Levi's Plaza Receives $140M from Northwestern Mutual

Levi's Plaza, a multi-building office campus which serves as the global headquarters for Levi Strauss & Company, received a $140 million mortgage loan from Northwestern Mutual this week. The loan was provided to to a group of investors majority owned and controlled by Gerson Bakar, Diane Wilsey and Interland. According to a GlobeSt.com article, Levi Strauss had mulled its space options for quite some time before deciding to renew here and wanted to “have a good understanding of the current rental rates for a renewal versus the other options.”

"The strength of our general account portfolio allows us the ability to negotiate a deal with such strong partners and ultimately complete transactions that deliver value to our clients and policyowners," said Brandon Buza, a director for Northwestern Mutual Real Estate Investments. "The property is well leased and situated between the Bay and the Telegraph Hill. It is within walking distance of the Financial District, yet far enough to offer tenants a different, relaxed feel."

Levi's Plaza is located in Embarcadero in San Francisco, California on the site originally known as Frederick Griffing's wharf. Construction on the 763,000 square foot, seven story office complex was completed in 1981 when Levi Strauss & Co. first moved to the facility. The complex also includes a retail center that serves residents of the area and employees.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

PWC Report Expects Investable Real Estate to Grow

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) released its latest report that anticipates global investable real estate to grow by more than 55% to around $45.3 trillion by 2020 (from a 2012 total of $29 trillion). The report, Real Estate 2020, suggests that these expansions will be greatest in emerging economies, where economic development should lead to better tenant quality and, in some countries, clearer property rights and will play out across housing, commercial real estate and infrastructure.

"Demographic shifts will affect demand for real estate fundamentally in 2020 with the aging Baby Boomers creating an increase in demand for specialist types of real estate like senior and intergenerational housing, while there will be a rise in micro-units for the younger population," said Mitch Roschelle, partner, U.S. real estate advisory practice leader, PWC. "As the real estate industry and environment evolves, there are certain risks that market participants should be aware of so they can navigate those challenges thoughtfully, while also being able to jump on the increasing amount of opportunities in the space. This is how we help our clients at PWC – and we’re working with them now so they will be fully prepared in 2020 and beyond."

An excerpt of other changes in real estate the report expects by 2020:

• A huge expansion in cities, with mixed results. By 2020, the 21st century’s great migration to the cities will be well underway. Cities are expected to swell across the fast-growing countries of Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. Even the developed Western countries will be urbanizing, albeit at a slower pace. By 2020, cities will be competing fiercely with each other.
• Growth in emerging markets is anticipated to ratchet up competition for real estate assets and competition between real estate organizations.
• Sustainability will transform design of buildings and developments, presenting opportunities and risks for real estate asset managers.
• Technology will disrupt real estate economics: growth in online shopping will continue to reduce the need for retail space, but shorter delivery times increase the need for warehouse space close to customers. As workers increasingly work from home or satellite offices, the need for office space will decrease. For developers, technology advances will make eco-efficient building more practical. Real estate capital will take financial center stage. Private capital will play a critical role in funding the growing and changing need for real estate and its supporting infrastructure. Real estate managers will need to leverage the full range of financing possibilities to take on new types of risk, often with long-term investment horizons.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Colony & Woodridge Buy Ritz-Carlton Kapalua

Colony Capital and its affiliates including Colony Financial partnered with Michael Rosenfeld's Woodridge Capital Partners to purchase the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua Resort this month. With acquisition financing provided by Deutsche Bank, the property was sold for an undisclosed price, but previous reports said that the hotel was expected to sell for more than $200 million.

Lehman Brothers Holdings, which had listed the 54-acre oceanfront property for sale with Jones Lang LaSalle last May, had planned to time the sale with Hawaii’s rising tourism numbers, according to a Pacific Business Times article. A joint venture of New York-based Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Gencom Group bought the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua in March 2006 and renovated the property before defaulting in April 2009 on a $260 million loan from Lehman, as reported by Bloomberg.

