Today’s Deals: Hartz Acquires Two Communities in N.J.

Morristown & Morris Plains, N.J.—CBRE’s New York Institutional Group has facilitated Hartz Mountain Industries’ acquisition of a two-property multifamily portfolio in New Jersey. The purchase price was $75.8 million. The CBRE team also secured long-term financing for the transaction with Provident Bank.

Windsor at Chancery Square is a six-story, 131-unit community located in downtown Morristown, N.J. Amenities include a fitness center, ground-floor retail and parking. Windsor at Morris Plains is a three-story, 116-unit property located in Morris Plains, N.J. Amenities include a fitness center, covered parking and a business center.

“The growth of our portfolio is based on assets and locations that area timeless,” says Emanuel Stern, president and COO of Hartz Mountain Industries. “We also recently took an equity position in Roseland Management, assuring that we have the finest property management company behind maintaining the asset and providing exemplary services to our residents.”

Behringer Harvard buys 280-unit property in Florida

Margate, Fla.—Behringer Harvard has completed its second acquisition in the Fort Lauderdale area with the purchase of 5750 Lakeside Drive, a 280-unit community that will be rebranded as Lakes of Margate. The community consists of 13 buildings that were built from 1986 to 1987 that are situated on a 13.8-acre site located 15 miles southeast of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

“Lakes of Margate is a well-leased multifamily community with a long history of stabilized occupancy in one of Fort Lauderdale’s strongest apartment submarkets,” says Samuel Gillespie, chief operating officer of Behringer Harvard Opportunity REIT II Inc. “This property also offers strong potential for value creation through unit upgrades.”

The transaction represented the REIT’s second co-investment project with Grand Peaks properties. The two companies worked together in 2010 with the joint venture acquisition of Parrot’s Landing, a 560-unit community located five miles southwest of Lakes of Margate in North Lauderdale, Fla. Behringer Harvard owns a 92.5 percent stake in Lakes of Margate.

Community amenities at the property include a fitness center, two swimming pools, a playground, tennis court, business center and a fishing dock on Lemontree Lake. The new ownership plans to invest approximately $2.3 million in capital improvements into the property.

Meridian negotiates $46.1M in financing for multifamily, co-op properties

New York–Meridian Capital Group LLC, a leading national commercial real estate finance and advisory firm, announced the following transactions.

-A new mortgage of $1.5 million was placed by Meridian on a 24-unit, seven-story multifamily building on West 26th Street in New York. The loan features a rate of 3.50 percent and a five-year term. The transaction was negotiated by Avi Weinstock.
-Meridian negotiated a new mortgage in the amount of $25 million a 21-story co-op property located in the Lower East Side neighborhood in New York. The loan features a rate of 4 percent and a 10-year term. The transaction was negotiated by Avi Weinstock.

-Meridian negotiated a new mortgage in the amount of $4.7 million on a 10-unit, six-story multifamily building on East 14th Street in New York, NY. The loan features a rate of 3.62 percent and a 5-year term. The transaction was negotiated by Carol Shelby and Dani Sabesan.

-A new mortgage of $3.6 million was placed by Meridian on a 13-unit, four-story multifamily building on Keap Street in Brooklyn, N.Y. The loan features a rate of 3.67 percent and a five-year term. The transaction was negotiated by Michael Kesselman.

Meridian negotiated a new mortgage in the amount of $3.3 million on a 10,400-square-foot retail building on Jamaica Avenue in Jamaica, N.Y. The loan features a rate of 3.7 percent and a five-year term. The transaction was negotiated by Benjamin Klugman.