Middle Market Digest: Early This Week in the Southeast

ATLANTA—Early this week in the Southeast saw Georgia dominate commercial real estate headlines. However, there was a significant Walmart portfolio trade in South Louisiana. Get all the details.

BY THE NUMBERS

With the nation's tenth largest GDP, Atlanta has become the economic capital of the Southeast and a global business hub. A new cycle of economic expansion is underway, led by commitments from major corporations including State Farm, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Kaiser Permanente, KPMG, Google, WorldPay, GE, NCR, Honeywell, and Anthem. Emerging growth sectors include filmmaking, mobile technology, supply chain management, Internet security, healthcare IT, and payments processing. (Source: StoneBridge)

The Atlanta metro region is expected to add 2.5 million residents and 1.5 million jobs by 2040. (Source: StoneBridge)

NEWS & NOTABLES

ATLANTA—Peter Guilfu is transferring from the SunTrust Commercial Real Estate's Institutional Private Capital team to CRE's Pillar division, where he will serve as managing director of Institutional Real Estate and Manufactured Housing. Guilfu will focus on leveraging Pillar's agency lending platform to help deliver creative permanent agency finance solutions to CRE's institutional clients. SunTrust acquired substantially all of the assets of Pillar last year, and the acquisition of the Agency multifamily lender strategically expanded the commercial real estate capabilities of the company. SunTrust is now one of a select group of independent Agency lenders that holds licenses with all three agencies: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration.

DEAL TRACKER

LAFAYETTE, LA—HFF arranged $50.7 million in acquisition financing for a six-building portfolio of newly completed, freestanding retail stores fully occupied by Walmart Neighborhood Market and totaling 257,533 square feet in various markets in southern Louisiana. HFF worked on behalf of the borrower, Hampshire Companies, Hana Asset Management from Seoul, South Korea, and several of their institutional and retail investors, to place the five-year, interest-only, fixed-rate loan with Protective Life Insurance Company. All the properties are in prime commercial corridors within their respective submarkets. The HFF team was led by senior managing director Jon Mikula and managing director Michael Klein.

ATLANTA—Preferred Apartment Communities closed on an aggregate loan investment of up to approximately $17.9 million. This investment is in connection with Newport Development Partners' plans to develop a 258-unit class A multifamily community in Atlanta. Additionally, with this investment, PAC received an option to purchase the multifamily community following stabilization at a discounted price to market.  

DECATUR, GA—The United Methodist Children's Home (UMCH) signed a lease to secure new housing for program residents in Tucker and Clarkston, GA. The new program residences will provide future housing for clients currently under UMCH's care at the ministry's Decatur campus, including those we serve in Independent Living and Family Housing ministries. UMCH also signed a lease for new administrative and volunteer office space and UMCH Flea Market at 1967 Lakeside Parkway, Building 400 in Tucker. This progress is in step with the ministry's plan to relocate from its 77-acre campus at 500 Columbia Drive in DeKalb Co. during late summer 2017. Peyton Wimberly of Cushman & Wakefield managed the research and lease negotiations and will oversee management of space improvements.

BUILDING BLOCKS

ATLANTA—Olmsted Chamblee Apartments is 50% leased. Community amenities include co-working office spaces, artist's studio, and a landmark sign. Across the street from Chamblee MARTA rail station, it's two blocks from the soon-to-open Whole Foods in Peachtree Station, which also has several restaurants. It's also at the starting point of the completed part of the Chamblee Rail Trail. Its marquee “CHAMBLEE” rooftop sign is at the busy intersection of Peachtree Boulevard and Chamblee Tucker Road. The 37-foot-wide sign has five-foot-tall letters visible from a mile away. Buckhead, Midtown and Downtown are a few stops away via MARTA rail. Interstate 85 and GA 400 are close, as well as Interstate 285, which means a short drive to SunTrust Park. Oglethorpe University is two miles away. Historic Downtown Chamblee, Buford Highway and Town Brookhaven are also nearby.