"The combination of The Ritz-Carlton brand, a welcoming and nurturing Hawaiian culture and the nature and magic of Maui will make an unbeatable combination," said Thomas Barrack, Jr., Chairman and CEO of Colony Capital.

"We have great respect for the traditions of the islands," added Rosenfeld. "With its special character, remarkable location and precious natural resources, The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua is a rare property that would be nearly impossible to duplicate today."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Oxford Properties Buys 450 Park Avenue for $575M

Oxford Properties Group, the real estate arm of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS), announced this week that it had agreed to pay $575 million for 450 Park Avenue. Somerset Partners and the Michael Tabor family trust, which has owned and operated the building since 2007, sold the 33-story building to Oxford; terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to a New York Times article, the sale is one of the highest prices ever paid for a Manhattan office building at over $1,700 per square foot.

"We felt comfortable investing a large amount of cash in this quality location and asset," Keith Rubenstein, a Somerset founder, said in an e-mail to Bloomberg. "The thinking back then was this location was bulletproof, would withstand any downturn in the market and value would recover faster. Looking back, I guess we were right."

"A lot of pension funds, Asian companies, sovereign funds and other investors are increasing their allocations for real estate," said Douglas Harmon of Eastdil Secured, the broker on the Park Avenue deal. "If you do that, the first place you want to be is Manhattan."

Formerly known as the Franklin National Bank building, 450 Park Avenue was built in 1972 by Emery Roth and Sons and renovated in 2007 when Somerset Partners purchased the property for $509 million. As noted by the NYT, Oxford is betting that the property will become more valuable when the developer Harry Macklowe completes the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere, a 1,398-foot skyscraper next door at 432 Park Avenue.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

NAR'S Outlook on CRE Positive but Moderating

The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) quarterly commercial real estate forecast was released today, which reflects continued improvements in the commercial real estate markets, though at a slower pace. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said NAR's latest Commercial Real Estate Outlook shows that fundamentals are still on an uptrend. "Growth in commercial real estate sectors continues at a moderate pace from a very slow pace of absorption, despite job additions to the economy. Companies appear hesitant to add new space," he said. Highlights from the office market follow:

Vacancy rates in the office sector should decline from an expected 15.8% in the first quarter of this year to 15.6% in the first quarter of 2015.

The markets with the lowest office vacancy rates presently (in the first quarter) are New York City, with a vacancy rate of 9.5%; Washington, D.C., at 10.2%; Little Rock, Ark., 11.6%; Birmingham, Ala., 12.7%; and San Francisco and Nashville, Tenn., at 12.8% each.

Office rents are projected to increase 2.3% in 2014 and 3.2% next year. Net absorption of office space in the U.S., which includes the leasing of new space coming on the market as well as space in existing properties, is likely to total 44.6 million square feet this year and 50.0 million in 2015.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

AEW Capital Becomes Major Stakeholder at Heritage Plaza

Brookfield Office Properties Inc. announced this week that it had sold a 90% interest in Heritage Plaza, the 5th tallest building in Houston with 1,150,000 square feet of leasable space, to AEW Capital Management. AEW acquired a 41% stake in the building from Brookfield for $118 million, with the remaining 49% coming from an affiliate, according to a GlobalPost article. Brookfield acquired Heritage Plaza in December 2010 in a deal that valued the building at $286 per leasable square foot.

"This transaction aligns with Brookfield's strategy of creating value in an asset through proactive leasing and asset management and then extracting proceeds for use in other endeavors, such as our various development and redevelopment initiatives," said Dennis Friedrich, chief executive officer of Brookfield Office Properties.

"Led by the energy sector, Houston has consistently been one of the fastest growing metro areas in the nation," said Dan Bradley, portfolio manager for the AEW Core Property Trust. "Rapid job growth and expanding business activity have supported very strong demand for office space and we believe this investment capitalizes on these trends."

