Real Estate log

February 27, 2009 - The cost of building an alternative energy infrastructure will be enormous, according to Dr. Michelle Michot Foss, chief energy economist for the Center for Energy Economics at the University of Texas at Austin. And manufacturing the components of green energy will require the engagement of "brown jobs" -- such as the steel worker who helps to build windmills. Foss, speaking to The Houston Economics Club, also said the human element in generating greenhouses gases is actually very small and not a significant contributor to climate change.... .....A Jones Lang LaSalle team in Chicago launches an international search for a tenant or tenants for a 1.5 million-sf class A office and industrial campus, with a sticker value of $250 million. The marketing blitz, unlike others in the past, is directed at end users. The National Gazette has the details.... .....With health care as a major U.S. issue, one Texas city has inked a deal with new employer, UnitedHealth Group, which plans to retool a long-dark, 55,000-sf grocery store into a service center. More details on Texas Roundup.

February 26, 2009 - Dallas City Council gives its nod to a developer-neighborhood compromise that's been two years in the making. The new tool -- a form-based zoning ordinance -- will create more pedestrian-friendly urban neighborhoods, with an emphasis on key issues like open space and parking, particularly near transit-oriented developments. The Real Estate Council led the compromise initiative, drawing together the Dallas Homeowners League, Preservation Dallas, North Dallas Neighborhood Alliance and Old Oak Cliff Conservation League and the city-appointed forwardDallas! Development code advisory committee. "Because each party was willing to give and take, we were able to strike a balance that satisfies everyone," says Neal Sleeper, chairman of TREC's government affairs committee and president of Cityplace Co.... .... Also in today's news, BentleyForbes has put Cushman & Wakefield Inc. into the leasing slot for the 1.25 million-sf Bank of America Plaza, a piece of signature real estate at the "Main and Main" corner of North Avenue and Peachtree Street in Atlanta's Midtown. C&W senior director Lisa Dunavin will oversee marketing and leasing for the 55-story office tower. C&W leasing manager Bill Lynch will handle the landmark's day-to-day duties for the Los Angeles-based owner.

February 25, 2009 - Public Communications Services., a national provider of inmate telecommunications systems for correctional facilities, will establish its research and development and manufacturing facility at Hillwood’s Alliance Global Logistics Hub in Fort Worth. The new 18,726 sf location will serve as the company’s engineering and technology center. Details on the Dallas/FW page. .................. ...

Voicing more bad news than good about the economy, Dr. Bernard L. Weinstein believes the $787 billion stimulus package will help, but it clearly isn't the cure-all because of the way the payday package is stacked. And if you're in North Texas, he says "be glad" because it's faring far better than most parts of the country. Weinstein's parting sound bite: "Some say capitalism is dead. Capitalism isn't dead. Capitalism without failure is like religion without sin." Story on Dallas/FW page.

February 24, 2009 - Dallas-based Stream Realty Partners LP has opened its first office outside Texas, choosing Atlanta for the launch. Dallas broker Ben Hautt has been put in charge of building the business and putting Stream's business model to work in the Southeast. Details on the National Gazette page.... .... In other news, PrimeSource Mortgage Inc. has opened a new office in Plano, which will be led by Sandra Mabry.... ....Casey Storage, an affiliate of New York-based W.P. Carey & Co. LLC, and Harbert Management Corp. of Birmingham, Ala. are pulling their assets to form a $50 million joint venture to amass self-storage properties. Harbert will kick in $30 million and W.P. Carey is putting in the balance, seeding the JV with 13 properties that Casey Storage has acquired in the past two years. W.P. Carey will hold the management reins to what's in hand now and what's coming in future acquisitions..... Tom Lynch of CBRE has received an award from a Houston real estate organization. Please click to our Association News page for this and other news about realty groups, volunteerism and future meetings.

February 23, 2009 - . Dockwise USA, a transport service provider of large and heavy structures primarily to the oil and gas industry, has leased 20,666 sf of space at the Atrium at Park Ten at 16340 Park Ten Place in Houston’s Energy Corridor. Dockwise USA is currently located at 7906 N. Sam Houston Parkway W. and serves as the company’s U.S. headquarters. Dockwise was formed as a result of an acquisition between Wijsmuller Transport (a division of Heerema) and Dock Express Shipping (a division of Royal Vopak, formerly Van Ommeren). Both companies agreed to combine their interests to become the world's largest seagoing heavy transport shipping company. Wijsmuller had been based in IJmuiden and Dock Express in Rhoon, both in The Netherlands. Dockwise's corporate headquarters is located in Breda, The Netherland. Michael Sieger and Steve Hesse of CB Richard Ellis represented Dockside in the transaction. Doug Little of PM Realty represented the landlord, KBS Realty.... .... Now that the framework's in place, it's time to discuss the strategy for Stream Realty Partners' newest full-service platform, says Lance W. Taylor and Robin A. Smith, co-managing partners of the new retail division. The courtship has begun for assignments as well as professionals to join the Stream team. Full story on the Dallas/Fort Worth page. .

February 20, 2009 - Texas Tech University moves to the top of the class with the opening of the Charles Schwab Personal Financial Planning Technology Complex, which boasts the largest collection of professional software in any collegiate financial planning program in the U.S. The just-opened addition of the College of Human Sciences will be used by more than 300 students in the Division of Personal Financial Planning.

February 19, 2009 - The latest Commercial Real Estate Outlook by the National Association of Realtors has more dire news for the industry. Details are on the National Gazette page. ... A new JV, United Equity Ventures, will spend $600 million to $800 million to acquire up to 10,000 apartments from institutional lenders. The first deal closes within 60 days. The lead buyer talks about the plan on the Texas Roundup page. ... Transwestern Dallas gets a two million-sf leasing and management contract from Energy Future Holdings. Now, they're evaluating which 250,000 sf in the 1.2 million-sf Energy Plaza in Downtown Dallas will flow to the sublease market. Full story on the Dallas/FW page.

February 18, 2009 - Fuller Realty Partners bought a six-story, 135,000 sf office building on Houston's North Loop at 2600 North. Loop. The seller, Christus Health, was represented by Bob Parsley and Bill Byrd of Colliers International. Jay Kyle, also of Colliers International, represented Fuller. Christus Health recently relocated to another North Loop building. ... In other news, the start of a major expansion to Houston's toll road system has injected optimism into developers on Houston's northeast side. To see comments by the developer of the northeast's Fall Creek master-planned community, please go to our Residential Topics page. ....

Also, CB Richard Ellis, looking at the present and future, has shuffled its corporate team. With the change, Robert Sulentic becomes CFO and Jim Groch gets a new chief investment officer's post. Gil Borok resumes duties as executive vice president, chief accounting officer, and is named CFO of the Americas division. More details on People Blog. ... The Weitzman Group/Cencor Realty Services launch Cencor Solutions to develop a book of business with lenders shouldering distressed retail assets on their books. Details are on the Dallas/FW page.

February 17, 2009 - First-quarter foreclosure postings have blackened the skies in Central Texas, where four counties hold the lead over 15 others in the upper half of the state. A new report by Foreclosure Listing Service shows 21,227 notices were put into play this quarter in 19 counties, with Bastrop County's 66 percent spike leading the pack. More details on Texas Roundup.

February 16, 2009 - KPMG secures its future office needs with a 15-year lease for 260,000 sf of the 83-story Aon Center in Chicago. The direct lease swings into effect in August 2012. Details in the National Gazette. .......

Commercial real estate worldwide will be tested this year. Which countries will struggle the most? CB Richard Ellis answers the question in a new Global ViewPoints report on the International page. Stimulus packages and restructuring of financial systems aren't likely to fix commercial real estate's problems this year.

February 15, 2009 - Can't get enough real estate? A new national radio show is being launched this weekend by the National Association of Realtors. The show, hosted by Gil Gross, will have listener call-in questions, field reports and industry experts. The show will debut Sunday afternoon on 630 WGAL in Washinton, DC and be carried on satellite radio across the nation. Or listen online at www.RETradio.com.

February 13, 2009 - North Texas registers a new quarterly high in the number of residential properties in jeopardy from foreclosure – 13,259 year to date. If there's any comfort, the postings for the March 3 auctions in four counties have dropped 13 percent in the past 30 days. Full story on the Dallas/FW page. ......... In a solid win for the state of Oklahoma, Tampa, Fla.-based Spring Air Co. will breathe new life into a shuttered 351,000-sf manufacturing plant in the Durant Industrial Park. Spring's new mattress production center and its largest in the US will come on line in the summer, adding up to 300 jobs in the southeastern Oklahoma city. .......... A banking advisory firm, Sheshunoff and Co., finds Texas banks are holding up better than institutions in other states. Part of the credit goes to strict guidelines that have been in effect since the late 1980s, according to a just-released report assessing each Texas metro. Full story on the Texas Roundup page.

February 11, 2009 - CyrusOne is adding to data centers in Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston as business picks up due to increased reliance on technology in today's cost-conscious world. The Houston-based company now leases 310,000 sf in five buildings in Texas. Details on the Dallas/FW page. ......... The real estate industry has voiced support for the federal stimulus bill passed by the Senate. "The National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and National Apartment Association (NAA) commend the Obama Administration for including commercial real estate in the Financial Stability Plan," the apartment groups said in a press release. The National Association of Realtors said the Senate stimulus bill was welcome because it "expands the homebuyer tax credit, an important housing component that will help shrink housing inventory, bring stability to home values and move the country closer to an economic recovery. "

February 10, 2009 - Historic Real Estate has announced several real estate projects in the Houston area with a build-out value of $1 billion. Included in the program is the WaterLights District on Highway 288 in Pearland, the Nano World Headquarters project in Pearland and the Penisula on Clear Lake waterfront residential community on the southeast side of Houston. For more detail please go to our Houston Deals page.

February 9, 2009 - SUGAR LAND…HE Capital, owner of 14141 Southwest Freeway, commonly known as the Unocal building, has announced plans for a $4 million renovation to the 515,000-sf, Class A office building and has retained Colvill Office Properties to lease and market the property. Chip Colvill and Michael Anderson of Colvill Office Properties will handle the assignment. The Lake Corporate Center is currently leased to Unocal/Chevron which is consolidating its operations to the Houston Central Business District. Goulas & Associates has been retained as the architect/designer for the planned improvements and Smith Commercial has been selected as the general contractor.

February 6, 2009 - Behringer Harvard is betting on the expertise of its industry-recognized executive team to be the drawing card for third-party contracts for its new platform, investment advisory services. Until now, the powerhouse team's real estate savvy has been used only in-house, resulting in a managed portfolio valued at $8 billion in solely owned and joint venture assets. Details on the Dallas/FW page.

February 5, 2009 - The Houston area's single-family home starts dropped 39 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, compared to the fourth quarter of 2007, according to Metrostudy, a research firm led by Mike Inselmann. The Houston market had 4,201 starts in the fourth quarter and an annual total 26,223 starts for 2008. The annual starts represented a 30 percent decline from 2007. Consumer confidence is low and mortgages are more difficult to obtain as layoffs have been rippling through the local economy.

February 4, 2009 - Hilton Hotels Corp. has made it official, announcing plans to move the headquarters from Beverly Hills, Calif., to Fairfax County, Va. The plan is to pump at least $17 million into the move and create more than 300 full-time jobs within 36 months. The lease is still in the market, with several landlords jockeying for the win. More details on the National page.

February 3, 2009 - Transwestern has formed TRECAP Partners, an investment advisory company for pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and the like. The arrangement isn't exclusive, but the hope is it will become "an important client" just like Transwestern Investment Co. did after its launch 13 years ago. More details are on the Houston page.

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On today's national scene, The Federal Reserve has tapped J.P. Morgan to be custodian of its Mortgage-Backed Securities purchase program, which has the capacity to buy up to $500 billion in MBS notes backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae.

The Federal Reserve, launching the program in early January, has packaged an all-star lineup of four investment managers to implement the MBS plan. Making the final cut are New York-based giants BlackRock Financial Management Inc. and Goldman Sachs Asset Management LP plus Newport Beach, Calif.-based Pacific Investment Management Co. LLC and Wellington Management Co. of Boston. Criteria for the competitively bid process were based on each institution's operational capacity, size and MBS experience.

"We are pleased to be able to support the efficient operation of the MBS program while at the same time minimizing operational and financial risks," said Conrad Kozak, CEO of J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services in New York.

February 2, 2009 - Our sympathy to the family of long-time Houston broker Thad Hickman, who passed away suddenly. He was senior vice president in the industrial division of Grubb & Ellis and well-known in the real estate community.

