Regions

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorChicago–Alliant Capital LLC has named Aaron Abelson as senior vice president for its Chicago office, a role in which he hopes to elevate the company’s visibility in the Midwest region.In his new position, Abelson will manage the analysis, evaluation and origination of permanent, fixed-rate apartment loans utilizing the Fannie Mae DUS program for the Midwest region. He will be responsible for increasing Alliant Capital’s investor network through active referrals and client contacts primarily in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. “Abelson has extensive experience with the Fannie Mae DUS transactions,” says Byron Steenerson, president of Alliant Capital…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorStone Mountain, Ga.—Isakson Living, a Norcross, Ga.-based developer of senior retirement communities, is offering a new plan to help current and prospective residents sell their existing homes, allowing them to move into Park Springs, a 54-acre, 392-unit community, now.“With this economic climate that we have right now and with the housing market as it is, we realized it was going to greatly affect our occupancy and ability to market new units, as well as maintain some of the residents who already live there who had not sold their homes,” Don Garner, senior vice president of development,…

Alyce Robertson (pictured) is the executive director of the Miami Downtown Development Authority (DDA), an independent agency of the city of Miami. The Miami DDA supports business growth, infrastructure improvements and services for Downtown Miami residents and stakeholders.  Robertson talks to MHN Online News Editor Anuradha Kher about the DDA’s vision for downtown Miami, how the recession might help in making Miami more transit-oriented and why despite overdevelopment Miami is poised for long-term growth.MHN: What is the average price of condos in downtown Miami right now?Robertson: Prices range depending on location, view, amenities, etc. While pricing has become somewhat of…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor Philadelphia–Iron Stone Real Estate Fund II recently completed its second transaction, the purchase of a portfolio of distressed commercial mortgages from Astoria Federal Savings Bank. The portfolio consists of 13 first mortgages collateralized by rental apartment buildings in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area comprising a total of 358 units. The $50 million fund is managed by Iron Stone Real Estate Cos. and has high net-worth individuals as well as some institutional investors.Some of the 13 buildings, ranging from 11 to 64 units, are facing high vacancy rates and others are entirely vacant because they were not…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorTopeka, Kan.–NorthMarq Capital’s Minneapolis office has arranged combined first mortgage financing of $27.672 million for three apartment complexes located in Topeka, Kan.The Brookfield Estates Apartments, the Crown Colony Apartments (pictured) and the Sherwood Apartments feature a combined total of 680 multifamily units. NorthMarq arranged financing for each of these multifamily properties on behalf of the borrower through its seller/servicer relationship with Freddie Mac.Arbor Completes $6.4M Loan to Refinance 96-Unit Apartment CommunityBellingham, Wash.–Arbor Commercial Funding LLC recently completed funding of a $6,460,900 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS product line to refinance the 96-unit complex known…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate Editor Sacramento, Calif.—Apartment construction in Sacramento is expected to come to a near standstill this year, according to Marcus & Millichap’s 2009 National Apartment Report.Only 100 new units are slated for delivery this year, and the planning pipeline consists of fewer than 2,000 apartments.The main challenges for the Sacramento metro area include job losses, supply constraint and the land’s geography, which Ryan DeMar, associate vice president-investments in Marcus & Millichap’s Roseville, Calif. office, notes, “continues to generate an oversupply of market-rate and affordable apartments and single-family homes.” He adds that the metro has a low barrier…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorIndependence, Ore.–Touted as the world’s greenest building, and seeking the highest LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating ever awarded, Independence Station will feature green concepts such as radiant floor heating and cooling, solar water heating and daylighting design. “This is a Thomas Edison meets Bill Gates project,” says Steven Ribeiro, principal and developer at Aldeia LLC, the developer of Independence Station.The mixed-use development, which opens in 2010, is now accepting priority pre-reservations for its 15 condominiums. It features one- and two-bedroom units ranging in size from 600 to 1,660 square feet. They are…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew Brunswick–At a time when uncertainty about the economy and the housing market, along with the state of the credit markets, has stalled new project development, the Northern New Jersey District Council of the Urban Land Institute (ULI-NNJ) is projecting optimism about the recovery of the housing sector. “This crisis is an opportunity to redefine fundamentals,” ULI-NNJ Chair Lawrence F. Jacobs of the law firm of Wilentz, Goldman and Spitzer said at the Emerging Trends in Real Estate conference held in New Jersey recently. “ULI believes that the market will take a critical approach to…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorChicago–Since the housing woes began last year, the city of Chicago along with The Partnership for New Communities, has been offering $10,000 as a gift for buyers of units located in six developments that are part of Chicago’s Plan for Transformation. The Plan for Transformation includes replacement of high-rise public housing with new mixed-income communities featuring contemporary town homes and low-rise buildings, where public housing residents will live in the same neighborhood as people who purchase market rate and affordable homes. Generally, these developments will consist of one-third public housing, one-third affordable housing and one-third…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorBronx, N.Y.—Inner City Development, the Community Preservation Corporation (CPC), ENPHRONT Veteran Services, and city and state housing officials recently celebrated the grand opening of the $5.8 million Jackson Avenue Veteran Complex, seven three-family row homes that were built to house formerly homeless veterans. CPC provided $4 million in permanent financing, which will be sold to New York City pension funds, including The New York City Employees’ Retirement System, The New York City Police Pension Fund, and The Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York. The State of New York Mortgage Agency (SONYMA) has provided…