Regions

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorOakland, Calif.–Oakland’s first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver-certified multi-housing property is now open for leasing. Developed through a joint venture of Forest City Residential Group Inc., a subsidiary of Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises Inc., and San Francisco-based MacFarlane Partners, The Uptown is a transit-oriented, sustainable development.“Anytime there’s a project of this size with this certification, it sets an example of what’s possible,” says Kevin Ratner, president of Forest City Residential West. Converted from an area of parking lots, unused buildings and an old gas station, The Uptown is situated in the center of…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew Castle, Del.–Evergreen Realty Inc. of Newport, Del. recently arranged the sale of Hampton Walk Apartments, a 370-unit community located in New Castle, Del., for $17.25 million.Fannie Mae provided financing for the property, owned by Atlanta-based Miles Properties Inc. Key Bank serviced the loan.Hampton Walk Apartments features 94 building structures and is built on 16.65 acres with 264,200 sq. ft. of rentable space. The property consists of a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments, with rents for one-bedroom units starting at $640 and for two-bedroom units starting at $740. The building has occupancy of 85…

By Myles McBride, ReporterAtlanta– Pollack Partners, a new multifamily development firm has joined with BHC property group to build a $59 million luxury rental community that will open its doors to residents this month.Two Blocks Apartment Homes will be leased and managed by the Worthing Cos. after it is complete. The equity partner for the project is Westplan Investors Inc. This is Pollack Partners’ first completed project and it is the first of many in a line of multifamily rental communities that are being built across the country.The project includes 400 apartments that feature a wide range of state-of-the-art amenities….

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorSarasota, Fla.–The Michaels Development Co. recently broke ground on Phase I of Janie Poe, the first public housing development to be revitalized as part of the Newtown Redevelopment Program (NRP). Senior vice president of development Milton Pratt, Jr., Sarasota Mayor Lou Ann Palmer, and others local dignitaries kicked off the demolition and construction of the first 86 units of the proposed 247-unit mixed-use, mixed-income site.“Michaels is elated,” says Pratt. “Our team has been working overtime to keep this development on track with city and county officials providing stellar support every step of the way. It…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorPassaic, N.J.–The Kislak Co. Inc. recently completed the sale of 37-47 Westervelt Place, a 43-unit apartment complex in Passaic, N.J., for $4.11 million.Sales associate Robert Squires represented the buyer, 37-47 Westervelt Place LLC, and the seller, OSBF LLC, in this transaction. “This was a very complex transaction,” says Squires. “The timing of the financing was extremely important due to current conditions in the capital markets. There was competition between multiple brokerage firms to exclusively represent the owner.” Shimon Weiner of Meridian Capital provided the funding for this transaction. The five-story Westervelt Place is located off of Main Avenue…

Washington, D.C.–The Senate Banking Committee approved a housing bill designed to increase the availability of government-backed mortgages Tuesday, the New York Times reports.Approved by a vote of 19 to 2, the proposal marked an agreement between Senator and Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee  chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., and Richard Shelby, R-Ala., the banking committee’s senior Republican.Although the Bush administration has expressed opposition to foreclosure prevention legislation, it may consider the new Senate bill because there is no direct taxpayer cost, the Times said.The bill would finance an affordable-housing fund through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would be used…

Washington, D.C.–Because home prices are falling, home affordability has increased dramatically in many parts of the U.S., according to the Housing Opportunity Index released Tuesday by Wells Fargo and the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Home Builders.Families with a median household income of $61,500 could afford 53.8 percent of all new and pre-existing homes sold during the first three months of this year, CNNMoney.com said–an increase from 44 percent in the first three months of 2007. Home prices in general haven’t been so affordable since June 2004. Indianapolis, Ind., was ranked as the most affordable market; Los Angeles is the…

London–Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are cautiously optimistic about new legislation increasing oversight over both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, Bloomberg reports.Speaking to investors at a conference in London, Freddie Mac Chief Financial Officer Anthony Piszel said the legislation didn’t contain a “death blow.””The rulemaking will determine what the flexibility is that we have,” Piszel said. “It’s going to take a couple of years, quite frankly, to work through.”In an interview after Fannie Mae’s annual shareholder meeting in New Orleans, Chief Executive Daniel Mudd seemed content with the changes.”We continue to want to have a strong credible regulator,” Mudd told…

Zurich–As part of UBS’ ongoing efforts to reduce risk, the Zurich-based banking giant said Wednesday that it had completed the same of its troubled mortgage-backed securities at a discount to a distressed asset-fund.The Swiss bank sold subprime and Alt-A assets with a nominal value of $22 billion to a special investment vehicle led by U.S. fund BlackRock for roughly $15 billion, The Wall Street Journal said. BlackRock is 49 percent owned by Merrill Lynch & Co.UBS has been in the process of reducing its investment banking operations to cut risk, which included 2,600 job cuts in its banking sector and…