February 1, 2009 - Houston Pavilions, a new multi-level, mixed-use development in downtown Houston, has retained CB Richard Ellis as the leasing agent for the development’s retail component. The landmark center recently opened the first phase of the 560,000 sf project with the grand opening of House of Blues which occupies 43,000 sf last October. Houston Pavilions is located downtown in the heart of the Inner Loop and occupies the four city blocks bounded by Main Street, Caroline, Polk and Dallas. The center has over 360,000 sf of retail space and is 60 percent leased. A development of William Denton and Geoffrey Jones, the $170-million, Houston Pavilions has a nine-story, 200,000-sf Pavilions Tower office on top of the retail levels. CBRE's Matt Keener of Houston and Bruce Kaplan of Chicago.

January 29, 2009 - Planned Community Developers, Ltd. (PCD) is moving ahead on the second and third phases of Lake Pointe Village – the retail component of Lake Pointe Town Center, the 190-acre mixed-use, lifestyle development located along the northwest intersection of Highway 6 and U.S. 59 in Sugar Land.

Scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2009, phase two of the development will include the expansion of the existing Whole Foods-anchored shopping center and the addition of two freestanding buildings, providing room for an additional 43,539 sf of retail and restaurant tenants. Azuma Sushi & Robata Bar, Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Mission Burritos will all occupy space in this second phase.

The third phase will be comprised of two multi-tenant restaurant buildings situated along a waterfront boardwalk and will feature outdoor, patio seating on the lake. Combined the buildings will offer 20,107 sf of retail space. A third 10,000 sf building will also be constructed for medical/office use.

For the office sector, Jones Lang LaSalle has completed a major lease transaction in Chicago. For full story, please go to our National Items page.

January 28, 2009 – Washington-based Advanced H2O inks a 15-year lease for 313,040 sf at the Dallas Logistics Hub. The finished deal delivers the "first true lease" for the 6,000-acre development. Move-in is set for late spring. For the full story, please go to the Texas Roundup. .... In other news, Transwestern’s Houston headquarters today announced that for the third consecutive year it was named as one of the Best Companies to Work for in Texas. The program was created by the publishers of Texas Monthly, the Texas Association of Business (TAB) and The Society for Human Resource Management – Texas State Council, collectively known as Best Companies Group.

January 27, 2009 - Showing their Texas mettle, Fort Worth's commercial real estate professionals see bright spots of opportunity for this year despite the economy. Realistic, but optimistic, they hope to craft bargaining chips for leasing and acquisition coups from their open commercial space. The full story is on the Texas Roundup page.

January 21, 2009 - Hess Corp. has leased the entire Discovery Tower, a building under construction in downtown Houston. Hess will take 845,000 sf in the 29-story tower, developed by Trammell Crow at 1501 McKinney. Hess will relocate from Allen Center to the new building in 2011. Hess Corporation was represented by Vice Chairman Tim Relyea of Cushman & Wakefield. Senior Vice President John Pruitt and Senior Associate Cody Armbrister with CB Richard Ellis represented Trammell Crow Company and Principal.

January 20, 2009 DALLAS-- Officials with Staubach Retail Services announced plans to rebrand the 22-year-old firm as SRS Real Estate Partners. The firm will continue to focus on representation of retail real estate clients. Roger Staubach will remain on the SRS Real Estate Partners board and will remain an equity holder. Last June, Mr. Staubach announced he was selling The Staubach Co. to Jones Lang LaSalle, but Staubach Retail and Cypress Equities remained independent firms. The name change to SRS Real Estate Partners is designed to position the company for future growth in the real estate market and to provide clarity in the market as independent from Jones Lang LaSalle. SRS Real Estate Partners President, Clay Smith, will be promoted to CEO/President. Staubach Retail Services former CEO, Chris Maguire, will continue to serve on the SRS Real Estate Partners Board of Directors and will be an equity holder in the firm. Mr. Maguire will remain CEO of Cypress Equities.

January 19, 2009 - The ABB engineering firm leased 84,000 sf in the new Simmons Vedder building on Beltway 8, south of Richmond Avenue . Mike Boehler of Jones Lang LaSalle handled the deal... Editor's note: My colleague Steve Cook, a Washington communications pro, has joined with former National Association of Realtors economist David Lereah to create Reecon Advisory Report, which focused on residential markets. For more www.ReeconAdvisoryReport.com

January 17, 2009 - In a market where new-home sales have been generally down, Newland Communities has reported increased new-home sales in three Houston area communities for 2008. The largest increase was seen in Telfair, a 2,018-acre community in Sugar Land, where new-home sales were up 10.7 percent for 2008, compared to 2007. A total of 412 new homes were sold in Telfair last year, compared to 372 sold in 2007. For More: Residential Topics page..... In other news, CB Richard Ellis reported Houston's industrial vacancy rate rose 6.4 percent in the fourth quarter, from the prior quarter as a dip in oil prices and drilling activity bashed the market. For More: please go to the Houston Deals page.

January 16, 2009 Mr. Trammell Crow, a legend in real estate development, died Wednesday evening at his ranch near Tyler, Texas. He was 94. Mr. Crow's firm developed many significant projects around the world, including skyscrapers in his hometown of Dallas,and hotels, warehouses and other commercial developments. Mr. Crow's first project was a Dallas warehouse built after the end of World War II. In the early days, Mr. Crow conducted business on a handshake basis before his company became a worldwide giant and was later traded on the NYSE. The Crow company was purchased by CB Richard Ellis for $1.8 billion in 2006.

January 15, 2009 - Commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) will be making a comeback, according to Mark Gibson, executive managing director of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP in Dallas. CMBS had been used to finance almost half of the nation's capital market realty investments in 2007. But CMBS deals almost ceased to exist in 2008. New methods of structuring CMBS financing are being created and will be available on the market in 2010, Gibson told the Dallas/Fort Worth Real Estate Research Forum luncheon. ... In other news, Verde Realty announced a major industrial deal in El Paso. For more on both of these stories please go to our Texas Roundup page.

January 14, 2009 - The North Texas commercial real estate market is bracing itself for a tough year. But veterans who lived through the 1980s and the RTC era are hanging on and looking for opportunities. Texas realty news veteran Connie Gore reports from the annual forecast meeting of the North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors at the Westin Galleria in Dallas. Please go to the Texas Roundup page for full story. ... In other news, the decline in December's retail sales is evidence of unemployment's impact, according to a new report by Richard F. Moody, chief economist for Austin-based Mission Residential LLC. "Declining earnings mean that there is simply little, if any, support for consumer spending," he wrote. "While a fiscal stimulus plan that includes tax cuts and increased spending on unemployment benefits and other types of social insurance may help mitigate the decline in consumer spending, real consumer spending is unlikely to post meaningful gains until late in 2009 at best."..... Kickerillo and Mischer’s V&W Partners, Ltd. announced that Harris County Commissioners Court accepted the conveyance of an 82 acre park, including a 40 acre lake, from within V&W’s 630-acre master planned mixed-use development known as The Vintage. The 82-acre property, located in Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole’s Precinct 4, is adjacent to Cypress Creek and is the centerpiece of what will eventually be a 148-acre nature park called the Kickerillo-Mischer Preserve.

January 13, 2009 - Austin leads Texas' major cities in retail center occupancy rate, according to the Weitzman Group. San Antonio holds second place with 90 percent occupancy in its 36 million sf of retail space. Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston are neck and neck with 88 percent occupancy rate. For the full story, written by Texas realty news veteran Connie Gore, please go to our Texas Roundup page.

January 11, 2009 - The newest - and emptiest - office building in downtown Houston has gained its first tenant and it is a significant one. A law firm, Sheehy, Serpe & Ware, P.C., has signed a lease for 28,009 sf, taking the top one and a half floors of the Houston Pavilions Office Tower. The nine-story 200,000-sf Pavilions building was just completed. The office building is part of the 560,000-sf Houston Pavilions mixed-use project, which covers a four-block site bordered by Main, Caroline, Dallas and Polk. Two other buildings are under construction in downtown by Hines and Trammell Crow, but those buildings won't be complete for more than a year. Eric Anderson and Greg Tilton of Transwestern represented the Pavilions owner. Chris Oliver and Trey Strake of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant.

January 9, 2009 - Talk about a sweet deal. Duke Realty has signed a candy company to be a huge tenant in the Grand Prairie community in the Dallas area. Farley's & Sathers Co. Inc., one of the top 25 candy manufacturers in the world, will use 1 million sf of distribution space leased from Duke. For more details please go to the Texas Roundup page.

January 8, 2009 - The 26-story Bank of America building in downtown Austin has received $44 million in refinancing funding, according to Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, which arranged the transaction. The property is owned by owned by a joint venture between Walton Street Capital and T. Stacy and Associates. HFF managing director Andy Scott and associate director Brandon Chavoya worked exclusively on behalf of the borrower in arranging the 30-month, adjustable-rate loan with CapitalSource Finance, LLC. Loan proceeds will facilitate future lease-up and fund capital improvement costs associated with the property. The partnership purchased the property in 2004 and plans to hold it for continued value creation and future development initiatives. The property includes the 261,609-sf Bank of America Building at 515 Congress, a vacant parking garage situated on a 0.34 acre land parcel, a 0.48 acre land parcel currently improved with a 90,000-sf vacant commercial building, and a 0.81 acre covered land parcel that is scheduled to be developed into a 1,150-space parking garage.

January 7, 2009 - The Houton office market will be softer in 2009 with more concessions for tenants, says Dan Bellow of Jones Lang LaSalle, which delivered a market update to the media Tuesday. But construction of new office space is slowing and the city has no massive glut of office space like the 1980s, says Richard Rudd, a capital markets specialist for the firm. Rudd is expecting a rebound to begin in late 2009 and continue in 2010.

January 6, 2009 - The Allen Group has relocated its corporate headquarters from San Diego to Dallas. The firm owns the 6,000-acre Dallas Logistics Hub, which is projected to be a major distribution facility. The site is near the crosshairs of three Interstate highways and has significant railroad service. The Allen Group is currently located in Chase Tower in downtown Dallas, but company executives plan to build a multi-tenant headquarters building at the Hub site. For full story, please go to the Texas Roundup page.

January 5, 2009 - Greystar Real Estate Partners has purchased JPI Management Services of Irving, Texas. The deal makes Greystar one of the largest multi-fam managers with 140,000 units.... In another deal, a 160-unit apartment complex near D/FW airport has been sold. For more on both of these deals please go to our Multi-Family Magazine page.

January 2, 2009 - The largest cities in Texas are considered to be some of the best places in the United States for investing in commercial real estate, according to a new report by the Grubb & Ellis realty firm. Austin, Dallas and Houston made it onto Grubb & Ellis Co.'s Top 10 investment picks for office, industrial and retail from 2009 to 2013. None of the Texas metros made the final cut for multi-housing market strengths. The Grubb & Ellis 2009 Global Real Estate Forecast paints a "challenging 2009" for commercial real estate, in general. But the Lone Star State shines brighter than most of the nation.

January 1, 2009 - A growing number of proposed real estate developments are being canceled. Financing is difficult to obtain even for developers with a strong track record. The latest proposed project to be erased is The Titan, a 25-story upscale condominium in the Uptown area of Houston, according to an article by Nancy Sarnoff of the Houston Chronicle. The 80-unit project was to have been built by Randall Davis on the site of a McDonald's on Post Oak Boulevard. High-rise condos seem to be particularly prone to cancellation. In Pearland, the Poag & McEwen proposed lifestyle center at Beltway 8 and Highway 288, has been scuttled and the 127 acres there are being marketed, according to a report by Jennifer Dawson in the Houston Business Journal. Staubach Retail is handling land sales at the Pearland site.

December 28, 2008 - DALLAS -- Transit oriented development is a growing reality. The Dallas City Council approved its first TIF District focused on multi-station transit-oriented development. Creation of the District is a culmination of a four-year collaboration between the City of Dallas staff and City Council, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), Southern Methodist University, Prescott Realty Group and various Lancaster Corridor stakeholders, including Veterans Hospital, The Urban League and Icon Partners. The new TIF includes 559 acres in addition to public rights-of-way and stretches from the Lovers Lane/Mockingbird area along the DART rail line to the Lancaster/VA Medical Center region. The District will have a 30-year life, during which real property values are forecasted to gro w from $320 million in 2008 to $3.52 billion by 2038.

