CHICAGO—One of the big takeaways from yesterday's Marcus & Millichap Multifamily Forum was that most participants feel that the Chicago region will soon experience “a correction,” or a drop-off in the market. However, at the same time, most feel the region, both city and suburbs, have strengths that will pull it through whatever comes. Although the city has received some bad press for losing population, the downtown has thrived, drawing in tens of thousands of new residents in the past few decades, along with many new firms. That has given it a density which will continue to attract others, even if it's not at the same pace. And the suburbs of Chicago have their own advantages. One panelist pointed out that many towns started out more than one hundred years ago as “whistle-stops” for railroads radiating out from the city. And that means each has excellent spots for transit-oriented developments, just the kind of communities that will be popular for years to come.

BY THE NUMBERS

CHICAGO—The US Census Bureau announced earlier this week that retail and food services sales for March totaled $494.6 billion, an increase of 0.6% over February. “Retail sales rebounded on a month-to-month basis and continued their strong growth on a year-over-year basis, increasing by 4.5%,” according to Naveen Jaggi, president of retail for Chicago-based JLL. “An early Easter was a boon to March sales, as the holiday helped propel consumption in the back-half of the month. Additionally, spring break related purchases added additional strength to the month. Buoyed by favorable economic conditions and a strong labor market, consumers continued to do their part in moving the economy forward.”

NEWS & NOTABLES

CHICAGO—Kiser Group, a Chicago-based multifamily brokerage firm, has just listed for sale Flats on LaSalle, a 250-unit, eight-story building at 1140 N. LaSalle Dr. It was originally built in 1924 as a luxury hotel. It was later converted to apartments and in 2006 to condominiums. The condominiums are a mix of studio and one-bedroom units. Lee Kiser, Michael D'Agostino, Jake Parker and Ken Naslund of Kiser are handling the condominium deconversion. “This is a value-add opportunity for a private buyer,” says Kiser, principal and managing broker. “Centralizing management and leasing as an apartment property will increase and stabilize the NOI. Competing projects in the area suggest that rents can be increased dramatically by updating units and common areas and adding amenities to the building.” D'Agostino, senior director, adds that the condo deconversion “trend will continue as long as investor interest in apartment buildings continues to push prices per unit higher than condominium values.”

CHICAGO—Patrick Hewitt, an experienced tenant rep advisor, has joined the Chicago office of global real estate services firm Colliers International in the downtown office advisory group. Patrick joins the Chicago corporate solutions team led by David Burden, principal. He was most recently a vice president with JLL, where he focused exclusively on tenant representation. His efforts supported clients within the legal, professional and financial services industries. Prior to working for JLL, Patrick worked as an associate for three years with Transwestern. “We are impressed with Patrick's strong business development acumen across various industries,” Burden says. “Patrick will provide additional support to meet the needs of our growing roster of clients in downtown Chicago.”

DEALTRACKER

ROCKFORD, IL—MetroGroup Realty Finance, a Newport Beach, CA-based firm, has secured permanent refinancing for a portfolio of three Walgreens stores totaling 38,639 square feet across northern IL on behalf of a Newport Beach, CA-based investor. The Walgreen Co. occupies all three properties on lease terms of 50 years. The $3.69 million refinancing replaces two maturing CMBS loans and returns a portion of the equity to ownership, according to Patrick Ward, MetroGroup's founder and president. “Our client, Scott Ketchum, specializes in selling Walgreens stores nationwide. He bought these locations at an attractive price, ensuring that alternative uses would be viable in the event Walgreens were to exercise their termination right.” The three assets, all built in the early-to-mid 90s, are located at 3803 Auburn St. and 1602 Kishwaukee St. in Rockford, and 15 S. Orchard Dr. in Park Forest.

BUILDING BLOCKS

CHICAGO—Chicago-based developers CA Ventures and Focus last week celebrated the groundbreaking of 811 Emerson, a nine-story, 241-unit transit-oriented development at 811 Emerson St. in Evanston, IL. Offering proximity to Northwestern University and popular shops and restaurants downtown, the rental development is also steps from CTA and Metra stations at Davis St. The partners plan to finish the building in summer 2019, with pre-leasing set to begin in fall 2018. “As a neighboring suburb of Chicago that is connected to the city's transit network and home to a top-rated institution like Northwestern, Evanston has always provided the perfect mix of urban and suburban life, making it especially attractive for residential development,” says JJ Smith, principal of CA Ventures. “811 Emerson will meet the growing demand for centrally located, near-transit housing that is highly amenitized yet attainable.” 811 Emerson was designed for LEED Silver certification by bKL Architecture. Focus serves as the general contractor for the project.

ORLAND PARK, IL—Pathway to Living, a Chicago-based developer, owner and operator of senior living communities, just opened Heartis Village of Orland Park, a 96-unit assisted living and memory care community in Orland Park, IL. Developed by Caddis Healthcare Real Estate, the 89,622-square-foot property located at 7420 W. 159th St. includes a three-story assisted living building and single-story memory care wing. The community has 72 assisted living apartments and 24 memory care studios. Memory care residents benefit from A Knew Day, Pathway to Living's signature memory care program. that is proven to provide rehabilitation for the brain – a process called rementia – by helping those with memory impairment become more engaged and communicative. Heartis Village of Orland Park is the second Heartis-owned community to be managed by Pathway to Living after Heartis Place of Peoria, a 108-unit assisted living and memory care community in Peoria, IL, that opened in 2016.

Instant Insights /

Middle Market Digest-The Midwest

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