Regions

Washington, D.C.–Freddie Mac has posted a loss of $25.3 billion for the third quarter, a development that has forced the agency to ask the government for an initial injection of $13.8 billion.The mortgage finance company is asking for the first time to tap into the $200 billion promised by the Treasury Department to keep it and Fannie Mae from failing, after the two were placed under conservatorship in September of this year.Freddie Mac said it expected to receive the money by Nov. 29.The loss was mainly because of a $14.3 billion charge to reduce the value of tax assets, but…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor Monroe Township, N.J.–The New Jersey Apartment Association (NJAA) recently named Jean Maddalon (pictured) as the association’s executive director. As NJAA Executive Director, Maddalon is responsible for the overall leadership, management and operations of the association. She will oversee the education, media relations and government affairs activities as well as the NJAA’s financial assets.“I am excited to take on this new challenge,” Maddalon says. “Our goal is to foster the stability of the multifamily housing industry to ensure we serve the housing needs of residents in communities throughout the state of New Jersey.” Most recently, Maddalon served…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorSan Diego–Freddie Mac recently purchased a $73.7 million loan from Wells Fargo Bank that enabled borrower Loma Palisades, a California general partnership, to refinance the 546-unit Loma Palisades Apartments. The 68-building, garden-style complex in San Diego was built in 1959. A portion of the proceeds will help complete the rehabilitation of all the units’ interiors.”The deal was rate-locked and funded in 45 days in an extremely volatile rate environment,” says Tom Szydlowski, Wells Fargo Multifamily Capital head of production.The transaction benefited from the Freddie Mac Fixed-Rate Mortgage product utilizing the Freddie Mac Early Rate-Lock option….

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew York–As prices for multifamily properties in Los Angeles potentially reached their bottom in the third quarter, San Francisco came close to bottoming out, while New York City remained far from it, according to the Investment Properties Q3 2008 report, released by PropertyShark.com this week. The report looks at multifamily investment sales in these three markets only.“The findings are positive for the Los Angeles market; and very soon, investors are going to come here and start buying up the inventory,” Bill Staniford, CEO of PropertyShark.com, tells MHN. In New York City, even as the number…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorAtlanta—Tivoli Properties Inc. announced plans yesterday for a 53-story condominium/hotel development, to be operated by the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group. Sales are currently underway for what will become one of Atlanta’s tallest buildings and the city’s tallest residential tower.Designed by Atlanta-based Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart and Associates, the $285 million project will include 71 residences and 198 hotel rooms. “I told my development team that the building had to be nothing less than iconic,” Scott Leventhal, president and CEO, Tivoli Properties Inc., tells MHN.Mandarin Oriental, Atlanta is located in the middle of the city’s “Midtown Mile,”…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWaterbury, Conn.–The Multi-Housing Team at CB Richard Ellis’ Connecticut office recently negotiated the sale of six assets totaling 723 units for $36,400,000. The assets are located in Greater Waterbury, Conn. CBRE represented the seller, Creative Management & Realty Co. Inc. and procured the buyer in each transaction. The properties each had anywhere between 54 to 168 units and contained HUD financing and/or subsidies.Kislak Completes Sales of Three Properties for over $5MThe Kislak Co. Inc. has completed three investment sales transactions throughout Hudson County, N.J. for over $5 million.The three properties include:548-554 Avenue C in Bayonne,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorColumbia, S.C.–Balfour Beatty Communities has secured financing for the Fort Jackson military family housing project located in Columbia, S.C. The financing proceeds will be used for the design, development and construction/renovation of a total of 850 end-state housing units at the installation.The 50-year term for the project includes a five-year initial development period (IDP), with IDP costs of approximately $168 million. The company has been providing property management and maintenance services for the family housing since August this year, when it entered into agreements with the Army. Balfour Beatty has a 50-year ground lease for the…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–Multifamily mortgage loan originations remained low in the third quarter, but witnessed a slight increase as compared to the second quarter of 2008, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) quarterly survey of commercial/multifamily mortgage bankers originations. Third quarter originations for all commercial property types were 53 percent lower than during the same period last year. The year-over-year decrease was seen across all property types and most investor groups. “Uncertainty stemming from the credit crunch, and now the deteriorating economy, has led to a continued pull-back among both lenders and borrowers,” says Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorWheaton, Ill.—Airhart Construction has opened its latest rowhome model at Courthouse Square, a community that will be comprised of 50 rowhomes and 182 condominiums at completion.The community, developed through a joint venture between Airhart Construction—which built the rowhomes—and Focus Development—which is working on the condominium portion of the project—is located on the site of the historic DuPage County Courthouse, which more recently served as the campus of National-Louis University. The development’s design focused on the historic nature of the site. “We worked hard to play off the historic nature of the courthouse,” Court Airhart, president, Airhart…

Washington, D.C.–The National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and National Apartment Association (NAA) Joint Legislative Program Lawmakers is warning lawmakers who are under political pressure to “do something” to stimulate the economy and stop the slide in housing prices to act carefully and reject proposals that could do more harm than good. According to NMHC and NAA, a new $22,000 homebuyer tax credit, which has been talked about recently, is a bad idea. The legislation overturning the ban on seller-financed downpayment programs and calls for a federally financed interest rate buydown on mortgages, could also do harm to the housing industry,…