December 25, 2008 - Merry Christmas

December 20, 2008 - The Secret Service may not appreciate her very much, but my friend Candy Evans, real estate editor of D Magazine, does know her market. Candy just came up with the exclusive story on where President George and Laura Bush will live when they leave the White House. The Bushes will live in a 8,500-sf one-story home in the Preston Hollow neighborhood in Dallas, Evans reported. The home was purchased from Dan and Laura Boeckman. (By the way, Dan Boeckman is one of the investors in the new Museum Tower high-rise condo in Dallas.) Allie Beth Allman, a blue-chip Dallas residential broker, represents the Bushes. Check out Candy's "Dallas Dirt" blog on the D Magazine web site.

December 19, 2008 - The 290-unit Robertson Hill Apartments in Austin have been sold. The new multi-family complex, developed by Martin Fein Interests, was brokered by Hal Holliday and David Aaronson of Live Oak Capital. Please go to our Multi-Family Magazine for more details. ... In other news, Bruce Stern has announced the formation of Red River Asset Management, a real estate firm focused on Texas. For more details please go to our Texas Roundup Page.

December 16, 2008 UrbanAmerica LP spent $485 million to purchase 3.1 million sf in 13 office buildings and one distribution center in 11 states. Included the deal is the 138,000-sf office building at 1433 W. Loop South in Houston. The seller of the properties was Rubicon America Trust. The primary tenants in the buildings are federal government agencies. CB Richard Ellis handled the sale. For more details, please go to our Houston Deals page.

December 15, 2008 - A 1031 exchange investor from the San Diego area has acquired the 122-unit Wexford Townhomes in Duncanville for $9 million. The buyer assumed a $7.5 million loan to take title to the 95 percent-leased complex at 600 Wembley Circle. For more details please go to our Multi-Family Magazine.

December 11, 2008 - One Park Place, downtown Houston’s first new high-rise rental residence in more than 40 years has opened two model apartments, while the building is still under construction. The 37-story, 346- unit brick and masonry tower faces Discovery Green, downtown Houston’s new 12-acre park. The 1,234 sf one-bedroom/den, one-bath model and the 1,575 sf two-bedroom, two-bath, feature the fine details that have become synonymous with developer Marvy Finger and the Finger Companies high-rise, mid-rise and garden-style apartment living......... Concierge Management has announced a major deal. Please go to our Multi-Family Magazine page for story by Connie Gore.

December 9, 2008 - Grandbridge Real Estate Capital of Charlotte, N.C. is acquiring Live Oak Capital, a Houston-based commercial mortgage banking firm. The deal will close at year-end. ... In other news, Hotel Derek, a 314-room property, 2525 West Loop South, just east of Houton's Galleria, is undertaking a $2.5 million renovation. The hotel's General Manager is Hans Schmitt. Crestline Corporation manages Hotel Derek.

December 8, 2008 - A partnership led by Satya Inc., a Houston-based realty group, purchased a portfolio of seven Houston retail strip centers totaling 213,685 sf. The seller was represented by the HFF (Hollday Fenoglio Fowler) investment sales team was led by senior managing director Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Mike Parker, who marketed the portfolio on behalf of the seller. As part of the arrangement, the same buyer will also purchase an eighth property, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2009. Satya, Inc. will manage all eight properties, and leasing will be handled by Josh Jacobs with Page Partners, also based in Houston.

December 6, 2008 - Pecan Shadows, a 137-unit multi-family project located at 480 West Parker Road in Houston has been purchased by West Park 137, LLC of The Woodlands which is planning a moderate rehab of the property, including replacing roofs and upgrading kitchens. The transaction was negotiated by Jeff Eisenhardt of the Houston office of Hendricks & Partners on behalf of the seller, Pecan Shadows Ltd. Pecan Shadows was the last of a three-property Houston portfolio that was sold by the Santa Clarita, Calif. group. Hendricks & Partners, headquartered in Phoenix, is the nation’s largest sales and research firm focused exclusively on the multifamily industry.

December 4, 2008 -Thompson & Horton, a boutique law firm formed by former Bracewell & Giuliani LLP attorneys, has leased 10,700 sf at Pennzoil Place in downtown Houston. The firm will focus on the legal needs of educational institutions and public sector entities and be comprised of primarily women and minority attorneys. Tommy Wilson and Jay Cliburn with CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant in the transaction while Ben Quinton with Hines Holdings, Inc. represented the landlord, Sunbelt Management Company.

December 3, 2008 - The 224-unit Las Lomas Apartments in Arlington has been sold to the Lighthouse Group of Pacific Palisades, Calif. The Lighthouse Group gained a 75 percent leased value-add opportunity in an all-cash closing with an institutional seller from Washington, DC, said Mark Freeman, senior vice president of the Dallas Multifamily Group for Transwestern Commercial Services. For more details please go to our Multi-Family Magazine.

December 2, 2008 - The Galleria Towers, located within the Houston Galleria and managed by CB Richard Ellis have earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) prestigious 2008 ENERGY Star.The Galleria Towers, located within the Houston Galleria and managed by CB Richard Ellis have earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) award. "We are pleased that these exceptional buildings have earned the EPA’s ENERGY STAR in recognition of their energy efficiency efforts,” said Mark Nicholson, a managing director with CB Richard Ellis’ Asset Services practice.

December 1, 2008 - Weingarten Realty Investors and Hines REIT have created a joint venture that is acquiring 12 retail centers valued at $271 million. The 1.5 million sf portfolio includes properties in Texas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and North Carolina. Hines will own a 70 percent stake in the joint venture.

November 28, 2008 - The retail space market in the Inner Loop of Houston is turning in a strong performance this fall. “In the Inner Loop we do not have overbuilding,” said Greg Lewis of Lewis Property Co., which manages of leases 23 projects in the Inner Loop. Lewis said all 23 of his retail properties are 100 percent leased. “Houston is one of the bright spots for retail. Retailers are expanding here,” Lewis said at the recent O’Connor & Associates retail breakfast. Another speaker at the breakfast, architect Marc Geftman of TurnKey Concepts, which is expanding into the Houston market, said shopping center owners will find it profitable to make their projects more green. Energy usage, recycling and gaining LEED certification are issues that property owners should address, said Geftman, an expert in restaurant design. For more information please go to RNR’s National Items page.

November 24, 2008 - Lewis Realty Advisors, the nation’s leading eminent domain advisory firm, has announced the formation of its nationwide Acquisition Counseling Network.
The new unit will deliver comprehensive management of real estate acquisition services for public agencies, utilizing its national network of seasoned real estate professionals, to ensure timely right-of-way delivery on budget.
“The Acquisition Counseling Network counsels and coordinates the tasks of appraisers, land planners, construction cost-estimators, safety experts, right-of-way agents and relocation agents,” said David Lewis, founder of Lewis Realty Advisors. “This approach results in significant savings for our clients and reduces their managerial responsibilities.” For more information, please go to RNR's In-Depth Stories page.

November 20, 2008 The Houston Gulf Coast Chapter of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors announced the 2009 board officers and directors: the Houston Chapter of SIOR’s new board of officers and directors comprises the following individuals:
- President: David L. Carter, CCIM, SIOR – Vice President, Yancey-Hausman Interests
- Vice President: Keith Grothaus, CCIM, SIOR – Vice President, Caldwell Companies
- Secretary/Treasurer: Jonathan D. Farris, CCIM, SIOR – Senior Director, Cushman & Wakefield of Texas, Inc.
- Membership: Jeff Peden, SIOR – Senior Director, Cushman & Wakefield of Texas, Inc.
-Marketing: Todd Edmonds, CCIM, SIOR – Principal, Colliers International
- Past President: Tyndall Yaap, CCIM, SIOR – Managing Director, Capital Commercial Investments, Inc.

November 14, 2008 - Cushman & Wakefield of Texas announced that the proposed Eco Centre at Lake Pointe building received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Core & Shell Platinum-level pre-certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). “We are very excited and humbled that Eco Center at Lake Pointe is now one of only a few multi-tenant buildings in the nation to receive this designation," said Bill Stone, director of project leaing with Cushman & Wakefield. “PRISMA Properties, the owner, has raised the bar for other developers and companies seeking to introduce sustainable, environmentally-friendly practices into their facilities.” The 7-story, 153,000-sf Eco Centre at Lake Pointe is located 20 miles from downtown Houston on Creek Bend Drive between Lake Pointe Parkway and Flour Daniel Drive in Sugar Land.

November 13, 2008 - Houston's strong job growth - which has been best in the nation - is about to lose some of its golden luster, says economist Dr. Barton Smith of the University of Houston's Institute for Regional Forecasting. Houston gained over 100,000 new jobs in 2007 and it will add about 60,000 in 2008. Next year Houston will probably lose at least 5,000 jobs, maybe a bit more, but less than 20,000 jobs, said Dr. Smith in his annual fall speech to business leaders at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Houston. The decline in oil prices - down from $147 per barrel to less than $60 per barrel in four months is going to have a sobering impact on Houston's economy. Exploration for oil and the need for more oil rig manufacturing will decline, taking some of the momentum out of the Houston economy, Smith said. It won't be horrendous, but Houston can't remain immune from the global economic slowdown. OF NOTE: Dr. Smith is not a fan of the Federal Reserve's Ben Bernanke. "The Bernanke Fed has been slow and directionless," Smith said. The Fed has an "excessive preoccupation with inflation" during these times, Smith said.

November 12, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors has purchased Oak Park Office Center III, a 151,000-ft office building in Houston’s Westchase submarket. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's Robert Williamson, Jeff Hollinden and Barbara Guffey. represented the seller, Realty Associates Oak Park III, L.P. Situated on an 11.4-acre site at 6001 Rogerdale Road, Oak Park Office Center III is within the Oak Park at Westchase office park close to the intersection of Beltway 8 and the Westpark Tollway in Houston. The two-story property was developed by Myers Crow & Saviers, Ltd. in 2008 and is fully leased to Jacobs Engineering for a 10 year term. HFF also arranged the prior sale of Oak Park Office Center I and II on behalf the same development team in 2004 and February 2008. Myers, Crow & Saviers is a real estate development and investment firm focusing on the development of office and industrial buildings in Houston, the Dallas/Fort.Worth metroplex and San Antonio.

November 10, 2008 - M/PF YieldStar reports that Texas has the nation' top markets for multi-family development. list of top U.S. apartment-building markets. Dallas/Fort Worth ranked No. 1 with 20,585 units currently under development. Houston was second with 16,282 units and Austin ranked third with 13,366 units.

November 8, 2008 - The Two Riverway building, 370,000-sf tower on Woodway, just north of the Galliera area, ha been sold to a Dubai investment group for $54 million. The 17-tory tower is 92 percent leased with major tenants including Chicago Bridge & Iron and IBM. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's H. Dan Miller, Robert Williamson, Marty Hogan and real estate analyst Trent Agnew led the HHF investment sales team on behalf of the seller, Coventry Fund X, Ltd. The buyer was Two Riverway Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Donerail Corp. “Two Riverway’s location within the Galleria submarket provides strong barriers to entry due to the scarcity and high cost of available sites coupled with the current capital market environment,” said Miller. “Since 1999, only two Class A buildings have been built in the Galleria submarket and both are owner occupied.” “The purchase of Two Riverway is testament to Houston’s desirability from the global investment community,” said Hogan.

November 4, 2008 - PROGRAMMING NOTE -- Tune in tonight to the "Real Estate Corner" radio show at 1430 AM at 6:00 pm. Shad Bogany of ERA Bogany is the host and his guests will include Mark Geftman of TurnKey Concepts and Ralph Bivins, editor of RealtyNewsReport.com. ............. TAM International, an independent oilfield services company that provides inflatable packers, swellable packers, and downhole products and services to the oil and gas industry, has purchased 26 acres of land near the southeast corner of Pinemont and US Highway 290. TAM acquired the property from Sueba Investments in an off-market transaction that closed earlier this month. TAM plans to build a state-of-the-art 150,000 sf air-conditioned manufacturing plant on the site which is close to its existing facilities on Southerland Road. Micheal Palmer, John Simons and Susana Rosas with CB Richard Ellis represented TAM in the transaction.

November 2, 2008 - Two historic office buildings, situated in Houston’s Museum District, has sold to real estate developer Fred Sharifi. Both buildings were designed and in 1924 by William Ward Watkin, who oversaw construction of the first buildings of the Rice Institute in 1910. Watkins also designed the Broadacres and Southampton Place subdivisions that are also in the area. In 1935, John Staub, a designer of many grand houses in River Oaks including the Hogg mansion, completed additions to the main building. 1150 and 1128 Bissonnet were updated in 1996 by Ray Bailey Architects and has won awards from the Houston A.I.A. Chapter as well as The Greater Houston Preservation Alliance. Micheal Palmer, John Simons and Susana Rosas with CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, Moriarty Family Partnership LTD, in the transaction. Tony Pour represented Fred Sharifi.

