News
Concern Grows About Small Banks’ Exposure to Real Estate Development Loans
Washington, D.C.–Recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation information is causing regulators to become concerned that, as home values plummet, small U.S. banks may have too high a concentration of real estate development loans, the Financial Times reports.Banks’ real estate development loan losses in the first quarter were more than 15 times the amount of losses in the first quarter of 2007, the Washington, D.C.-based FDIC said. In addition, more than half of banks with assets worth between $1 billion and $10 billion have commercial real estate loan portfolios that are more than 300 percent of their capital.Nearly 30 percent of U.S….
British Mortgage Issues May Drag Home Sales, Prices Down
London–As borrowers face tighter lending restrictions, fewer homes will change hands in Britain this year, the Guardian reports.An overall lack of mortgage availability could keep potential buyers out of the market, driving prices down further.In fact, the mortgage decline could drag the number of transactions down to 750,000 for all of 2008–which would be almost a 40 percent drop from 2007, according to Consultancy Capital Economics. Home prices could fall 35 percent.
Structural Issue Increases Earthquake Damage Risk for San Francisco Apartments
San Francisco–Tens of thousands of San Francisco homes and businesses could fall in the next large earthquake–a problem that building and city officials haven’t dealt with for decades, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. A large number of the buildings in question are classic San Francisco apartment buildings, which contain a business on the first floor or a home built over a garage.Because there is a glass window, garage door or other space on the ground floor instead of a wall, the wood frames of the “soft-story” buildings are especially susceptible to earthquakes.San Francisco has more soft-story buildings than any other…
DEAL OF THE DAY: HFF Arranges $29.5M Construction Loan, $9.5M JV Equity for 300-Unit Class A Community
Online News EditorSparks, Nev.–The Orange County office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) recently arranged a $29.5 million construction loan and $9.5 million joint venture equity for the development of Pioneer Meadows, a 300-unit Class A multifamily development to be built in Sparks, Nev. HFF Director Mark Erland worked on behalf of Fore Property Co. to arrange the three-year construction loan.
Extreme Series of Glass Tiles
The Extreme Series from Applied Coatings Group’s Modono Collection of glass tiles features intense color combinations in a range of textures designed to bring a new option for architects, specifiers and designers. Extreme utilizes bright colors for an active installation where the colors move and change, based on the lighting.The series is available in eight different textured patterns and 11 colors including Blue Grotto (pictured), Blue Viva, Chestnut Rose, Invitation Pink, Mother of Pearl, Orange Blast, Orchid Green, Oriental Turquoise, River Green, Steel Olive Gold and Sunrise. The tiles come in 11 different sizes ranging from 2-in. by 2-in. mosaics…
286-Unit Infill Rental Community in Houston Tops Out
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorHouston–Gables Residential Trust has recently topped out Memorial Hills, a 286-unit rental project located at the intersection of Scott and Jackson Hill Streets in Houston.The eight-story infill project is spread across 2.2 acres of land and is surrounded by hills and several parks. It is expected to be complete in the spring of 2009.“The location of this project is key,” Scott Ziegler, senior principal and principal-in-charge of the Living Place Studio at Ziegler Cooper Architects, which designed the project, tells MHN.“Lush green foliage makes the apartments off Memorial Drive a prime location for people wanting…
Post Properties Calls Off Sale, Pursues Other Strategies to Enhance Share Values
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorAtlanta–After five months of actively pursuing a formal process to sell Post Properties Inc., the company has announced that it received no definitive acquisition proposals. All potential bidders have withdrawn from the sale process and, as a result, the Board of Directors has brought the process to an end. The Board has, however, reaffirmed its commitment to actively pursue other strategies to enhance shareholder value.“We conducted an open and thorough sales process, but conditions in the economy and the financial markets combined to produce a difficult transaction environment,” says David P. Stockert, president and CEO…
First Seattle High-Rise Under New Zoning Code is 95 Percent Sold
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorSeattle–The first building in Seattle developed under the city’s new zoning code has topped out. Developed by Minneapolis-based Opus Northwest LLC, the 440-ft., 38-story Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue is comprised of 143 condos.The city’s new zoning code, adopted by the city council in April 2006, allows for residential buildings over 400 ft. tall to be built based upon a number of criteria, including the size of the floorplate, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification and a contribution to affordable housing, Tom Parsons, senior vice president and general manager of Opus Northwest, tells MHN.With…
Coinmach/ASI to Exclusively Provide LG’s Energy-Efficient Front-Load Machines to Multi-Housing Market
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorPlainview, N.Y.–Coinmach/ASI recently signed an exclusive distribution agreement with LG Electronics to provide LG laundry machines to its multi-housing customers across the United States.Coinmach/ASI laundry rooms, operating with LG’s new card and coin laundry systems, are expected to deliver greater efficiency and consume less water and energy than conventional washers.Coinmach/ASI has 80,000 customers and close to 800,000 installed machines in multifamily communities. The company plans to offer the LG machines through a phased-out process. It is expected that by the end of the year, all the U.S. markets will have access to them. “We are…
PROFILE: Architect Engineers Value into Projects
Luxury housing, even in New York CIty, can be designed and completed within a realistic construction budget, says architect Marvin Meltzer By Keat Foong, Executive Editor”More expensive” does not equal “better design,” says Marvin Meltzer, principal of Meltzer/Mandl Architects, P.C. (M2). “You do not need expensive materials to make the project look great. It doesn’t reflect on me as an architect.”Though it is focused on New York City, one of the marks of Marvin Meltzer’s firm is that it has designed all types of housing—from homeless housing to high-end luxury, from low-rises to high-rises, from woodframe stick construction to poured-in-place…