Tremont Tower LLP, an entity of Houston-based Stature Construction Inc. is the borrower of record for the second mortgage secured through the Frisco, TX-based Hall Financial Group. North Houston Bank provided the initial $10.4-million construction loan or 60% of the overall costs while the developer put up $3 million in cash to get the project moving, Mike Jaynes, senior vice president with Hall Financial, tells GlobeSt.com.

Jaynes says the structured finance, which has an 18-month term for Tremont Tower, is becoming more commonplace as lenders provide less capital and developers and owners are forced to come up with more of their own money or seek mezzanine financing, as the Houston developer did.

"Hall Financial Group brings a level of flexibility and creativity to the table that larger financial institutions cannot match," Donald Braun, Hall Financial's president, said in a prepared statement. "We work with entrepreneurial developers and owners who benefit from and appreciate our frank input and decisive, responsive approach."

Jaynes said 50% of the units are sold. A one-bedroom, 1 1/2 bath condo starts at more than $170,000 while a two-story penthouse ranges from $260,000 to more than $600,000. Jaynes says the relatively affordable price points for a high-end CBD project were intriguing for Hall Financial, which is backing its first new project in Houston. Many condo and loft projects in the inner city carry price tags of $500,000 or more. Irving Philips, a Houston-based architect, designed the 101,585-sf tower, which is located between midtown and River Oaks.