October 28, 2008 - What's happening with retail space in Houston? Certainly there have been a lot of new projects going up recently. Nancy Sarnoff of the Houston Chronicle reported in her Sunday column that the retail realty market is looking up. In you want more, be sure to attend the O'Connor Retail Forecast Breakfast on Nov. 5. Greg Lewis of Lewis Property Co. and architect Marc Geftman of TurnKey Concepts are on the forecast program. Call O'Connor & Associates for more detail on the breakfast. Also, hope you were able to attend the CB Richard Ellis Retail party at Rockefeller's Friday night. It was a lot of fun -- and proved the spirits are up in the shopping center business.

October 27, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors will install original works of sculptor George Sugarman in and around several Houston area buildings. All works are completely restored and will be permanent additions to the properties. Buildings receiving sculptures include: 602 Sawyer, Sugar Land Medical, Beltway 8 Corporate Center, 100 Cyberonics and Waterway Plaza I & II in the Houston area. “As a long-time admirer of George Sugarman, I know these vibrant and momentous works will be an incredible addition to these spaces,” said Ross Crowe, vice president of asset management, Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors.

October 25, 2008 - 4S Investments #1 LLC has purchased 5.41 acres at SH-96 & FM 1266 in League City, Texas to be developed as a self storage facility. Laura Smith and Larry McWherter with CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, South Shore Harbour Development, LTD, in the transaction. Ward Arnold with Reward Realty represented the buyer.

October 20, 2008 - Colliers International has released a positive report on Houston's industrial market. "Houston’s industrial market continues to stand firm with positive indicators prevailing in the third quarter 2008," Colliers said. "Over the past four years, the local industrial sector has benefited from a series of perfect storm conditions generating a frenzy of activity from both the supply and demand side of the market. Houston’s robust economy, grounded in expanding energy and international trade industries, has been a dynamic catalyst driving strong tenant demand for industrial space, at a time when regional and national developers (many new to the Houston area) have been aggressively introducing significant amounts of new state-of- the-art industrial product in their efforts to increase market share."

October 17, 2008 - Veteran real estate journalist Jennifer Dawson of the Houston Business Journal reports in the newspaper's latest edition that Hess Corp., a New York-based energy firm, is considering leasing the entire Discovery Green office tower in downtown Houston. No substantive comment from Hess, which currently occupies 500,000 sf in One Allen Center. The 31-story, 871,000 sf Discovery Green, developed by Trammell Crow, is slated for completion in 2011. Discovery Green is under construction near the Geo. R. Brown Convention Center and will overlook the new downtown park. The Hess lease would be one of the largest office leases ever in Houston. The deal would tighten the downtown office market considerably. Financing for additional new office towers will not be easy to obtain in the current credit crunch, even if a building has substantial pre-leasing.

October 16, 2008 - Wells Real Estate Funds has purchased Parkway at Oak Hill, a new, 146,000-sf, two-building office development in the southwest suburbs of Austin. Keith Willby, senior vice president, acquisitions represented Wells. The buildings, not yet occupied, were acquired from PKWY LLC. The property, located at 4801 Southwest Parkway, was marketed by the Dallas office of HFF. It’s the seventh Texas acquisition in Wells’ current portfolios, and the only one in the capital city. Wells Real Estate Funds is a national real estate investment company based in suburban Atlanta.

October 12, 2008 - Historic Real Estate Inc. has announced impressive plans for the WaterLights District, a mixed-use development on Highway 288 in Pearland. The 150-acre development will include: the Restaurant Row of unique waterfront eateries, a planned 7,500-seat enclosed arena, and the 12-acre Presidential Park and Gardens, which features a lake and pathway lined with 20-foot statues of all 42 American presidents. The project, which will also include residential units, will benefit from long-term growth at the Texas Medical Center, the developer said. For more information please go to our Houston Deals page.

October 11, 2008 - Planned Community Developers has announced plans to develop a six-story office building in Sugar Land Town Square, near the intersection of Highway 6 and US Highway 59 on the southwest side of Houston. With an estimated completion date of first quarter 2010, the new building will offer 166,561 sf of Class A office space and 13,176 sf of ground level retail space. PCD also plans to construct a two-story building located at 2185 Texas Drive, which will offer an additional 9,000 sf of second-story office space and 9,000 sf of ground level retail. “The emergence of mixed-use developments such as Sugar Land Town Square has made it increasingly difficult for the stand-alone suburban office building to compete for tenants,” said Don Janssen, Jr., senior vice-president of PCD. “Overwhelmingly, our office tenants tell us they prefer the mixed-use environment."

October 9, 2008 - PinPoint Commercial of Houston is developing a 315,120-sf LEED certified distribution building called Satsuma Station. Situated on nearly 20 acres within the 115-acre Satsuma Industrial Park, the property is close to the intersection of U.S. Highway 290 and Texas State Highway 6 in northwest Houston. The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) arranged $3.4 million in joint venture equity for the project. HFF associate director Cameron Cureton worked exclusively on behalf of the client, PinPoint Commercial to assemble the joint venture equity with Phoenix Capital Partners, a Dallas-based private equity provider.

October 7, 2008 - A whopping $4,900 psf or $235 million is being paid for a San Francisco parcel by the San Francisco offices of Hines and MetLife Real Estate Investments, both international real estate firms. The deal would represent a record land sale price for San Francisco. The development is a transit oriented development. The Hines project is called Transbay Tower. Hines’ proposed 1,000-foot Transbay Tower will be sited on a 48,000-sf parcel at Mission and First streets in San Francisco’s financial district, immediately adjacent to the planned Transit Center. The tower, designed by renowned architects Pelli Clarke Pelli, will offer approximately 1.6 million sf of office space with ground-floor, convenience retail serving office tenants, commuters and local residents.

October 6, 2008 - Behringer Harvard, a Dallas-based REIT, has purchased One BriarLake Plaza, a 20-story office tower in the Westchase area of Houston. The 500,000-sf building is located on the Sam Houston Tollway near Briar Forest. The seller was a group led by Crescent Real Estate. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler had been marketing the property, which is 94 percent leased. "The robust Houston economy also is contributing to one of the strongest commercial real estate markets in the United States," said Thomas F. August, chief operating officer of Behringer Harvard.

October 1, 2008 CMC Realty Group has broken ground on CIGNA’s new regional headquarters in Plano. CIGNA plans to consolidate employees and operations which are currently in four separate facilities around the metropolitan area. The building will serve as a major regional center for CIGNA.

Named CIGNA Pointe, the 210,000 sf office building is situated in a prime location on the northeast corner of the Dallas North Tollway and Plano Parkway, one block north of the President George Bush Turnpike. CIGNA Pointe will be a four-story office building, divided into two wings on each floor, with each floor to be about 50,000 sf. The exterior façade of the building is enhanced with brick, aluminum, and painted surface as well as a glass curtain wall. The project sits on the northern 13 acres of a 43-acre, master-planned project and is the first building constructed in the development.

September 30, 2008 - John Cole of Twenty Twenty Properties has purchased a six-building portfolio of office buildings in the NASA/Clear Lake area of Houston. The portfolio has 226,000-sf of office space. The seller, KBS Realty Advisors was represented by Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF). For full details please go to the Houston Deals page.

September 24, 2008 - Cushman & Wakefield of Texas Inc.’s Houston office negotiated the sale of 50 acres of industrial land for a future industrial development in the Fairmont Industrial Park on the eastern side of Houston.The buyer was Notsuoh Development Corp., which was represented by Lane F. Guinn of JML Commercial Advisors. The seller , NDI Fairmont Parkway Partners Ltd., was represented by B. Kelley Parker, John F. Littman and Coe Parker of Cushman & Wakefield.

September 23, 2008 - Fogarty Klein Monroe has signed a lease for 39,506 sf, taking the top two floors at 1800 West Loop South. Michelle Wogan and Monte Calvert of Transwestern represented the landlord, 1800 West Loop South, LTD. Kevin Gardner with CresaPartners, LLC represented the tenant, Fogarty Klein Monroe. 1800 West Loop South is located within the Uptown Galleria submarket. With its strategic location at San Felipe and Interstate 610, the building is accessible to every major business area of Houston. The building offers 399,777 sf of office space.

September 18, 2008 - The Los Angeles office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced that its Hines U.S. Office Value Added Fund II, L.P. has acquired Citigroup Center from Broadway Partners. The 48-story, 891,056-sf office tower is located at 444 Flower Street in downtown Los Angeles. The seller was represented by Eastdil Secured. Designed by A.C. Martin & Associates and completed in 1981, the distinctively modern office tower—made famous as the backdrop of the 1980s television series LA Law—occupies a premier site on the corner of Flower and 5th streets in the Bunker Hill/financial district. Citigroup Center is 93 percent leased to tenants including: BP, Citicorp and Wells Fargo Bank. The seller was New York-based Broadway Partners, a group led by Scott Lawlor.

September 9, 2008 - An 80,000-sf office building will be constructed in Pearland's Shadow Creek Ranch, just west of Highway 288. The developers of the project are T.A.B. Lone Star Holdings, Inc. and Wallace Bajjali Development Partners. T.A.B. Lone Star Holdings, Inc., is affiliated with Houston -based ZT Group of Companies, and is led by Taseer Badar, which is comprised of ZT Investments, ZT Financial Network, ZT Consulting and ZT Properties USA. The project, called ZT Shadow Creek Business Center, will be the firm’s first office development in the Houston area. Completion is slated for the fall of 2009. FINANCING: The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) arranged a $12.84 million construction loan for the office development.

Working exclusively on behalf of ZT Group Business Center One (Pearland), L.P., HFF’s Charlie Gasper and Colby Mueck placed the 24-month, 80% leveraged loan through Lance Schielack at Sterling Bank.

September 8, 2008 - A $22 million 250-unit age-restricted apartment complex is under development on the Grand Parkway in West Houston. Blazer Building Inc. and Perseus Realty Partners are developing the project. Please go to our Multi-Family Magazine for more details.

September 6, 2008 - An energy firm leased space in the Greenway Plaza area. Hines, the property and leasing manager for Phoenix Tower in Houston, on behalf of building owner FSP Phoenix Tower Limited Partnership, an affiliate of Franklin Street Properties Corp., announced that Express Energy Services Operating, L.P. has signed a full-floor lease for 25,113 sf at Phoenix Tower. The 34-story, 629,000-sf office tower is located at 3200 Southwest Freeway. The oilfield service provider was represented in lease negotiations by David Anderson of Fritsche Anderson Realty Partners. Paula Bruns, a director of leasing for Hines, represented FSPLP.

September 2, 2008 - J P Kenny, one of the world's largest pipeline and subsea engineering contractors, has leased 53,808 sf at Park Ten Plaza, an office building the in the Energy Corridor district of west Houston. Brad Fricks, Vice President of Stream Realty Partners represented Park Ten Plaza in lease negotiations and Steve Hesse of CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant, J P Kenny.

September 1 , 2008 - Labor Day.

August 27, 2008 - The first building in Houston to receive the gold-level of LEED certification has been sold. San Francisco-based, Seligman & Associates has purchased 11000 Equity Drive, a 3-story, 65,000 sf green building located in Westway Park, located on the West Sam Houston Tollway near Clay Road. CB Richard Ellis handled the sale. The seller was Satterfield and Pontikes Construction, a key tenant in the building. The buyer, Seligman, also owns the Esperson buildings in downtown Houston. ..... In other news, Colliers International has named Doyle Toups to be Senior Vice President of the Colliers' Industrial Services Group in Houston. Toups, with 36 years experience in commercial real estate, was formerly with Grubb & Ellis.

August 23, 2008 - Spear Street Capital has purchased the Riata Corporate Park and Riata Crossing, a Class A office complex totaling 1.1 million sf in Austin, Texas. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler ( HFF) marketed the property exclusively on behalf of the seller, a partnership between institutional investors advised by JPMorgan Asset Management and Equity Office. The Riata complex is situated within a 95-acre corporate park adjacent to a city park and lake near Research Boulevard, Parmer Lane, State Highway 45 and The Domain in northwest Austin.

August 22, 2008 - Thor Equities of New York has acquired three acres on Kirby Drive, just north of RIchmond Avenue for a proposed retail development called the Kirby Collection, according to an article by Jennifer Dawson in the Houston Business Journal. The acquisition includes the Settegast-Kopf property. The property was assembled by Houstonian Blake Tartt III, who had owned some of it for years. Tartt is prominent in retail center leasing, brokerage and development.

