The seller has signed 11-year leases for the locations. Todd White, Macfarlan's senior vice president of transactions, tells GlobeSt.com, that it's the second package of properties in six months to be swapped in Eagle Global's changing strategy. The Dalllas-based Macfarlan was the second-place bidder six months ago so it only made sense that Eagle's broker would knock on Macfarlan's door for the second offering, White says.
Three of four buildings in the portfolio have closed. The deeds now tucked away are 620 Westport Parkway, a 122,580-sf distribution center on 10.9 acres in Grapevine; 99,925 sf on almost nine acres at 7900 E. Riverside Dr. in Austin; and 4810 Ameritech Dr., a 39,200-sf building on 6.3 acres in South Bend. All were built in 1999 and all are located in master-planned parks either in or neighboring major airports.
"The quality of the real estate and a tenant like Eagle Global Logistics make these acquisitions a perfect fit for our investment platform," CEO Dean Macfarlan said in a prepared statement.
Eagle Global Logistics, with a 100-country network, has 75 US locations, but White isn't sure how many are affected by the changing strategy. The two blocks of eight properties were brought to market because the leases, held by third-party entity affiliated with a bank, were due to expire, White confided.
Last year, Macfarlan spent $70 million from a pool targeting net-leased properties. This year, $100 million will be spent, White says of a market segment where the competition is getting stiffer with each quarterly reporting period as investment capital looks for stability in uncertain times. "The deals are very hard to come by these days," he says, "but they are out there."
Macfarlan's edge is chasing deals in the non-rated crowd, buying with internal funds and then going to market for co-investors. White believes a federal ruling on synthetic leases definitely will open doors of opportunity for Macfarlan and its competitors.
In addition to White, the Macfarlan negotiating team included Scott Palmer and Jeff Ledyard. Sitting across the bargaining table were James Vann and Matt Minnis, both with Houston-based Moody Rambin Interests, and Eagle Global Logistics' CFO Elijio Serrano and Diane Deaton, real estate consultant.
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