Pershing Square & Fairholme Capital Offer $3.925B to General Growth Mon Mar 8, 2010
General Growth Properties (NYSE:GGP) announced that a joint venture between Pershing Square Capital Management and Fairholme Capital Management said they would commit $3.925 billion of new equity capital, at a value of $15.00 per share, to facilitate...
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In The Pipeline: CoStar Development and Construction News for March 7-13 Mon Mar 8, 2010
In this week's edition of In The Pipeline, Forest City's Atlantic Yards mixed-use project is scheduled to finally break ground this week. Meanwhile, another long delayed development project, the Guasti Historic District in Ontario, CA,has begun with...
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UBS Renews, Consolidates in Chicago Mon Mar 8, 2010
UBS is extending its stay at One North Wacker Drive in Chicago, also known as the UBS Tower. The Swiss financial services firm has renewed for 400,000 square feet in the office tower, a total of 13 floors. The 10-year lease, set to commence in 2012...
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10-Year Plan Indicates Post Office Closures Sun Mar 7, 2010
Faced with a probable $238 billion shortfall over the next 10 years, the United States Postal Service has outlined a new plan to cut costs and return the agency to long-term profitability. The Postal Service's new plan outlined several additional...
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CoStar's Retail News Roundup: Mar. 7 - 13, 2010 Sun Mar 7, 2010
This week in the Retail Roundup, CoStar reports on expansions or new concepts at TJX Companies and Kohl's; closings, cutbacks, bankruptcy, default, receivership or foreclosure news at Swoozie's and the Northgate Mall; acquisition, merger, loan, sale...
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Elbit Plaza USA Aims to Invest up to $1B in U.S. Retail Real Estate Fri Mar 5, 2010
Elbit Plaza USA, a new real estate investment venture jointly formed by Elbit Imaging and Plaza Centers N.V., has entered into a co-investment agreement with Eastgate Property, an affiliate of international real estate fund manager, NCH Capital. Specifically...
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CBRE Names CFO; Turns Over Reins of Private Client Group Thu Mar 4, 2010
Gil Borok was promoted to chief financial officer of CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. He takes over from Bob Sulentic who will continue as CBRE’s president running day-to-day operations and principal business activities worldwide. Both will report to CEO Brett...
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Inland Acquires 16-Center Portfolio for $424M Thu Mar 4, 2010
Oakbrook, IL-based Inland Real Estate Acquisitions, Inc., the purchasing arm of The Inland Real Estate Group of Companies, Inc., completed the acquisition of a portfolio of 16 shopping centers totaling 3.5 million square feet. The REIT acquired the portfolio...
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Signs of Hope Seen in Investment Sales Activity Wed Mar 3, 2010
Large dollar property sales seem to be emitting faint sparks of hope for the commercial real estate outlook so far in 2010, particularly in the multifamily and hospitality sectors. To be certain, the number of property sales with price tags of $5 million...
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By The Numbers: Commercial Developers Off to A Rough Start in 2010 Wed Mar 3, 2010
Commercial real estate development and construction activity continued to plumb new depths in 2010, according to new government data. And a leading indicator of future construction activity finds even fewer projects on the drawing boards. According...
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Retailers Expected to Close Fewer Stores in 2010 Wed Mar 3, 2010
Add store closings to the list of categories where 'less bad' has become the 'new good.' The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) issued its latest semi-annual report on store closings and found that the huge wave of store closures that...
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General Growth Granted Extension to File Reorganization Plan Thu Mar 4, 2010
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Allan Gropper granted General Growth Properties an additional 120-day exclusive window to file its bankruptcy reorganization plan. The four-month extension is less than the 180 days that General Growth requested, but is significantly...
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Lease Up/Lease Down (Feb. 28 - Mar. 6): Hummer: Stalling Out for Good? Wed Mar 3, 2010
CoStar compiles news of corporate expansions, relocations, extensions, closures, layoffs, lease cancellations and mergers in the weekly Lease Up/Lease Down news report, a concise read keeping you updated on major corporate moves affecting commercial...
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CMBS Outlook: Multifamily Still Stressed; Retail Half Way There Wed Mar 3, 2010
While multifamily vacancy rates are expected to stabilize in certain markets, Fitch Ratings' outlook for the sector in the near-term remains negative. Although vacancy rates are expected to reach their peak of 8.9% in 2010, rents will take longer to recover...