Heritage Plaza at 1111 Bagby Street is a Class AA office complex that is currently 98.4% leased, up from 84% leased when Brookfield took control of the building. Situated on the western perimeter of downtown Houston, tenant amenities include ample on-site parking and a fitness center.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

The Wilshire Grand Center Setting Records

The Wilshire Grand Center, a 73-story hotel and office tower being developed by Korean Air in downtown Los Angeles, broke ground this month and is already setting records. Last weekend, more than 2,000 truckloads of concrete were delivered to the construction site to lay the foundation for the superskyscraper, which set a Guinness World Record for largest continuous concrete pour in recorded building history with 21,240 cubic yards of concrete poured.

"The Wilshire Grand has the largest continuous concrete pour of 21,200 cubic yards which is a new Guinness World Record's title. Congratulations!" said adjudicator Michael Empric during a meeting with contractors and engineers. According to an ABC News report, the concrete was poured by 11:30 a.m. Sunday, beating the existing record of 21,000 cubic yards set by The Venetian hotel in Las Vegas in 1999.

"Los Angeles is back on the move, we're not just riding the wave of the end of this recession," said Mayor Eric Garcetti at the festivities before the pour began. "We are a power behind it, and Los Angeles will lead not only this city, but this state and this country, out of this recession, providing jobs for folks and rebuilding L.A."

Once completed in early 2017, The Wilshire Grand Center will rise 1,100 feet from the street to the top of its architectural spire and be the tallest structure west of the Mississippi and feature a luxury hotel with over 900 rooms, office space, commercial/retail space, upscale restaurants, and nightlife venues. This tower replaces the old Wilshire Grand, which stood as a downtown icon for more than half a century and was closed in 2011 to allow deconstruction activities. Designed by AC Martin Architects and constructed by Turner Construction, the development of the complex is estimated to cost $1.1 billion.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

LA Investors Buy San Francisco's Mark Hopkins Hotel from InterContinental for $120M

The world renowned Mark Hopkins Hotel at One Nob Hill in San Francisco traded hands this week as the Los Angeles consortium that bought the Fairmont Hotel in 2012 picked up the property for $120 million from InterContinental Hotels Group. The partnership between affiliates of Michael Rosenfeld's Woodridge Capital Partners and funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management plans to invest $20 million in hotel renovations to the guest rooms and public spaces. InterContinental Hotels Group will stay on to manage the property.

Michael Rosenfeld, CEO of Woodridge Capital Partners, said, "We are thrilled to add the Mark Hopkins San Francisco Hotel to our holdings further reinforcing our relationship with the great city of San Francisco. We are committed to enhancing the value of this prized asset."

"Through a strong partnership with hotel employees and numerous city constituencies, we're excited about the future of the San Francisco luxury hospitality market, and owning both iconic assets on top of Nob Hill, the Mark Hopkins and the Fairmont across the street," added John Brady, Global Head of Real Estate for Oaktree.

Host to numerous U.S. presidents, world leaders, movie stars and business tycoons, the 383-room Mark Hopkins Hotel opened on December 4, 1926. It was built on the site of railroad magnate Mark Hopkins' 40-room mansion, who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad that built the railway that linked the United States coasts.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Year-End CCRSI Confirms Broad Recovery in CRE

CoStar released its latest Commercial Repeat Sale Indices (CCRSI) this week analyzing property sales through December 2013, which confirms that the recovery in U.S. commercial real estate markets advanced in 2013 as broad gains in net absorption, rents, sales activity and pricing extended across markets and property types during the year. The CCRSI is based on 1,648 repeat sales in December 2013 and more than 125,000 repeat sales since 1996, and are constructed using a repeat sales methodology. An excerpt from CoStar's summary follows:

The upbeat performance was driven by relatively steady economic growth and job gains of 2.3 million or 1.7% in 2013. During the year, expanding businesses accounted for the highest aggregate net absorption across all four major commercial property types since the recovery began.

