After a five-month structuring, LJ Melody directors Timothy J. Koletic and Frank Silcox arranged the financing for the project's owner and developer, Towers of Channelside LLC, a partnership of three Tampa developers. There was no formal bid process among mortgage bankers for the funding assignment. "We effectively won the business when we demonstrated creative structuring and representation strategies that led to successful outcomes very early in the process," Koletic tells GlobeSt.com.
A senior debt syndication of six banks, led by Wachovia Bank, provided the $95.56-million first mortgage loan priced to float over a Libor index. Merrill Lynch Capital Inc. provided the $11.24-million mezzanine loan. Both are three-year, interest-only loans. The repayment of principal will come from the sale of the condo units.
Koletic would not disclose the effective interest rates on the loans because of confidentiality contract clauses LJ Melody has with the lenders. Area mortgage bankers, however, tell GlobeSt.com the loans are estimated to have an effective interest rate of under 6%. "Both Merrill Lynch and Wachovia aggressively pursued the business in terms of both pricing and terms," Koletic says.
The broker tells GlobeSt.com pre-sales, with reservations, began in April with 255 of the 257 homes currently under contract. "They were virtually sold out in four business days," Koletic says. The condos are priced from about $360,000 to $1.6 million with the average price at about $545,000.
The Towers of Channelside, located in Tampa's "hottest urban neighborhood," is the district's first high-rise condominium, Koletic says. "It's the largest residential development in Downtown Tampa to fully complete financing and begin construction," the broker adds.
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