BPY to Drive Off with Auto RE Firm for $4.3B

NEW YORK CITY—Brookfield Property Partners is acquiring Capital Automotive LP from DRA Advisors LLC in a deal valued at $4.283 billion. An industry source familiar with the matter confirms a Reuters report that the specialty finance company for the auto industry will launch $400 million in debt facilities to help fund the transaction, which also includes the assumption of all existing debt.

McLean, VA-based Capital Automotive, which provides sale-leaseback capital to help car dealers upgrade their facilities and acquire new ones, has more than $3.5 billion invested in more than 450 dealerships in 37 states. It was launched in 1997 as a REIT and co-founded by David S. Kay, now president of American Realty Capital Properties. DRA took Capital Automotive private for a reported $3.4 billion in 2005.