The increased demand for space, coupled with continued low construction levels (except for the multifamily property sector, which saw a notable increase in construction), vacancy rates fell across most markets at year-end 2013 from one year earlier, and the national average vacancy rate reached new cyclical lows in both the apartment and industrial sectors over the last year.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

KBS Picks Up 1000 Continental for $63M

KBS Realty Advisors of Newport Beach, CA announced this week that it had purchased 1000 Continental in the King of Prussia submarket of Philadelphia for $63 million. KBS bought the 205,424-square-foot building from Equus Capital Partners Ltd. of Philadelphia. Jim Vesey, Doug Rodio, Jim Galbally, and John Plower of Jones Lang LaSalle represented the seller in the transaction, while KBS handled the sale in-house.

"1000 Continental's amenity base and location possess a number of urbanization trend qualities that we look for in office investments," said Shannon Hill, KBS senior vice president. "The asset's status as a LEED Silver-certified building also makes it the most efficiently run building in its competitive set."

At the time of the sale, the building was 99% occupied, with major tenants including Northwestern Mutual, Farmers Insurance, Nationwide Life Insurance, and The Hartford Financial Services Group. The seller, through its BPG Development Company LP, developed the asset on-spec, according to a CoStar report. "The sale of 1000 Continental represents the culmination of a successful development project that was delivered during one of the worst economic recessions in our history and highlights the value of delivering a top tier asset designed to meet today's demanding tenant requirements," commented Stephen Spaeder, senior vice president of Equus.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

NYC's MU Property The Grayson Sold for $99.8M

Silverstone Property Group, the New York-based real estate company, announced that it had sold 247 East 28th Street in New York, also known as The Grayson, for $99.75 million. The buyer of the property is an Asian investment company, which owns one commercial office building in the city, sources said. The property was marketed by Andrew Scandalios of HFF and the purchaser was represented by George Niblock of Friedman-Roth Realty Services.

"Silverstone is pleased with the execution of this entire project, from our initial purchase through renovation and now sale," said Josh Zegen, a Principal and co-founder of Silverstone. "We were able to reposition and resell the property ahead of schedule, which further validates our overall investment strategy. We look forward to continued investment activity in Manhattan and the boroughs."

Silverstone, through its parent company Madison Realty Capital in a joint venture with Slate Property Group and RWN Real Estate Partners, acquired the asset in February 2012 in an off-market transaction secured by Steven Vegh of Westwood Realty Associates for $53 million, or $414,000 per unit, according to CoStar data. Silverstone allocated a significant capital investment program over the last two years to the 17-story, 109,000 square-foot mixed-use tower resulting in a complete renovation of the building, which included an overhaul of the exterior, the lobby, all common areas and most units.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

SNH Buys Seaport Towers for $1.1B

Senior Housing Properties Trust (SNH), a Newton-based REIT, announced this week that it had agreed to acquire two waterfront towers in Boston's premier Seaport District that house the headquarters of the biotechnology company Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. SNH purchased the 15-story biotech medical office buildings in part with a term loan commitment for $800 million from Jefferies Finance LLC and Wells Fargo Bank. The deal, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the first half of 2014, according to a NASDAQ report. The sale comes about a week after Vertex Pharmaceuticals, a global biopharmaceutical company which relocated from Cambridge, formally opened its new home office in the Seaport District.

"The acquisition of this state-of-the-art property, which is ideally located in Boston's fastest growing downtown submarket and one of the nation's top investment markets, represents a unique opportunity to further diversify SNH's portfolio and increase our exposure to the medical office building segment," said David Hegarty, President and Chief Operating Officer of SNH.