August 20, 2008 - Adams LaSalle Realty, a Chicago-based private equity real estate investor, has announced that its multi-family operating arm has acquired the 322-unit Lodge at Baybrook apartments, located on a 13.7-acre parcel in the Clear Lake submarket of Houston. Adams LaSalle purchased the property from MBS-Baybrook, Ltd., with Houston-based, Craig LaFollette, Todd Stewart, Todd Marix and Tre Banks of CB Richard Ellis representing the seller in the transacion. Tim Burns, a company principal, represented Adams LaSalle.

August 19, 2008 - Capmark Finance originated a $21.5 million refinance of Norfolk Tower, an office building in Houston’s Greenway Plaza area. The three-year, 75 percent LTV loan is interest-only. Located on nearly two-and-a-half acres at 2211 Norfolk Street, the Norfolk Tower is an 11-story, Class B+ office building with 206,671 sf. The building is 83 percent occupied and major tenants include Frost National Bank, Comprehensive Health Management and Groundwater Services. Senior Vice President Jim Adams of the Capmark Finance Houston office originated the transaction. The borrower was an affiliate of Younan Properties Inc. Zaya S. Younan is CEO.

August 15, 2008 - Seismic Exchange, the seismic data firm, has started construction on a building that more than doubles the size of its operation in Westway Park, Wolff Companies’ 150-acre business park at the intersection of the Sam Houston Tollway and Clay Road. The five-story, 73,400-sf office building will be located at 11050 Capital Park Drive. Completion is scheduled for March. Powers Brown Architecture has designed the building and Rosenberger Construction is general contractor. The firm recently relocated its headquarters from Louisiana to Houston.

August 14, 2008 – Chroma Oil & Gas, LP, a private oil and gas company engaged in the acquisition, exploitation and exploration of oil and gas located on the Louisiana and Texas Gulf Coast, has expanded their lease by taking an additional 5,100 sf at 1010 Lamar, 17th floor, in Downtown Houston. Chroma, headquartered in Houston, signed-on at the Lamar location in April of 2006 with the initial lease of 6,847 sf when they relocated from their office from Sugar Land to Downtown Houston. Ron McWherter with CB Richard Ellis represented Chroma in the transaction while Wade Bowlin with PM Realty Group represented the landlord, YPI 1010 Lamar, LLC.

August 13, 2008 - Weingarten Realty Investors has sold off its Brodie Oaks Shopping Center, a community retail and office complex containing 244,242 sf in Austin. Brodie Oaks is located at the northeast corner of Loop 360 and South Lamar Boulevard.The buyer was L&B Realty Advisors, LLP and its joint venture partner, Barshop & Oles Co. The HFF investment sales team of Jim Batjer, Barry Brown, Doug Hazelbaker and Judy Boyd marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Weingarten. Stacie S. Crown is vice president, portfolio management for L&B Realty Advisors. Bernadette Mussell is director of acquisitions at L&B. Brodie Oaks is anchored by Neiman Marcus Last Call and Sun Harvest Market.

August 10, 2008 - Lambright Inc. purchased a large manufacturing building in Houston, where the surge of the energy industry has increased demand for industrial space. Lambright bought a 142,000-sf building on 5.5 acres at 3131 South Richey Road. James E. Foreman and Louis "Beau" Kaleel of Cushman & Wakefield represented Lambright. John Talhelm and Ryan Fuselier of the Staubach Co. represented the seller, Metals USA Inc.

August 7, 2008 - The National Association of Real Estate Editors has announced the call for entries for the 7th Annual Bivins Fellowship. NAREE offers $5,000 in fellowship stipends to mid-career journalists who write on real estate topics and commercial real estate news. The deadline to enter is Sept. 15. The entries will be judged by Professor George Harmon, who directs the business writing program of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Please go to www.NAREE.org for an application. Work can be self-directed or linked with a university or professional association. The award is named for Ralph Bivins, a NAREE past president and dedicated volunteer. Bivins is editor of RealtyNewsReport.com. The National Association of Real Estate Editors, is celebrating 79 years as the nation’s only professional organization devoted to real estate journalism. www.NAREE.org.

August 6, 2008 - Healthcare Realty Trust purchased the Pyramids at Park Lane, a two-building, 291,389-sf office complex in Dallas. HFF represented the seller, an affiliate of Goddard Investment Group of Atlanta. The project is 98 percent leased with major tenants including Baylor Health Care, The Dallas Plastic Surgery Institute and XO Communications.

August 4, 2008 - Creekbend, a community of 87 courtyard homes, is being developed in Lake Pointe Town Center – a mixed-use urban community located at the intersection of Highway 6 and U.S. 59 in Sugar Land. The community provides an urbanized environment for residents to live, work and play. Anchored by the existing 1.2 million-sf headquarters of Fluor Corp. Lake Pointe contains office and medical employers including the new St. Luke’s Hospital; retail stores and restaurants such as Whole Foods Market and Life Time Fitness; and custom homes and home sites.

August 1, 2008 - The Houston Ballet has acquired a half-block on Smith St. between Preston and Congress for its new headquarters facility, according to an article by Jennifer Dawson in the Houston Business Journal. The site is adjacent catty-cornered from the Wortham Theater. Funds are being raised for the new building, which will include offices and a training facility.

July 27, 2008 - MSC Properties, a commercial brokerage firm, and its president, Marshall Clickscales, have joined the Houston office of Colliers International. Since 1981 Clinkscales has handled retail realty and land for retail center development. Clinkscales was recently involved in the sale of 126 acres at Beltway 8 and Fairmont Parkway. Eighty-four acres of that land was subsequently sold to Trammell Crow for a power center.

July 25, 2008 -A prominent figure in Houston real estate, Mike Boyd of Boyd Commercial, is featured in photos and an artcle in the lifestyle section of the Houston Chronicle today. Boyd and his family were the audience for a small-scale classical music concert at his home. These inimate concerts are a new trend.

July 24, 2008 - A subsidiary of Genesis Energy, L.P. has leased 22,666 sf at 919 Milam in Houston. Brad Sinclair, Jennifer Leroy and Michelle Wogan of Transwestern represented the landlord, Transwestern 919 Milam, L.P. The tenant was represented by Kyle Kelley, Lance McCarthy and Lesa Nickelson of CB Richard Ellis.

July 16, 2008 - Houston has one of the best retail realty markets in the nation and has two malls opening this year. Based on center openings through the first half of 2008, plus projects under way for estimated year-end completion, a new report estimates that 2008 construction will total 4.9 million sf. This construction level exceeds the strong activity seen in 2006 and 2007, according to the mid-year retail market report by The Weitzman Group and Cencor Realty Services. For more detail, please go to our In-Depth Stories page.

July 12, 2008 - Behringer Harvard has begun construction on Three Eldridge Place, a 13-story, 303,000 sf, pre-certified LEED silver Class A building, that will sit adjacent to both One and Two Eldridge. The new building is expected to be completed in the Summer of 2009. In the adjacent One Eldridge Place, Canatxx Energy Ventures, Inc. has renewed their lease of 9,272 sf at 777 North Eldridge Parkway, in Houston’s west energy corridor. Kristen Rabel and Jessica Ochoa with CB Richard Ellis represented the landlord, Behringer Harvard, in the transaction while Chad Baker with Staubach represented Canatxx.

July 10, 2008 - The Houston office market is holding its own. Rents are still increasing slightly, said Sanford Criner of CB RIchard Ellis. Citywide average rent stood at $22.81 in the second quarter of 2008, up from an average $22.49 in the first quarter, CBRE said. Although rents have risen significantly in recent years, Houston's rents are still attractive for relocation -- a noteworthy tidbit of commercial real estate news. Houston's Class A average rent of $31.73 psf is a good value when compared to Los Angeles ($53.76), New York ($83.37) and London ($236.48), according to CBRE.

July 9, 2008 - CB Richard Ellis Trust has purchased the 171,000-sf Enclave on the Lake office building at 1255 Enclave Parkway in Houston's Energy Corridor for $37.2 million. The seller was Behringer Harvard REIT I of Dallas. The six-story property rests on a 6.7-acre parcel located south of the Katy Freeway near Eldridge Parkway. The property is 100 percent leased to SBM Atlantia Inc., a subsidiary of SBM Offshore, Inc. that is a provider of integrated production solutions for the offshore oil and gas industry. Robert M. Behringer, founder and chief executive officer of Behringer Harvard, said, “Programs that pursue a core investment strategy, like our REIT I, are usually expected to provide returns in the range of 9 percent to 12 percent. We’re delighted that we have essentially doubled that expectation by selecting an advantaged off-market acquisition, managing the asset efficiently, and executing a timely and disciplined disposition."

July 8, 2008 - Transocean has leased an additional 95,000 sf at 4 and 5 Greenway Plaza. This expansion takes 4 Greenway to 100 percent occupancy with Transocean now controlling the entire building. Brad Fricks and Preston Young of Stream Realty Partners, L.P. represented Greenway Plaza in lease negotiations. Jay Bonano of Studley. represented Transocean. Greenway Plaza, located north of the Southwest Freeway near Buffalo Speedway, is owned by Crescent Real Estate Funding III, IV and V L.P.

July 7, 2008 - Downtown Houston's YMCA building, a handsome fixture built in 1941, will be demolished and its site will be sold to Chevron, according to a story by Nancy Sarnoff, who covers commercial real estate news in the Houston Chronicle. The YMCA building is located at 1600 Louisiana at Pease. Chevron owns nearby office towers and it is anticipated that Chevron will build another tower on the YMCA block. Sarnoff reported that a new YMCA will be constructed nearby on a block bounded by Pease, Jefferson, Travis and Milam.

July 5, 2008 - The old Shell Oil research facility - 10 acres of prime land west of the Texas Medical Center, will be vacated by Shell and sold. Shell opened the research center, located in the Southside Place municipality, in 1936. The Perrin White family owns a portion of the property. The site is in the 3700 block of Bellaire Boulevard between Stella Link and Buffalo Speedway.

July 4, 2008 - Independence Day. This great nation was born and sustained by the sacrifice of great patriots.

July 1, 2008 - Holliday Fenoglio Fowler arranged a $23.53 million construction loan for a speculative Class A, 180,000-sf office development in The Woodlands.

Working exclusively on behalf of Stream Realty Partners, Matt Kafka and Adam Jackson placed the non-recourse construction loan with Wachovia Bank, N.A.

Situated on 35.5 acres at 1601 Sawdust Road, the development site is within The Woodlands master planned community north of Houston. The building, called Sierra Pines, is due for completion in January 2009 and is the first phase of a three-building, 540,000-sf office development.

June 30, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis represented Weingarten Realty Investors in the sale of Northway Center, a 215,887-sf shopping center in near Northwest Houston. The 96 percent occupied center was purchased by an entity of Utah-based Satterfield Helm Management. The center is located at the southwest corner of U.S. 290 and 34th Street in Houston's near northwest sector, approximately 8 miles from downtown Houston. George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer of Grubb & Ellis represented Weingarten. Editors note: RealtyNewsReport.com has been proud to bring its readers Houston real estate news along with state and national news items for over four years. Please keep reading.
June 27, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis represented Regency Centers in the sale of Highland Knolls Shopping Center. Highland Knolls is a 91,154-sf grocery-anchored center located on Mason Road in Katy just west of Houston. The center was purchased by SV Commercial Partners out of Denver. The center is anchored by Randall's grocery with national tenants Washington Mutual, Quizno's, TGF Haircutters and AT&T Wireless.

