Carlyle & Songy Sell Galleria Place in Houston

An affiliate of Lincoln Property Co. has purchased Galleria Place, a two-building Class A office complex across from the Galleria Mall in Houston, Texas, for an undisclosed amount. The property was sold by The Carlyle Group and Songy Highroads LLC in a deal arranged by Holliday Fenoglio Fowler; according to a press release, HFF is also engaged to arrange financing for the buyer. Galleria Place previously traded hands in March 2013 when California-based Chase Merritt and Pacific Coast Capital Partners LLC sold the property to The Carlyle Group and Songy Highroads; HFF arranged that sale as well.

The property includes Galleria Place I, an 11-story,, 217,006-square-foot office building at 5251 Westheimer at Sage; and Galleria Place II, a 10-story,178,468-square-foot office building at 5333 Westheimer; and a building occupied by Regions Bank. According to a Houston Chronicle report, Songy is developing two hotels, Hyatt Regency Galleria and Hyatt Place Galleria nearby. Galleria Place was 53% leased at the time of sale to tenants including Just Energy and HIS. 

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Miami's b2 Sold for $57.5M

CRP/InSite Biscayne, a joint venture between Carlyle Group and InSite Group, announced this week that it had sold the b2 Miami Downtown and an adjacent retail building for $57.5 million. HHR EAT Downtown Miami, an affiliate of Arizona-based company Investment Property Exchange Services, purchased the property; terms of the deal were not disclosed. Property records do show that the CRP/InSite Biscayne purchased the property for $13.5 million in September 2011. The previous owner, a partnership between New York developers Aby Rosen and Ian Schrager, bought the hotel for $31 million in 2005 and operated it as the Continental Hotel Bayside, according to a report from The Real Deal.

Located at 146 Biscayne Blvd., the 243-room hotel was originally built in 1926. The building features the Biscayne Tavern restaurant and 1,000 square feet of meeting space. The property is minutes from the Port of Miami and directly across from Bayside Market Place.

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HCP Acquires $6.1B Portfolio

HCP entered into a definitive agreement this week to acquire the real estate assets of HCR ManorCare for $6.1 billion in what's become the largest deal involving a real estate investment trust in three years according to a New York Times article. HCR ManorCare, owned privately by management and equity funds managed by The Carlyle Group, is unloading 338 post-acute, skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in 30 states, with the highest concentrations in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Illinois and Michigan. The transaction is being made via $3.528 billion in cash, $1.72 billion reinvested from the payoff of HCP's existing debt investments in HCR ManorCare (original cash investment of $1.49 billion), and $852 million in HCP common stock issued directly to the shareholders of HCR ManorCare (a fixed 25.7 million shares).

HCP has obtained a commitment for a bridge loan in an amount up to $3.3 billion that will be available to complete the HCR ManorCare acquisition. HCP intends to issue debt and equity securities in lieu of any borrowings available under the bridge loan. "This transaction reinvests our substantial debt investment in a secure long-term, growing income stream that will be highly accretive to HCP's funds from operations and funds available for distribution," said Jay Flaherty, HCP's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The acquisition is consistent with our '5x5' business model and an important milestone for our Company. Pro forma for this transaction, HCP will have $19 billion in assets comprised of a well-balanced portfolio of 1,000 properties." CSCA Capital Advisors, LLC acted as lead financial advisor with Citi, UBS and Wells Fargo also advising. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP acted as HCP's legal advisor. In connection with the transaction, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC is HCR ManorCare's exclusive financial advisor and Latham & Watkins LLP is their legal advisor.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.