Developed and owned by The Fallon Company, the buildings include biomedical research facilities, corporate office space, structured parking and street-level retail totaling 1.65 million total gross square feet. Vertex Pharmaceuticals, a global biopharmaceutical company, occupies 96% of the property, with a remaining lease term of approximately 15 years for this new corporate headquarters. Approximately 1,300 Vertex employees from the company's 10-building Kendall Square complex in Cambridge are moving to the new headquarters by the end of March, according to a Banker & Tradesman article.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Bellevue Park Corporate Center Sold for $62M

Metzler North America, the Seattle-based investment services firm, announced this week that it had sold Bellevue Park Corporate Center in Wilmington, Delaware to The Buccini/Pollin Group for $61.5 million, or about $201 per square foot. Metzler sold the property on behalf of its sponsored fund, Metzler US Real Estate Fund, which represents German institutional investors. Cassidy Turley served as the listing broker and represented Metzler in the sale of the property.

The three-building, 305,000-square-foot corporate-style office campus was originally developed by Trammel Crow in 1990 according to a Philadelphia Inquirer article. The campus's buildings at 200, 300 and 400 Bellevue Parkway were 88% occupied when Metzler acquired them in 2005.

"Our team's disciplined approach to investment and asset management led to the successful sale of this asset," said Don Wise, president and CEO of Metzler Real Estate. "By securing long-term leases with credit-worthy national tenants, we stabilized project occupancy at 98% in a competitive market characterized by 88% occupancy."

"The acquisition of the Bellevue Park Corporate Center further cements our commitment to the State of Delaware and the Greater Philadelphia office market," said Christopher Buccini, Co-President of the Buccini/Pollin Group. "We are very focused on owning best-in-class assets whether they are in the office, hotel, residential or entertainment sector. With so many world class corporations calling Bellevue home, this is an extraordinary addition to our portfolio."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Kite Realty Buys Inland Diversified for $2.1B

Kite Realty Group Trust, an Indianapolis-based REIT, announced this week that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Inland Diversified Real Estate Trust by which Inland Diversified will merge with and into a wholly owned subsidiary of Kite Realty. The stock-for-stock merger has a transaction value of approximately $2.1 billion and an equity value of approximately $1.2 billion, and increases Kite Realty's portfolio to 131 properties totaling more than 20 million owned square feet in 26 states with a combined enterprise value of approximately $3.9 billion.

"We are extremely pleased to announce what is a transformational transaction for our company. Inland Diversified has assembled a very well located, high quality portfolio," said John Kite, Kite Realty's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The asset and tenant quality and strong demographic profile will be a great complement to our portfolio. With this transaction, we will be able to substantially increase the size and scale of our portfolio in our core markets and enter into attractive new markets. This transaction will further strengthen our balance sheet and enhance our cash flow, positioning us favorably for future growth and shareholder value creation."

"We're excited to see the process we've been engaged in culminate in this transformational event for our company and our stockholders," said Barry Lazarus, president and chief operating officer at Inland Diversified. "This transaction achieves our goal of maximizing value and provides an opportunity for our stockholders to either remain part of the well capitalized combined company or liquidate their investment. It is extremely gratifying for the entire Inland Diversified management team to be part of the successful formation and operation of Inland Diversified, as well as its merger with Kite, a leading shopping center company that is listed on the New York Stock Exchange."

Inland Diversified has entered into a contract to sell its single tenant net lease portfolio to Realty Income Corporation for $503 million, a deal that is expected to close prior to the closing of the merger. Inland owns 57 well-leased shopping centers in 22 states, including attractive markets such as Westchester, N.Y.; Bayonne, N.J.; Las Vegas; Virginia Beach, Va; and Salt Lake City, according to an Indianapolis Star article.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

New Air Liquide Center in Memorial City

Air Liquide, the Paris-based world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, announced this week that it will be moving its U.S. headquarters from the Houston Galleria area to the new Air Liquide Center in Memorial City in Houston, Texas. The new headquarters will break ground this month with an expected delivery by November 2015, when Air Liquide will expand its space to accommodate the company's growing workforce.