Specializing in retail investment sales, George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer in the Houston office of Grubb & Ellis represented the seller.
June 26, 2008 - Broadway Partners, a national private real estate investment and management firm headquartered in New York, has sold One City Centre, a major tower in downtown Houston, to Behringer Harvard REIT I, Inc. for $131 million. One City Centre is a 31-story, 608,622-sf Class A office tower located at 1021 Main Street. Broadway Partners founder and CEO Scott Lawlor commented, “We’re pleased that we were able to reach agreement on this sale in the face of a very challenging climate for large commercial real estate transactions." Representing the Broadway in the transaction was Robert Williamson of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler.
June 25, 2008 - Houston-based GSL Welcome Group has purchased the massive Glazier Foods Co. headquarters and distribution facility in a triple-net sale-lease-back deal. The 280,000-sf Glazier facility is located at 11303 Antoine Drive, just north of the North Sam Houston Parkway in Houston. A $14 million, 160,000-sf expansion of the facility is under construction. Yancey-Hausman Commercial Real Estate Services had been marketing the Glazier property. Several REITs submitted bids after the national marketing effort, said Pat Pollan of Yancey-Hausman. Glazier, founded in Houston in 1936, is a family-owned firm. Welcome Wilson Jr. is president of GSL.
June 24, 2008 -- SAN ANTONIO - The General Land Office (GLO) of the State of Texas has sold 173.56 acres on behalf of the Permanent School Fund to Potranco Limited LP.
The property, known as Redbird Ranch, is located 18 miles west of downtown San Antonio. It has frontage on Potranco Road (FM 1957) and the proposed extension of State Highway 211. Nearby developments include Texas Research Park, CitiCorp US Center, Sea World, Briggs Ranch, Golf Course of Texas and many new residential developments including West Oak Estates and Rustic Oaks. Donna Kolius, Pierce Owens, Cody Persyn and Jeremy Richmond of CB Richard Ellis’ Portfolio Services along with Karen Woodard of Hudson and Marshall of Texas represented the GLO in the sale of the property.
June 23, 2008 - Heritage Texas Properties has acquired the 20-agent Royal Oaks Fine Properties, the principle real estate brokerage representing the gated luxury community at Royal Oaks Country Club in the Westchase area. Last year, Royal Oaks Fine Properties generated $90 million in total closed sales volume with an average sales price in the upper-$700s. Brandey Heckeroth, broker/owner of Royal Oaks Fine Properties, will remain with Heritage Texas Properties. Heritage is led by Robin Mueck and. With this addition, Heritage Texas Properties has nearly 100 real estate agents based in the Memorial /West Houston area, the most among Houston’s locally-owned real estate companies.
June 20, 2008 - GC Remediation, Ltd. bought an 18,000 sf freestanding warehouse with storage yard on 69,334 sf of land at 3020 Greens Road in Houston. B. Kelley Parker, III, SIOR, John F. Littman, SIOR, Jon Farris, SIOR, CCIM and Coe Parker of Cushman and Wakefield of Texas Inc.’s Houston office represented the seller in the negotiations.The seller was Cargo Forwarding Internationa. Greg Usher of Cypressbrook Company represented the buyer.
June 18, 2008 - Associated Global Systems, a shipping and logistics company, has renewed their lease of 42,000 sf at 2928 Greens Road in the North Hardy Toll Road industrial submarket. Glynn Mireles and Jeff Everist with CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant in the transaction while Stream Realty Partners represented the landlord, AMB Property Corporation.
June 17, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis Company represented Houston-based Memorial Hermann in its sale of a 20.1-acre redevelopment site in Missouri City to SDI Realty Management, Inc.
SDI Realty Management plans to raze the existing hospital and professional office building and redevelop the site into a retail center consisting of a Lowe’s Home Improvement store and other retail pad users. Located at the northeast corner of FM 1092 (Murphy Road) and Highway 6, the site is the last remaining corner tract at the intersection. Keith Lloyd and Sam Sheff of Grubb & Ellis represented Memorial Hermann. Kirk Guilanshah, System Executive Real Estate, also acted on behalf of Memorial Hermann.
June 16, 2008 - Archstone-Smith, an Englewood. Colo.-based firm, has purchased the Lofts at the Ballpark, a 375-unit apartment community. The project is located just east of Minute Maid Park, where the Houston Astros play. Editors note: The Astros lost three in a row to the New York Yankees over the weekend. Seems like it is about time for a major trade or a new manager if the 'Stros hope to salvage this season.
June 13, 2008 - Hines, the international real estate firm, has gained a major tenant for the skyscraper it is constructing in downtown Houston. KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm, leased 108,904 sf on the top four floors of MainPlace. The 46-story, one million-square-foot office building is under construction at 811 Main. KPMG, which is currently located in Bank of America Center, will relocate to MainPlace upon building completion in 2011. Dan Bellow, John Burke and Ronnie Deyo of The Staubach Company represented KPMG in the transaction. Stewart Robinson and Chrissy Wilson represented Hines. The Hines firm has offices in 69 U.S. cities and 15 foreign countries.
June 11, 2008 - Hogan & Hartson LLP, a global law firm with 24 offices worldwide, has signed a 10 year lease to occupy the entire 43rd floor (17,519 sft) of Bank of America Center, located at 700 Louisiana St. in downtown Houston. The new space is double the size of the law firm’s previous location at Pennzoil Place. .Studley Executive Managing Director Rick Rome and Associate Director Nicole Miller of Studley’s Washington, DC office represented Hogan & Hartson in the transaction, along with Kevin Hodges of Studley’s Houston office. John Spafford of Houston-based PM Realty Group represented the building’s landlord in the transaction.