ATLANTA—Early this week in the Southeast saw Georgia dominate commercial real estate headlines. However, there was a significant Walmart portfolio trade in South Louisiana. Get all the details.

BY THE NUMBERS

With the nation's tenth largest GDP, Atlanta has become the economic capital of the Southeast and a global business hub. A new cycle of economic expansion is underway, led by commitments from major corporations including State Farm, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Kaiser Permanente, KPMG, Google, WorldPay, GE, NCR, Honeywell, and Anthem. Emerging growth sectors include filmmaking, mobile technology, supply chain management, Internet security, healthcare IT, and payments processing. (Source: StoneBridge)

The Atlanta metro region is expected to add 2.5 million residents and 1.5 million jobs by 2040. (Source: StoneBridge)

NEWS & NOTABLES

ATLANTA—Peter Guilfu is transferring from the SunTrust Commercial Real Estate's Institutional Private Capital team to CRE's Pillar division, where he will serve as managing director of Institutional Real Estate and Manufactured Housing. Guilfu will focus on leveraging Pillar's agency lending platform to help deliver creative permanent agency finance solutions to CRE's institutional clients. SunTrust acquired substantially all of the assets of Pillar last year, and the acquisition of the Agency multifamily lender strategically expanded the commercial real estate capabilities of the company. SunTrust is now one of a select group of independent Agency lenders that holds licenses with all three agencies: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration.

DEAL TRACKER

LAFAYETTE, LA—HFF arranged $50.7 million in acquisition financing for a six-building portfolio of newly completed, freestanding retail stores fully occupied by Walmart Neighborhood Market and totaling 257,533 square feet in various markets in southern Louisiana. HFF worked on behalf of the borrower, Hampshire Companies, Hana Asset Management from Seoul, South Korea, and several of their institutional and retail investors, to place the five-year, interest-only, fixed-rate loan with Protective Life Insurance Company. All the properties are in prime commercial corridors within their respective submarkets. The HFF team was led by senior managing director Jon Mikula and managing director Michael Klein.

ATLANTA—Preferred Apartment Communities closed on an aggregate loan investment of up to approximately $17.9 million. This investment is in connection with Newport Development Partners' plans to develop a 258-unit class A multifamily community in Atlanta. Additionally, with this investment, PAC received an option to purchase the multifamily community following stabilization at a discounted price to market.  

DECATUR, GA—The United Methodist Children's Home (UMCH) signed a lease to secure new housing for program residents in Tucker and Clarkston, GA. The new program residences will provide future housing for clients currently under UMCH's care at the ministry's Decatur campus, including those we serve in Independent Living and Family Housing ministries. UMCH also signed a lease for new administrative and volunteer office space and UMCH Flea Market at 1967 Lakeside Parkway, Building 400 in Tucker. This progress is in step with the ministry's plan to relocate from its 77-acre campus at 500 Columbia Drive in DeKalb Co. during late summer 2017. Peyton Wimberly of Cushman & Wakefield managed the research and lease negotiations and will oversee management of space improvements.

BUILDING BLOCKS

ATLANTA—Olmsted Chamblee Apartments is 50% leased. Community amenities include co-working office spaces, artist's studio, and a landmark sign. Across the street from Chamblee MARTA rail station, it's two blocks from the soon-to-open Whole Foods in Peachtree Station, which also has several restaurants. It's also at the starting point of the completed part of the Chamblee Rail Trail. Its marquee “CHAMBLEE” rooftop sign is at the busy intersection of Peachtree Boulevard and Chamblee Tucker Road. The 37-foot-wide sign has five-foot-tall letters visible from a mile away. Buckhead, Midtown and Downtown are a few stops away via MARTA rail. Interstate 85 and GA 400 are close, as well as Interstate 285, which means a short drive to SunTrust Park. Oglethorpe University is two miles away. Historic Downtown Chamblee, Buford Highway and Town Brookhaven are also nearby.