"This move marks an exciting new chapter in Air Liquide's history as our business continues to rapidly grow and evolve," said Michael Graff, Chairman & CEO, American Air Liquide Holdings, Inc. and Air Liquide Senior Vice President for the Americas. "We are investing in our future, ensuring the right environment, space and resources to support our talented workforce and continue to enable the highest level of innovation and service for our customers."

Designed by Morris Architects, the new Air Liquide Center will consist of a 20-story, 452,000 square-foot tower and an adjacent 145,000 square-foot building, located at 9811 and 9807 Katy Freeway. Air Liquide's administrative and industrial operations will initially occupy the upper six floors of the 20-story tower in addition to the first floor lobby and office space, totaling 155,000 square feet, with options to expand floor space. Its Engineering & Construction operations will occupy two floors of the second building, totaling 67,000 square feet. Memorial City is a premier mixed-use development owned and managed by MetroNational.

"With the announcement of Air Liquide, four major publicly traded companies have made the decision to relocate to Memorial City in the last 24 months, filling 750,000 total square feet of office space," said Randy Nerren, Executive Vice President at MetroNational. "We are delighted that Air Liquide has joined the growing roster of international companies that realize all that Memorial City has to offer."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

GSA Making Changes, Dropping Need for Warehousing

Tom Sharpe, Commissioner of GSA Federal Acquisition Service, posted on the agency's website that the GSA is preparing to make important changes to their business model, which could see it exit millions of square feet of warehouse distribution space. The GSA is already moving forward with the implementation of a new vision for the Federal Acquisition Service (FAS), which includes a new business model for their supply business that would allow vendors to directly support GSA customers. This transformation would sidestep the GSA's existing wholesale supply business, which relies on warehouse distribution centers and retail stores around the world that stocks inventory from those warehouses.

"This model is costly, cumbersome and no longer the most efficient or effective approach to supporting our federal partners," wrote Mr. Sharpe. "This is the right time to implement these changes to GSA's supply program and they are one part of a new vision we are outlining for FAS over the next year. By working closely with our vendors, we have an opportunity to support our federal partners with the value and services they need, through a system that is suited to today's marketplace."

While it is not clear just how much of the federal government's warehouse inventory is used by the FAS, the GSA controls a total inventory of 25.56 million rentable square feet, according to a CoStar report. It leases 16.1 million square feet and owns the remainder.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Brookfield Making Moves in China

Brookfield Asset Management, the Toronto-based global asset manager with landmark properties including Brookfield Place in Manhattan and Bank of America Plaza in Los Angeles, has plans to aggressively expand its portfolio of commercial space in China. According to a Wall Street Journal report, last month Brookfield bought nearly 22% interest in a unit of Hong Kong-listed property developer Shui On, which built the popular Xintiandi commercial complex in Shanghai.

Bruce Flatt, Brookfield Chief Executive Officer, has said that after spending recent years investing in distressed developed economies, the firm is bullish on China's office sector and focused on the long term, with the firm's new venture looking to tap into Shui On's local insights and ultimately yield at least 15% on equity.

According to real-estate consultancy CBRE, the office markets in tier-two Chinese cities—large cities that nonetheless lack the stature of leading Chinese cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou—are often more risky and at an early, uncertain stage of development. China's property market generally has a two-tiered structure in which top cities such as Shanghai and Beijing see strong demand and liquidity, but markets in second- and third-tier cities face a supply glut.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Ireland's First REITs Gaining Interest

After allowing the country's first real estate investment trusts (REITs) last year via legislation in April, Ireland has seen the new trusts perform better than the markets had expected. According to a Wall Street Journal report, Green REIT and Hibernia REIT raised €310 million and €365 million ($419.3 million and $493.7 million), respectively, in IPOs last year on the Irish Stock Exchange, and are attracting interest from some of the large investors betting on an Irish property recovery.