June 6, 2008 - Transwestern’s Houston office announced that it negotiated a 312,564 sf lease renewal and expansion at 1430 Enclave Parkway in Houston between the building owner, Piedmont Office Realty Trust, and the tenant, Shaw Group Incorporated.
Transwestern executive vice presidents, Eric Anderson and David Baker represented the landlord. Bill Bosack and Wendi Little of GFM Real Estate represented the tenant. The six story office building is located within the Enclave Office Park, which is south of the intersection of Eldridge Parkway and Interstate 10. The Enclave Office Park is located within Houston’s Energy Corridor
June 4, 2008 - Rob Johnson Interests is developing a 14-acre project in Deer Park, a communities on the east side of Houston. The development will be located at the intersection of Center Street and Pasadena Boulevard - the key intersection in the Deer Park community, Rob Johnson said. Johnson will develop a 12,000-sf retail project there. A 264-unit seniors housing complex, developed by Blazer Building, will be part of the development. ... In other news, HomeAway.com, an Austin-based firm specializing in vacation rentals, has acquired EscapeHomes.com. Please go to our Residential Topics page for more details.
June 3, 2008 - Houston-based John Daugherty Realtors, has set another new record in the company’s 41 year-history. The upscale residential real estate company recorded $137 million in sales in April 2008. “We participated in 31 transactions in the month of April that sold for $1,000,000 and above, while 50% of our transactions in April were $400,000 and below,” said John A. Daugherty, Jr., owner and president of John Daugherty, Realtors.
June 2, 2008 - A partnership of Stratus Properties and Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund is developing the W Hotel and Residences in Austin. The project will have 252 guest rooms. In addition, approximately 165 residential units, in one- to four-bedroom layouts, will be located on floors 18 to 37. HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) arranged a $165 million construction loan for the project through Corus Bank.
May 30, 2008 - Urban Partners and Gables Residential topped out WEST AVE, a retail and residential mixed-use project at the corner of Westheimer and Kirby in Houston’s urban core. The project is being developed by Dallas-based Urban Partners and Gables Residential. Residential leasing commenced at WEST AVE earlier this month, as a portion of its 390 luxury apartments, averaging 1,070 sf, will be available for occupancy this August, while two floors and 180,000 sf of retail are slated to debut in 2009. Approximately 45,000 sf is being allocated to food and beverage, including a small grocery/market concept. Confirmed tenants include Rome, an approximately 10,000-square-foot destination day spa and salon; Pie Bar, a gourmet pizzeria and lounge; The Social House, a gatropub; Swig martini bar; Cru, a restaurant and wine bar; and Wildfish restaurant.
May 27, 2008 - Solar panels will be installed on every home in the new Discovery at Spring Trails community north of Houston. The community’s developer, Land Tejas Companies, calls the project a "hybrid community” because each new home in the community will be powered by a combination of solar and conventionally generated electricity.
Located in north Houston, near the Hardy Toll Road and Rayford Road, Discovery at Spring Trails is one of the country’s first master-planned communities to incorporate GE's ecomagination Homebuilder Program across a diverse group of builders. Homes in Discovery are priced from the $170,000s to the $400,000s.
May 26, 2008 - Behringer Harvard, a Texas-based REIT, has contracted to buy the 31-story One City Centre in downtown Houston. The building, 1021 Main St., is being sold off by Broadway Partners. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has been marketing the office property, which has a total of 610,000 square feet. Since Broadway Partners bought the tower a little over a year ago the occupancy rate has increased from 89 percent to 95 percent.. Transwestern's David Baker and Eric Anderson handle leasing and marketing efforts on behalf of Broadway. The transaction will be valued at more than $100 million.
May 23, 2008 - Woodcreek Development Co., a firm founded by J. Troy Maxwell, will develop the Reserve a Park Ten office building in the Energy Corridor area of west Houston. It will be a six-story, 146,238 sf at the northeast corner of Park Ten Place and Broadfield Blvd. Greg Young of Live Oak Capital, Ltd. arranged a $25.4 million construction loan on behalf of Woodcreek Development Company through Houston’s Amegy Bank. The two-year loan represents 75 percent of total construction costs.
May 20, 2008 - Newland Communities has purchased 3,000 additional acres in Goodyear, Ariz. for $51.3 million or $17,000 per acre. Newland, a San Diego-based firm, is creating the Estrella community there.
May 19, 2008 - The FIve Post Oak Park building, which was recently purchased by a Shorenstein Properties fund, fetched a record price, according to an article by Jennifer Dawson of the Houston Business Journal. Dawson, quoting an unnamed real estate person, reported the building sold for $122 million or $215 psf. That was a record for Houston's Galleria area. Crescent was the seller of the building, a 28-story, 567,000-sf tower.
May 15, 2008 - The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale of 675 Bering Drive, a 135,680-sf office building plus a six-level, 386-space parking garage in Houston. HFF senior managing director Dan Miller and associate director Marty Hogan led the investment sales team exclusively on behalf of the seller, Goddard Investment Group. Griffin Partners 675 Bering L.P. purchased the property for an undisclosed amount free and clear of debt. The eight-story office building is 70 percent leased
May 14, 2008 - HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale of Ridglea Bank Building, an 181,601-sf office building in Fort Worth. The Dallas office of HFF exclusively represented the seller, a partnership between Dallas-based Cawley Partners and New York-based Greenstreet Real Estate Partners, in the transaction. HFF also arranged acquisition financing for the purchaser, GNL Properties, through GE Real Estate. The 12-story Ridglea Bank Building is currently 98% leased and has strong historical occupancy. Located at 6300 Ridglea Place in Fort Worth, the property is off Camp Bowie Boulevard adjacent to the Ridglea Country Club entrance and minutes from Interstate 30 and Loop 820.
May 9, 2008 - JAW Equity Management LLC completed the acquisition of five apartment communities comprising 1,265 units in Houston from the Whittaker Lauderdale Group. All five properties will be renovated over the next four months and four have been renamed. Westbrook Place (340 units) is now The Lodge. Waterstone (294 units) is now Waterfall Park. Greenridge Park (252 units) is now Live Oak Bend. Wayforest Glen (155 units) is now Courtyard Manor. Ashford Pointe (224 units) is keeping its name.
Todd Marix, Tre Banks, Todd Stewart and Craig LaFollette of CB Richard Ellis, Inc. represented the Whittaker Lauderdale Group and David Fantin of Lifestyles Realty represented JAW Equity Management LLC on this transaction.
JAW Equity Management LLC, created in 2004, is led by Emery Jakab.
May 5, 2008 A joint venture of Houston-based Mission Equities GP, LLC and Baltimore-based Alex Brown Realty, Incorporated, has purchasedf the St. Joseph Professional Building, a 138,586 sf medical office building in Houston. Alex Brown Realty Chesapeake Fund III, a value-added real estate investment fund sponsored by Alex Brown Realty, provided an equity commitment along with Mission’s equity to the venture. Equity capital and debt were arranged by Robert LaRue of Live Oak Capital. Whitney National Bank in Houston provided the acquisition and redevelopment loan for the project. Tim Gregory of Transwestern Houston represented the seller, ORIX, in the transaction. Transwestern’s Healthcare advisory team will continue to handle the leasing responsibilities for the new owners.
The St. Joseph Professional Building, located at 2000 Crawford, is an 18-story medical office building constructed in 1964.
May 2, 2008 - Hines REIT Properties has finalized its $272 million purchase of the 64-story Williams Tower, which was formerly known as Transco Tower. Included in the sale was an interest in some nearby land parcels, including the Waterwall Park. The seller, Transco Tower Limited, was represented by Cushman & Wakefield. The 1.5 million-sf tower was completed in 1982. Hines Chairman Mr. Gerald D. Hines commented, “Williams Tower has been an icon for more than half of our firm’s 50-year history. It is a part of our legacy and we will continue to be good stewards of it.”
April 30, 2008 - Luber Brothers bought a new 21,500 sf office warehouse at 15375 Vantage Parkway East. The Seller was Turnkey Building and Design. Andrew Sowell, Clay Peeples and Bo Pettit, all with Boyd Commercial handled the sale..
April 27, 2008 - The developers of West Ave, a mixed-used project under development at the southwest corner of Westheimer and Kirby, have signed several restaurants as tenants, according to Nancy Sarknoff's column in the Sunday Houston Chronicle. The tenants include Cru, a wine bar. The project, slated to have 390 apartment units and 180,000 sf of retail, is being developed by Urban Partners of Dallas and Gables Residential.
April 25, 2008 - Enbridge Energy Partners, LP, operators of the world’s longest crude oil and liquids pipeline system, has renewed their current lease of 219,738 sf and expanded their presence to 264,400 sf with the addition of two floors, at 1100 Louisiana in downtown Houston. Charles Gordon, Kyle Kelley and Lance McCarthy with CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant in the transaction.
April 21, 2008 - National Real Estate Investor, a magazine for professional real estate investors, has ranked CB Richard Ellis No. 1 out of the 25 largest U.S.-based commercial real estate brokerage firms. The ranking, featured in the publication’s April 2008 issue, is based on the aggregate value of sales and leasing transactions completed globally during 2007. CB Richard Ellis was responsible for more than $264.2 billion of global sales and leasing transactions in 2007...... In other news, Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors has launched a new division specializing in commercial transactions, said Mark Woodroof, partner of the Houston-based company. Ray Allison has been tapped to serve as director of the Commercial Real Estate Services division, which is located at the company's corporate headquarters at 10575 Katy Freeway.
April 20, 2008 - The Woodlands Development Co. has announced plans to start constructing 4 Waterway Square, a nine-story, 216,000-sf Class-A office building in The Waterway Square District of The Woodlands Town Center, according to Dan Leverett, vice president of commercial for TWDC. The building will be located on The Woodlands Waterway, at the intersection of Waterway Square Place and Woodloch Forest Drive. The building was designed by Elkus-Manfredi of Boston, MA and will be constructed by Harvey Builders of Houston. Gensler Houston is the architect of record. The Woodlands Development Co. is a limited partnership of Morgan Stanley and General Growth Properties.
April 19, 2008 - Interfin Cos., a firm led by Giorgio Borlenghi, is moving ahead with development of the northeast corner of Weslayan and West Alabama, according to a Houston Business Journal story by Jennifer Dawson. Interfin has developed a number of high-rise office and residential towers in Houston. Borlenghi is also beginning work on a 80-acre business park at the northwest corner of the Katy Freeway and Mason Road, Dawson reported.
April 14, 2008Scenic Houston recently honored Westway Park with its Scenic Star award in recognition of the mixed-used property’s positive contribution to Houston’s aesthetic environment. A business park located at the intersection of the Sam Houston Tollway and Clay Road, Westway Park was developed by Wolff Cos..
April 10, 2008 - The Commercial Expo, the most popular annual event in Houston's commercial realty scene, drew a large crowd last night to the InterContinental Hotel. The event is put on by the Houston Association of Realtors and SIOR. I saw a lot of familar faces in the crowd including, Ginger Wheless of RED News, Raymond Betz, Frank Fitzgerald, Jim Peters, Holden Rushing, Bob Hale, Michael Levitin, Lori Carper, Rita Klein, Dan Seal, Mike Chance, Larry Marks, Jeff Peden, Stan Creech, David Lapin, Karl Willmann, Dave Cook, Kent Dussair, Billy Gold, Bernard Branca, and Sam Scott, who runs CommercialGateway.com for HAR and many more.
April 9, 2008 - A spec office project in Westway Park, on Beltway 8 near Clay Road, has secured a major tenant -- a 125,000-sf lease by GE Oil & Gas. The office project was developed by Dienna Nelson Augustine Co. Leasing was handled by Transwestern and Colliers International. For more information: go to our Houston Deals page.
April 8, 2008 - Major hotel activity is unfolding in downtown Houston. The 1,200-room Hilton Americas Houston is now up for sale. The deal clears to way for a second convention hotel to be built in downtown. CB Richard Ellis has been retained by the city's Houston Convention Center Hotel Corp. to sell the hotel to the private sector. The Hilton reported strong revenues and good occupancy in 2007, said Mary Carolan of CBRE. The Hilton Americas, which opened in 2003, is located adjacent to the Geo. R. Brown Convention Center. City officials have been discussing building another convention hotel that would allow the city to attract mammoth-sized conventions. Ric Campo, head of the Houston-based apartment REIT Camden Property Trust, is the chairman of the city's hotel development corporation. In addition, a privately-owned 22-story Embassy Suites is under construction near the convention center.
April 7, 2008 - Marmaxx Operating Corp. has leased 50,000 sf of retail space at the Atascocita Commons Shopping Center located on FM 1960 just west of Lake Houston Parkway in the Humble/Kingwood submarket. The new TJMaxx/Homegoods store will be yet another heavyweight retailer addition to the shopping center that includes other major tenants, such as a SuperTarget, Kohl’s, Office Depot and Petco. The new retail center is owned and developed by the Trammell Crow Company and is expected for completion in the Fall of 2008. Matt Keener with CB Richard Ellis represented TCC and Culver Stedman with Page Partners represented the tenant.
April 6, 2008 - Transwestern has started construction on a new 700,000 sf multi-phase office project, Eldridge Oaks. Bordered by Terry Hershey Park, Eldridge Oaks is located just one mile south of Interstate 10 at the intersection of Eldridge Parkway and Enclave Parkway in west Houston. Eldridge Oaks will be a Class-A office project that will be built in two phases on a wooded 21-acre site. The first phase will be comprised of a 350,000 sf office tower and the additional land will be held for a similar second building. The first building will be complete in September of 2009.
April 3, 2008 - AMEC Paragon has signed a significant office space lease in northwest Houston. The engineering firm will be new office building developed by Duke Realty near the Sam Houston Parkway. The project, located in an area that is somewhat undersupplied by office development, is expected to be attractive to the engineering workforce in Northwest Houston, said Mark O'Donnell, executive vice president of the Studley real estate firm. For more details, please go to Leasing Briefs.
April 1, 2008 - The Houston-Galveston Area Council, a region-wide association of 133 local governments in the 13-county Gulf Coast Planning region of Texas, has expanded and renewed their lease of 62,000 sf of office space at 3555 Timmons in the Greenway Plaza submarket of Houston, Texas. Steve Rocher and Kristen Rabel with CB Richard Ellis represented the building’s owner, Timmons Lane, Inc., in the transaction.
March 31, 2008 - A new 400-acre neighborhood in The Woodlands’ Village of Sterling Ridge is now in development, with homebuilders purchasing lots in preparation for the kick-off of new home sales later this year, according to Buck Driggers, vice president of residential sales and development for The Woodlands Development Co. A total of 1,000 lots will be available to homebuilders. A variety of lot sizes, homes and price ranges will be offered, ranging from the $190’s to the mid-$400’s. Homebuilders will include Chesmar Homes, Gracepoint Homes, Highland Homes, Lennar, Plantation, Village Builders, David Weekley Homes and Wilshire Homes. The Woodlands Development Co. is a limited partnership of Morgan Stanley and General Growth Properties
March 28, 2008 - H-E-B Grocery Co. has purchased the Cypress Tower office building in San Antonio. The seller was KBS Realty Advisors. The 156,657-sf Cypress Tower is located at 1222 N. Main Avenue, north of downtown. Acquired by KBS in 1998, Cypress Tower is 54 percent leased. H-E-B, a San Antonio-based grocery retailer operating in Texas and Mexico, is the major tenant. Bill Rogalla, Senior Vice President/Acquisition Officer, KBS Realty Advisors, represented his firm, in the transaction. Chuck King of Travis Commercial, San Antonio, represented H-E-B.
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March 27, 2008 Hines REIT has contracted to buy the Transco/Williams Tower near the Galleria for $272 million. The 65-story building has 1.5 million sf of space and it is 91 percent leased. The organization led by Gerald Hines built the tower in 1982 and it was called Transco Tower, until Williams Cos. bought out the Transco firm. The pipeline company leases 250,000 sf in the building, according to a document filed with the SEC. Included in the deal is a 48 percent interest in the Waterwall and the 2.8 acres that lies near the Waterwall. For years, Hines touted Transco Tower as the tallest building not in a downtown. Hines REIT is buying the building from Fosterlane Holdings, which represents Kuwaiti investors. The building has been marketed by Ken Page and David Chuoke of Cushman & Wakefield. The sale will close May 1.
March 24, 2008 - Grubb & Ellis announced that it represented League City MarketPlace, L.P. in the sale of the newly built, 51,744-sf League City Marketplace. The center was purchased by Fit Development, a California Limited Partnership, represented by Gregg Thompson of Placer Partners. The center is located at the northeast quadrant of I-45 and FM 646, in the rapidly growing League City area. Population is projected to increase over 13% in the next five years in the one-mile radius. George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer of Grubb & Ellis represented the Seller. The Buyer was sourced by Ben Kogut of the Austin office of Grubb & Ellis.