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Bank Watch: Pacific Western Bank Sells $324 Mil. of Impaired Loans Wed Mar 3, 2010
Pacific Western Bank in San Diego, CA, sold 61 non-covered adversely classified loans totaling $323.6 million, which includes $107.6 million of nonaccrual loans, to an institutional buyer for $200.6 million in cash - or about 62 cents on the dollar. Among...
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LaSalle Invests $95M in Sofitel Washington Mon Mar 1, 2010
LaSalle Hotel Properties, a Bethesda, MD-based hotel REIT, purchased the Sofitel Washington, DC Lafayette Square for $95 million. Gem Realty Capital Inc., a real estate investment company headquartered in Chicago, sold the 237-room property at 806 15th...
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Peerless Industries Consolidating International Operations Mon Mar 1, 2010
Peerless Industries is consolidating operations, inking a full-building lease just west of Chicago. The manufacturer of television and speaker mounts plans to add about 85 jobs over the next three years, and retain its 405 local employees. Peerless...
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Equity One May Acquire Liberty International's $560M U.S. Retail Portfolio Mon Mar 1, 2010
Liberty International Plc, the largest owner of shopping centers in the U.K., is considering selling off its U.S. office buildings and malls in an effort to reduce its U.S. exposure, according to a Feb. 24 report from Bloomberg. Bloomberg identified...
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Blockbuster Shuttering Up to 545 Stores During 2010 Sun Feb 28, 2010
Keeping with the ongoing contraction of the traditional movie rental retail business, Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI, BBI.B) said it would close 500 to 545 of its company-owned U.S. retail stores during 2010. To date, the retailer has already closed 253...
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CBRE Investors Buys East End Apts. for $100.5 Million Wed Feb 24, 2010
Los Angeles-based CB Richard Ellis Investors purchased the Mass Court apartments at 300 H St. NW in Washington, DC, for $100.5 million, or about $270,889 per unit, according to public record. Prudential Real Estate Investors, acting on behalf of institutional...
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Distressed CRE Assets Jump 15% at Nation's Banks Wed Feb 24, 2010
The amount of distressed commercial real estate assets on the books of the nation's banks and thrifts approached $60 billion as of year-end 2009. That is up from $52 billion just three months earlier, a 15% increase. The $59.9 billion includes loans...
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General Growth Cuts Deal With Brookfield in Bid to Exit Bankruptcy Wed Feb 24, 2010
General Growth Properties (OTC: GGWPQ) is attempting to head off a hostile $10 billion takeover by Simon Property Group by striking a friendly recapitalization deal with Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc. But this game is far from over. If...
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Sen. Dodd: CRE Problems Require 'Prompt and Robust' Action By Regulators Tue Feb 23, 2010
Concern continues to mount in Congress about the potential impact of weak commercial real estate markets on the economic recovery, even as major legislation overhauling regulations for the nation's banking and financial system move closer to the Senate...
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Lease Up/Lease Down (Feb. 21-27): Largest U.S. Office Lease in Two Years Tue Feb 23, 2010
CoStar compiles news of corporate expansions, relocations, extensions, closures, layoffs, lease cancellations and mergers in the weekly Lease Up/Lease Down news report, a concise read keeping you updated on major corporate moves affecting commercial...
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Kennedy Wilson Completes Largest Buy in its History - A Loan Portfolio Wed Feb 24, 2010
International real estate investment and services investment firm Kennedy Wilson has acquired a $342 million loan portfolio from a large regional bank. The loan portfolio is composed of residential, hotel, retail, office, land, multifamily and other...
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Starwood Buying a Half Billion Dollars in Performing Loans from Teachers Wed Feb 24, 2010
Starwood Property Trust agreed to acquire a $503 million portfolio of performing commercial mortgages from TIAA-CREF for approximately $510 million, plus accrued interest. The fixed-rate portfolio consists of 18 senior first mortgage A-notes and two...
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Bank Watch: Citizens First: Squeezing and Being Squeezed Wed Feb 24, 2010
In an attempt to hang on to every penny Citizens First Bancorp Inc., the Port Huron, MI-based holding company for CF Bancorp, has voluntarily delisted its common stock from the NASDAQ stock exchange. The decision to delist is part of the company's...
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