"Obviously these are blank check companies at the beginning of their lives; time will tell whether or not they will be able to buy the right assets, but we believe that with good management they should be able to do so," said Michael Shaoul, chairman and CEO of Marketfield Asset Management, an investment advisory firm that holds more than 9% of both Green REIT and Hibernia.

Leonard Geiger, senior vice president of investment manager Cohen & Steers, said that externally managed, so-called blind pools that raise capital without already owning properties "are clearly suboptimal." But, he said, "Most importantly, the introduction of Irish REITs allows investors to access this depressed, peripheral market at a time when recovery in [demand, rents, vacancy rates] and values is under way."

Green REIT has acquired the headquarters of EBS Building Society, a subsidiary of Allied Irish Bank, and the Independent Newspapers' print works in Dublin, according to the report. The company also purchased from Danske Bank a portfolio of 10 properties located in Dublin, Kildare and Limerick, which includes the Fitzwilliam Hall in Dublin, for a total of €178 million.

Hibernia plans to purchase properties for about €500 million, according to Kevin Nowlan, the company's managing director. "We see ourselves holding 60% to 65% offices, 20% to 25% retail and balance being industrial, residential and multifamily," Mr. Nowlan said.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

US Warehouse Market Primed for Solid 2014

According to analysis presented at the State of the U.S. Industrial Market 2013 Review and Forecast by CoStar Director of Industrial Research Rene Circ and Senior Real Estate Economist Shaw Lupton, demand for U.S. warehouse space not only exceeded expectations in the final quarter of 2013 but is poised for even stronger performance over the next 12 months with early demand and vacancy rates falling to levels not seen since the early 2000s. CoStar recorded net absorption of 58 million square feet of warehouse/distribution space within the 210 largest U.S. markets. Meanwhile, the 45 million square feet absorbed in the top 54 markets ranks as the sixth-highest quarterly reading on record -- and by far the strongest reading since the beginning of the recovery.

"Right now, we're seeing vacancies on a national level lower than the entire period of the last cycle," said Rene Circ, director of industrial research. "You have to go back to before the bursting of the Internet bubble in the early 2000s to see vacancies for U.S. industrial space below that 7.6% number."

"Modern space with proximity to population centers and a robust logistics infrastructure will dominate the industrial real estate sector in 2014," said Craig Meyer, president of industrial brokerage at JLL, who attributed 40% of current big-box industrial requirements as directly related to e-commerce -- a sector that’s growing globally by 20% annually as retailers develop new real estate models to support their omni-channel logistics models.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

First Shared Executive Office Building Coming to Park City

Cushman & Wakefield|Commerce announced today that it's bringing a shared office concept for professionals in Park City, Utah that will provide 11,289 rentable square feet of individual offices, collaboration areas, meeting rooms and ancillary services at the new Cottonwood Building at Kimball Junction. Dubbed Assemble, the site is currently under construction with plans to open the doors in March of this year.

"Assemble will provide the Park City market with something it has never had -- a professionally operated, shared executive office suite in a beautiful, class 'A' environment," said David Nadler, Managing Partner of Assemble. "This will be an ideal solution for individuals, small companies, and other professionals who choose to live and work in Park City, but don't want the expense and commitment of being locked into a long-term lease. We have established this type of office concept in New York, California, Denver, Chicago, Atlanta and elsewhere. We have several clients signed up and are excited to see it already being embraced in Park City because of the cost-savings, flexibility and increased productivity this new office space will bring."

Tim Anker, Managing Broker of the Park City office of Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce, is representing Assemble. He said, "The shared space concept, while new to Park City, is a global trend that has enabled many small companies and individuals to thrive and grow their businesses. The complete class A office coupled with the flexible membership option is an ideal solution for many business people in the Park City area. It is a totally new way for them to enjoy cost savings, maintain or build a professional image, and take advantage of some amazing amenities that are hard to come by on a limited budget."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.