News

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorAtlanta–Lane Co., like so many other companies in this tough economic time, is downsizing. Chairman and company founder George Lane will replace CEO Bill Donges (pictured) and Donges will continue to play an executive advisory role at the company.“I was part of the decision-making process,” Donges tells MHN. He has no hard feelings as he leaves a company he has spearheaded since 2005. “Given the contraction of the capital markets, it’s appropriate for just one person to be both chairman and CEO. This is the sign of the times and we are downsizing like any…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorGlenwood Springs, Colo.— The Roaring Fork Lodge, a condo/hotel project offering 40 residences and 106 guest rooms, applied for its final city approval today. The development is a joint venture between Magnolia Hotels, a Denver-based hotel development and management company, and Glenwood Springs, Colo.-based Roaring Fork Lodge LLC.“Our locations have all been urban so I am looking forward to developing in the mountains,” says Leigh Hitz, president, Magnolia Hotels. “There is not a niche project like this in the Glenwood Springs area,” she tells MHN, explaining that the target demographic is an out-of-state second-home buyer who…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–President George W. Bush, urged by President-elect Barack Obama, plans to formally ask a reluctant Congress to release the second half of the Treasury’s $700 billion financial system bailout fund. Obama asked President Bush to formally notify Congress, on his behalf, of his intent to exercise the authority under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act to access the $350 billion in funding for Treasury programs addressing the financial crisis.MHN asked Denise Muha, executive director of National Leased Housing Association, whether any portion of this money will be allotted toward solving the housing crisis and perhaps…

By Keat Foong, Executive Editor Washington, D.C.–Rising unemployment may not hurt the apartment market as badly as in the past, said an industry observer. The government reported the unemployment rate jumped in December to 7.2 percent—reportedly the highest rate since January 1993. Some housing economists have forecasted that the unemployment rate will not turn up until the later part of 2010. The National Association of Home Builders projects it may flatten to 8.1 percent by the beginning of next year. But many economists generally are projecting the unemployment rate to be over 9 percent by the end of 2009, and…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorAurora, Ill.–NorthMarq Capital LLC’s recently arranged first mortgage financing of $22.25 million for Butterfield Oaks Apartments (pictured), a 346-unit multifamily property, located in Aurora, Ill. Financing was based on a seven-year term with five years of Yield Maintenance and a 30-year amortization schedule.NorthMarq arranged the financing through its seller/server relationship with Freddie Mac. Arbor Closes Three DUS Loans Totaling Over $13M St. Charles, Ill., Kansas City, Mo. and East Lansing, Mich.–Arbor Commercial Funding LLC recently completed funding of three loans totaling $13,200,000 under the Fannie Mae DUS product line.The loans include:Cumberland Green Co-op, St. Charles, Ill.:…

San Francisco–Atlanta-headquartered Apartment Realty Advisors (ARA) has opened its northern California office—ARA Pacific—under the leadership of Curtis Gardner and Mark Leary, both former partners with San Francisco-based Arroyo & Coates. The new office, located in San Francisco, marks ARA’s 17th location. The brokerage team of Curtis Gardner, Mark Leary, Craig Chiappone and John McCulloch has collectively closed in excess of $6 billion in multi-housing transactions in the northern and southern California markets since 1986. The team collectively possesses over 50 years of real estate investment experience with a specialization in the apartment market. AvalonBay Communities, BRE Properties, Equity Residential, Fairfield…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew York–As we come out of one of the worst holiday shopping seasons in history, the retail sector continues to be hit with more bad news. Reports of bankruptcies, revenue losses and companies on the verge of shutting down keep on coming. While the multifamily sector is faring better than the doom-and-gloom results of retail, the major hits taken by this sector are having a big impact on mixed-use developments across the U.S., in its path negatively affecting apartment projects.“New mixed-use developments are dead for now,” David Jacobstein, chief advisor to Deloitte LLP’s Real Estate…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorKnoxville, Tenn.—Sthenia Solutions, a software development firm, recently launched LoanMarq, a Web-based finance management application for the mortgage, banking and real estate industries to bring borrowers, lenders, loan officers, appraisers, agents and escrow officers together. In the mortgage and real estate industries, a client going to get a mortgage is often left in the dark as to the status of the loan, says Paul Piers, CEO, Sthenia Solutions. LoanMarq provides a higher level of customer service, he says. “Anytime real estate is transferred, no matter what type of property, it works. Everyone involved in the transaction…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorLivingston, N.J.–Gebroe-Hammer Associates has appointed four professionals to new executive-level management positions. Joseph Brecher (pictured) and David Jarvis were named executive vice presidents, and Greg Pine and Eli Rosen were promoted to the position of senior vice president.“In addition to consistently demonstrating comprehensive market knowledge and unrivaled expertise, each of these individuals has been integral to Gebroe-Hammer’s growth and expansion into new submarkets throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania,” says Ken Uranowitz, managing director. “Representing Gebroe-Hammer’s future, these brokers have distinguished themselves in terms of transactional volume in existing and emerging markets.”  Jones Lang LaSalle Expands…