s sales in Greater Boston soared to $2.1 billion last year, from just $252 head of its U.S. multi-family platform, million the year before. Its competitors all saw their Boston volume slump as the ARA Newmark. Okland, a vice chair- See STAR on Page 6 man based in Charlotte, had been with Apartment Realty Advisors for 10 years Equity Pledges by Pensions Fell 18% in 2016 when it was acquired by Newmark in 2014. In the newly created post, he’ll U.S. public pension systems reduced their equity commitments to real estate help coordinate investment-sales efforts vehicles by nearly 20% last year, the first decline since 2013. around the country while continuing to Pensions tracked by FPL Consulting pledged $38.8 billion to commingled funds broker deals himself. He’ll also be part and separate accounts, down 18% from $47.2 billion the previous year, which was of the firm’s recruitment, expansion and by far the highest level since the market crash. client-relations efforts. FPL principal Timothy Kessler noted that even with the drop, commitments were still above the average of recent years, and he added that investors remain relatively Senior industrial broker Michael bullish. “It’s a big decline off a big year,” he said. “But the reason why I am not Nachamkin parted ways with HFF last alarmed is that the demand is still there from the investor view. It’s just that the deal week after six years. Nachamkin, flow hasn’t been there, and the ability of the managers to put out capital effectively a managing director, was based in has been more constrained. There’s absolutely a backlog.” Florham Park, N.J., and focused on Kessler said uncertainty about the presidential election put “a pause on the sys- sales in the Northeast. He left to explore tem,” resulting in just $6.7 billion of pledges from October to December, the lowest See GRAPEVINE on Back Page See PENSIONS on Page 5 January 25, 2017 Real Estate 2 ALERT Upgraded San Diego Rentals for Sale would likely seek to fill the vacant space, which is on the upper floors of the 35-story property, and lift rents as leases Alliance Residential is marketing a renovated apartment roll over. The in-place rents are about 17% below the average complex near San Diego that is valued at about $270 million. asking rate, and the weighted average remaining lease term The 549-unit property, on San Diego Bay in Coronado, Calif., is 5.5 years. was built in 1970, but Alliance has poured millions into renova- No tenant occupies more than 15% of the space. The tions to make it more competitive with newer complexes. Fol- rent roll includes law firmsFranczek Radelet and McDonnell lowing the upgrades, the occupancy rate is now 90%. Boehnen, Globetrotters Engineering, NextGen Healthcare and The estimated value works out to just over $490,000/unit. recruiting firm Swoon. JLL is advising Phoenix-based Alliance. The building, completed in 1971, underwent its most recent The Class-B property, called Broadstone Coronado on the round of renovations in 2014. Some $16 million was spent on Bay, is at 1515 Second Street. It encompasses 18 three-story improvements, including upgrades to the lobby, mechanical buildings with units ranging in size from studios to two bed- systems, elevators and common areas. Also, a redesign of the rooms. The apartments feature wood-plank-style floors, quartz facade incorporated a map of Chicago that stretches to the countertops, stainless-steel appliances, washer/dryers and bal- roof. The property, which is along the Chicago River, has a conies or patios. There is a redesigned clubhouse, a pool with LEED gold designation. cabanas, a fitness studio and outdoor dining areas with barbe- MetLife acquired the 31-story building at 125 South Wacker cue grills. in 2012 from Tishman Speyer of New York for $107 million. Construction in the San Diego area is projected to reach a The occupancy rate is just 78%, well below the 90% West Loop cyclical high of 5,800 apartments this year, up from 3,100 last average. The tenants mostly are relatively small firms in the year. Marcus & Millichap estimates that will reduce the average accounting, finance and business-services sectors. occupancy rate by 50 bp, to 96.6%, but adds that the decline The property, completed in 1974, includes a conference cen- should be temporary. Even with the added supply, the broker- ter, a fitness center and bicycle storage. The marketing pitch is age expects rents to rise by 6% on average this year, driven by that a buyer could renovate the building, lease vacant space and higher rates at renovated Class-B properties like Broadstone raise rents as leases roll over. The in-place rents are about 40% Coronado. below the asking rate for comparable properties. 2 West Loop Offices Up for Grabs Well-Leased Oakland Offices on Block Beacon Capital and MetLife Real Estate Investors are sepa- A nearly fully leased office building is up for grabs in Oak- rately pitching office towers in Chicago’s West Loop that have land. differing investment profiles. The 279,000-square-foot property, at 180 Grand Avenue, The properties, both listed with JLL, have a combined could attract bids of about $118 million, or $423/sf. CBRE is value of about $300 million. The 536,000-square-foot build- advising the seller, Ellis Partners of San Francisco. ing at 300 South Wacker Drive is billed as a core-plus play, The 96% occupancy rate is among the highest for large Oak- while the 575,000-sf property at 125 South Wacker Drive is land office properties. Engineering firmAMEC Foster Wheeler suitable for value-added investors. leases 27,000 sf. Other tenants include Health Net of California, Beacon’s building at 300 South Wacker is worth roughly Reading Partners, Bank of America and Marqeta. The offering $165 million, or $308/sf. MetLife’s property at 125 South includes an adjacent 371-car garage. Wacker, less than two blocks north, could fetch about $135 The 15-story property, at Harrison Street, is in the Uptown million, or $235/sf. Marketing of it is expected to start soon. District. The location is one block from Lakeside Park and The average occupancy rate and rent in the West Loop about four blocks north of the Bay Area Rapid Transit station submarket continued to rise through 2016. The submarket at 19th Street. accounted for almost half of the Class-A space leased in the The building was developed in 1981. Ellis acquired it in city last year, as well as 56% of the space leased by tenants late 2014 from California State Teachers for $61.3 million and relocating from the suburbs, according to marketing materi- pumped $4.7 million into upgrades, including exterior work to als. help reorient the building toward nearby Lake Merritt. Both buildings are near the 3.8 million-sf Willis Tower. Institutional investors are being drawn to office properties Owner Blackstone is preparing to launch a redevelopment in Oakland, a perennial bridesmaid to San Francisco and Sili- of the trophy that will add shops, restaurants, entertainment con Valley. With rents in those areas becoming prohibitive for venues and other amenities to the area.