Regions

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorDallas—Don Kalescky (pictured) has announced the launching of Peloton Asset and Loan Services LLC, a commercial real estate loan services company. The company, which  is self-funded and services loans of all collateral types, specializes in loan administration, asset management and credit underwriting, and will provide support for special projects and management consulting. Kalescky, certified mortgage banker (CMB),  has 35 years of experience in loan servicing, financial, administrative and lending operations. He has held executive-level positions at MGC Mortgage Inc., KeyBank Real Estate Capital, ORIX Real Estate Capital, Fiserv, FT Mortgage Companies, HomeFed Bank and Great American Bank….

New York–Cygalle Dias, founder of the Cygalle Healing Spa (CHS), has launched a spa management division to provide administration, operation, direction and supervision of spas at high-end luxury condominiums in North America.The new division offers services ranging from overseeing the creation of a comprehensive luxury spa to working with the management of an existing spa or fitness center. The first option includes partnering with a developer at the beginning stages of a condominium project in order to provide services such as working with the architect to design an ideal spa esthetic, creating a comprehensive spa menu based on the location,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorAtlanta–HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler L.P.) has arranged a  $46 million debt and equity for the development of Glenwood Avenue Apartments, a 325-unit, five-story luxury multifamily community in Atlanta.Working on behalf of Capital Thirty-Three, HFF placed a $34.39 million construction loan with Regions Bank as well as joint venture equity with institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management – Global Real Assets.Construction on the five-acre site, which will have 297,600 sq.-ft. of rentable space, is expected to commence in summer 2009 with an anticipated completion date of winter 2010. The units will be certified by…

DeWana Falks (pictured) is the director of student housing operations for The Preiss Co. Falks is responsible for the financial and physical management of the company’s student housing portfolio. Prior to joining The Preiss Co., Falks was the regional manager for Stokes-McCaleb. She has also worked as property manager with Fort Development and Place Properties; with ConAm as the company’s regional trainer and auditor; and as regional manager for Campus Advantage, where she managed a portfolio of seven on/off-campus student-housing communities comprised of 6,000 beds.She talks to MHN Online News Editor Anuradha Kher about the state of the student housing…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorNew York—A bank’s willingness to extend credit is among the top reasons senior financial executives at middle market businesses cite as consideration for changing their banking providers, according to recent surveys of the TNS Commercial Banking Momentum Monitor (CBMM)—a research study of mid-sized companies—and the TNS Bank Advisory Board—an online community of financial decision makers.For this survey, TNS defines middle markets as any business or government entity with annual revenues of $3 million to $2 billion. Finance, insurance and real estate companies represented 12 percent of the survey sample, and construction companies represented 10 percent.Typically, only 4…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–According to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, new-home construction starts for multifamily (five units or more) fell 17.1 percent to 145,000 from November to December 2008. Meanwhile, the overall starts fell 15.5 percent for the same time period, to an annual pace of 550,000, the slowest on record.   Homebuilders have all but shut down projects as home values plunge and potential buyers stay on the sidelines. “It’s going to be very difficult in 2009 for developers to get financing for any kind of project,” Toby Bozzuto,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWest Lafayette, Ind.–Gross & Cohen Purdue LLC has completed the acquisition of The Fairway student housing apartments (pictured) for $14.2 million.The Fairway represents Gross & Cohen’s entry into one of the strongest student housing markets in the Midwest. The 167-unit/298-bed complex is located one mile from the Purdue University campus adjacent to the university’s golf course.Originally built in three phases in the 1970s, The Fairway has had three new buildings added in the past two years. The older units have been completely rehabbed and the community is 100 percent occupied.“The Purdue market is very strong,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorTampa, Fla.–While several real estate companies have downsized in recent months, even eliminating executive positions, Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services continues to hire when the need arises. Recently, the company hired Jamie B. May as a senior director of the National Multi Housing Group (NMHG). He will be based in Tampa, Fla.“The company has not undertaken any cost-cutting measures that would impact our agent and/or client services,” Linwood Thompson, senior vice president and managing director of the NMHG, tells MHN. “We are focused on the long-term needs of our agents and clients and…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorPalm Springs, Calif.–RentBureau, a credit bureau for the multifamily industry, launched RentConfirm.com, a Web site providing immediate verification of rental history, at the National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) Annual Meeting today.“What is unique is that it is automated,” says Eric Hartz, president and CEO of RentBureau, pointing to the apartment industry’s history of operating manually. “We get the data pushed to us from all software packages.”RentConfirm.com utilizes RentBureau’s database, which collects rental payment histories daily from its national network of property owners and managers, who provide their rental data directly to RentBureau. In exchange, members can…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorFort Myers, Fla.–Management Group 1, a seven-person company based in Fort Myers, Fla., says it grew 25 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and plans to add an additional 25 percent to its workforce in the coming months. “We entered the market a-year-and-a-half back as a property management company, but now we provide loss mitigation services, help in case of foreclosures, help with finding buyers and negotiations with banks,” Michael Aranda, president of Management Group 1, tells MHN. Unlike a number of companies cutting down staff or re-organizing at a time of economic difficulty (click…