March 23, 2008 - Fort Bend Independent School District trustees voted to purchase 62 acres for a new high school adjacent to Sienna Plantation. The board approved $3.4 million to purchase two tracts, the 62-acre site just east of Sienna Parkway on a site to be developed by Dallas-based Hillwood Residential, and an adjacent tract of 15 acres for a future elementary school.
March 20, 2008 - Fugro Properties has purchased a 31,137 sf office/industrial building at 6040 Rookin Street situated in the Hwy 59/Hwy 90 Alt industrial submarket. Lee Jeane with CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer in the transaction while Kyle Roberts with NAI Utah Commercial Real Estate represented the building’s seller, Price Toole Company, LLC
March 17, 2008 - The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale of 12605 East Freeway, an 85,506-sf, six-story office building near the Port of Houston. The HFF investment sales team was led Dan Miller and Marty Hogan who marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Bayview USA Holdings. Rockwell Management Corporation purchased 12605 East Freeway free and clear of existing debt for an undisclosed amount. HFF associate director Matthew Kafka worked on behalf of the borrower, Rockwell Management Corporation to secure acquisition financing.
March 16, 2008 - Randall Davis Company has kicked off the Titan residential tower on Post Oak Boulevard in the Galleria area. Davis anticipates a 2010 completion of Titan, a sleek, 26-story tower on a prime 25,000-sf site just north of San Felipe. Prices at the Titan will range from the $400,000s to over $3 million. Randall Davis Company will be breaking ground on Sonoma, a mixed-use, mid-rise condo project in Houston’s Rice University/Village area in May 2008. David is currentl under construction on Diamond Beach, a mid-rise, beachfront condo project in Galveston and will complete Sapphire, a South Padre Island oceanfront high-rise condo in summer 2008.
March 11, 2008 - The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced that it closed the sale of James Plaza, a 42,700-sf office building in Houston. HFF senior managing director Dan Miller and associate director Marty Hogan led the investment sales team on behalf of the seller, BGK Group. 3934 FM 1960, L.P., affiliated with Boxer Property of Houston.
James Plaza is located at 3934 West FM 1960 approximately 18 miles northwest of downtown Houston. The property is 50 percent leased to tenants including Prosperity Bank and Realm Properties
March 10, 2008 - Icon Partners, L.L.C. announced plans to develop Midtown, a new 3.7 million sf mixed-use development, to be located in Dallas at the intersection of I-635/LBJ Freeway and the Dallas North Tollway. The 20-acre first phase of Icon’s Midtown is being built on the east side of the Dallas Galleria. The $1 billion project will include office, retail, hotel and residential buildings. Icon Partners is a Dallas-based firm founded by Daniel Robinowitz and Paris Rutherford.
March 4, 2008 - Transwestern Houston, Buchanan Street Partners, and Fox Properties have liquidated Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center on behalf of Shadow Creek Retail, LP. The buyer is a joint venture between an AmREIT affiliated fund and JP Morgan Strategic Property Fund. The shopping center, located at FM 518 and Highway 288 in Pearland, is a 616,372-sf grocery anchored project, is approximately 80 percent leased. Rudy Hubbard and Leah Gallagher of Transwestern and Amanda Fox and Will Deane of Fox Properties represented the Seller.. CBRE Melody arranged the financing through MetLife. Anchor tenants include H-E-B Plus!, Academy Sports & Outdoors, Ashley Furniture, FedEx Kinkos, and Hobby Lobby. Pad sites under lease include Taco Cabana, la Madeleine, Wachovia Bank and Compass Bank.
March 2, 2008 - A 50-acre polo club is under construction at the new Aliana community, a 2,000 acre project on the east side of Grand Parkway and FM 1464 in Fort Bend County, in Richmond. Partners in the polo club group, Aliana Polo, LLC, include John Goodman, investor and founder of International Polo Club-Palm Beach; Tim Kelly, President and CEO, Lockton Co. LLC; Tommy Dorsey, President, Dorsey Custom Homes; Jay Comeaux, Executive Director, Stanford Group Co.; Jeff Anon, CEO, Berryhill Restaurants; Steven Armour, investor, horse breeder, and rancher; Andy Toups, Managing Director, Altazano Management, LLC; and Greg Brown, Publisher, Cowboys and Indians Magazine. Paul Cheng is president of Aliana Development Company.
Feb. 29, 2008 - GE Real Estate bought the Oak Park Office Center II, a 206,362-sf office building in west Houston. HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) managing directors Robert Williamson and Jeff Hollinden and associate director Barbara Guffey led the investment sales team exclusively on behalf of the seller, Realty Associates Oak Park II, L.P., a development venture between TA Associates Realty and Myers, Crow & Saviers, Ltd. Completed in 2006, Oak Park Office Center II is fully leased to The Men’s Warehouse for its corporate headquarters. The building sits on 18 acres at 6380 Rogerdale Road in the Oak Park Business Park close to the Westpark Tollway and Sam Houston Parkway in Houston. TA Associates Realty is based in Boston. Myers, Crow & Saviers, Ltd is a real estate development and investment firm focusing on the development of Texas office buildings.
Feb. 28, 2008 - Houston's Museum of Fine Art has purchased 14.5 acres at Highway 288 and Reed Road in Transwestern's new business park - Park 288. The Museum will construct a 150,000-sf warehouse. “We chose the park because of the close proximity to the Museum and the rapidly growing amenities in the immediate area”, said Gwen Goffe, Director of Finance for the Museum of Fine Arts.
Feb. 27, 2008 BHP Billiton Petroleum has signed a significant lease in Houston's Galleria area office market. BHP Billiton Petroleum has expanded and renewed its lease at Four Oaks Place totaling 444,145 sf through 2021. Owned by TIAA-CREF and leased and managed by Transwestern, Four Oaks Place is a four-building Class A office complex totaling 1.8 million square feet located at the northern end of Post Oak Boulevard. BHP Billiton Petroleum expanded its space by 103,000 sf and will now have offices in both the BHP Tower (1360 Post Oak Blvd) and Central Tower (1330 Post Oak Blvd.) Eric Anderson and David Baker of Transwestern represented the owner, TIAA-CREF. BHP Billiton Petroleum was represented by Lou Cushman and Kevin Ray with Cushman and Wakefield.
Feb. 22, 2008 - Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, will headline an interesting conference coming up in San Antonio. Entrepreneurs, venture capital people and business leaders will attend the Envision08 confab, which is sponsored by the Texas A&M University Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship. Covey always has some great ideas and the event, April 23-25, will be an excellent place to network. For more details: www.Envision08.com or go to our Texas Roundup page.
Feb. 21, 2008 - Stream Realty Partners is developing Stream Office Center, a 180,000 sf office building located in The Woodlands. The project will be completed first quarter 2009. The building will be located at the southwest corner of Sawdust and Sawmill Road. The total project is planned in three phases totaling 540,000 sf. On behalf of Stream Realty, Paul Coonrod and Brad Fricks will be marketing the project, and Brice Hill will be overseeing the development.
Feb. 19, 2008 - Hines will develop a major office tower and the new Austin Museum of Art in downtown Austin. The new museum facility will feature a three-story 40,000-sf space at Fourth and Guadalupe Streets. Nearby will be the new 30-story, 425,000-sf Museum Tower, an office project designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects of New Haven, Conn., and developed by Hines. Bart Matheney of Aquila Commercial will be the exclusive leasing agent for Museum Tower. For more information see Texas Roundup
Feb. 18, 2008 - Camden Property Trust will develop a 253-unit apartment complex in Midtown, according to Nancy Sarnoff's column in the Houston Chronicle. A shopping center at the corner of Travis and Dennis will be torn down to make way for Camden's third-quarter construction.
Feb. 17, 2008 - Stonemark Builders, LLC will build the La Costa Garden Homes in East Shore, the “Garden District” of The Woodlands Town Center, according to Buck Driggers, vice president of residential sales and development for The Woodlands Development Co. Inspired by Mission style architecture, the homes at LaCosta are designed to form a lakeside village within walking distance of the 200-acre Lake Woodlands. La Costa includes 42 condominiums in 14 two-story buildings.
Feb. 16, 2008 - International commercial real estate services firm, Studley, announced the promotion of Steven Biegel, Derrell Curry, Mark O’Donnell and Mark Russell to Executive Vice President, of Studley’s Houston office. Biegel, Curry, O’Donnell and Russell opened the Studley office in October of 2003
Feb. 15, 2008 - The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale of two tracts of undeveloped land totaling 32 acres in Missouri City, Texas. HFF real estate analyst Adam Jackson and senior managing director Dan Miller represented the seller, BC Business Park LP. Thackeray Partners, a Dallas-based investor, purchased the sites. This sale is part of the 330-acre Beltway Crossing Business Park located at the northwest corner of Beltway 8 and Highway 90. HFF is marketing the remaining 170 acres. The two 16-acre tracts of land are zoned for bulk, distribution warehouse/flex office use and are located on South Gessner Drive off Highway 90 in Missouri City.
Feb. 9, 2008 - Where is the hottest submarket in Houston’s commercial real estate scene? New office towers are coming to downtown as rising rental rates make new development an attractive proposition. But there’s also good news about The Woodlands, Uptown and the Energy Corridor. Please go to our Houston Deals page for an interesting take on the hottest realty markets in the city.
Feb. 8, 2008 - RDEJ, LLC has purchased 4.72 acres of land located at the northwest corner of South Shore Boulevard and SH 96 in League City, Texas. Scott Davis, Larry McWherter and Laura Smith with CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer in the transaction while South Shore Harbour Development, LTD represented themselves. CB Richard Ellis has been retained by the buyer to market the property.
Feb. 5, 2008 - Means Knaus Partners L.P. has sold the Ten Thousand North Central Expressway building in Dallas. This fifteen-story, Class AA, multi-tenant office building is located on the highest elevation point along North Central Expressway. The 282,950 sf structure is home to a variety of tenants, which include real estate, finance, insurance, consulting and financial services. The Dallas office of Jones Lang LaSalle Americas represented the sellers.
Feb. 4, 2008 - Three new office towers will be under construction in downtown Houston within the next few weeks. Developers are being prompted to move as rents have skyrocketed and vacant space is hard to find, according to the CB Richard Ellis realty firm. The three new buildings proposed in the near-term pipeline are Hines’ Main Place, a 1 million-sf tower on Main Street; Trammell Crow Co,’s 871,000-sf Discovery Tower near the Geo. R. Brown Convention Center and the new Discovery Green park; and Six Houston Center, a 584,000-sf extension of the Houston Center complex on the east side of downtown. For more information please go to Houston Deals.
Feb. 1, 2008 - The General Land Office (GLO) of the State of Texas has sold 152 acres on behalf of the Permanent School Fund to LRI Partners Ltd. The tract, located 22-miles southwest of Houston near Sugar Land, Texas, is situated in Fort Bend County between Grand Parkway (SH 99) and FM 1464. The subject property has 3,850 feet of frontage along Grand Parkway. Donna Kolius, Pierce Owens, Cody Persyn and Jeremy Richmond of CB Richard Ellis’ Portfolio Services along with Hudson and Marshall of Texas represented the GLO in the sale of the property. The buyer was represented by David Garrett.
Jan. 30, 2008 - Zig's deli has opened in the Houston Center food court in downtown Houston at 1200 McKinney St. The new Zig's deli is the newest concept by. Ziggy Gruber of Kenny & Ziggy's Deli, a popular place on Post Oak Boulevard. .... ..... LIT Finance, LP has leased 93,729 sf of industrial space to CenTex Periodicals, Inc. at 8708 West Little York in north Houston. Joseph Smith and Faron Wiley of CB Richard Ellis represented LIT Finance in the transaction while Brian Corriston with the Caldwell Companies represented the tenant.
Jan. 29, 2008 - WorleyParsons, a large provider of professional services to the energy industry, will relocate to 246,000-sf of space it has leased in 6330 West Loop South, a 14-story building located just off of the 610 Loop in Bellaire. The office building was recently acquired by CB Richard Ellis Investors. WorleyParsons is currently located in the Five Greenway building. Bonnie Kelley, with CBRE led the leasing effort on behalf of the landlord while Lou Cushman with Cushman & Wakefield represented WorleyParsons.
Jan. 27, 2008 - Louie Welch, former mayor of Houston, has died after suffering from lung cancer. He was 89. Welch was elected mayor in 1963 and he served five terms. Welch was regarded as one of the finest mayors to ever lead Houston. He later led the Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Houston Partnership.
Jan. 26, 2008 - Houston's downtown office market led the nation in rent gains in 2007, according to a survey of the Class A office markets by Colliers International. Houston, boosted by solid job growth and health in the energy industry, registered a 52 percent gain in downtown Class A rental rates in 2007, as rents rose from $23.90 to $36.42 psf. Boston, with a 40.5 percent gain in office rental rates, ranked second behind Houston. Three new office towers are being developed in downtown Houston to meet the demand. Year-end Class A vacancy was 7.2 percent, down from 16.4 percent in 2006, Colliers said. ...Editors Note: Please Explore This Web Site. Matthew Deal of Lewis Realty Advisors received his CRE designation. Look for news like this about people and promotions on our People Blog page. CLICK HERE to go to our People Blog.
Jan. 25, 2008 - DALLAS - Affiliates of Provident Realty Advisors, Inc., recently acquired and rezoned 25acres with 2,500 linear feet of frontage on the north side of LBJ Freeway. The site currently holds six office buildings totaling almost 400,000 square feet and is bordered by Maybrook Street on the north. Provident Realty will redevelop the site into a mixed-use commercial development. Please go to Texas Roundup for more details.
Jan. 23, 2008 - The Chase Merritt company of Newport Beach, California has purchased the Four Corners development on Westheimer, just west of the Galleria. The 424,000-sf project includes retail space and office space, including the TeleCheck Plaza office building. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler handled the sale with HFF senior managing directors Dan Miller and Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Martin Hogan heading the investment sales team on behalf of the seller, Cannon Commercial, Inc. led by Kam Mateen.
Jan. 22, 2008 - The City of Houston is considering developing a second convention hotel in downtown Houston, according to a story by Nancy Sarnoff in the Houston Chronicle. The 1,000-room property would be built next to the George R. Brown Convention center on a parcel bounded by Rusk, Crawford, Walker and Avenida de las Americas, Sarnoff reported. Apartment developer Ric Campo of Camden Property Trust serves as chairman of the city's Houston Convention Center Hotel Corp. The new hotel would put Houston in a higher bracket of cities that can attract major conventions. EDITORS NOTE: The citizens of Harris County have not been well-served by bifurcated convention center developments. Millions of tax dollars have been spent on the Reliant faciities near the Astrodome and millions more on the George R. Brown facilities in downtown. The city and county governments should have worked together to build a single convention complex that is large enough to handle the larger conventions.
Jan. 18, 2008 - RMC National Interests purchased the 302-room Marriott Houston West Loop in the Galleria area. HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale of and financing for the 13-story Marriott. The HFF investment sales team was led by managing director Patrick Poggi, senior managing director Dan Carlo and associate director Kim Flores and managing directors Jeff Hollinden and Robert Williamson as well as associate director Barbara Guffey. The team marketed the property on behalf of the seller, an affiliate of The Blackstone Group L.P. For financing, HFF managing director Wally Reid led the debt placement team for the borrower and arranged a 80% leveraged adjustable-rate loan with First National Bank Southwest. Besides partially funding the acquisition of the hotel, proceeds from the loan will be used to capitalize the significant improvements.
Jan. 16, 2008 - The ongoing downturn in the housing market will continue to be a boon for the apartment market in 2008 as more households are forced or choose to rent, Grubb & Ellis said. Houston's thriving economy spurred by strong job creation, demand for stable energy supply, and population growth from immigrants, students and families seeking an affordable cost of living makes Houston one of the top apartment markets worth watching in 2008. Of the top 10 apartment markets in Grubb & Ellis’ Investment Opportunity Monitor, six are in California and three are on the East Coast. These markets offer barriers to entry, solid economic prospects and high home prices that, although they are slipping in most areas, will remain higher than inland markets. Ranked in order, the top five markets are Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Orange County, Calif., San Diego and Oakland/East Bay, Calif. Dallas/Fort Worth was followed by Northern and Central New Jersey, San Jose, Calif., New York and San Francisco.
Jan. 15, 2008 - David Crawford, head of Yancey-Hausman Land Division, is representing Parke Patterson Land Development, Inc. in the purchase of 400 acres on Lake Houston and West Lake Houston Parkway for a single family and neighborhood commercial development project. “The West Lake Houston submarket area has been a hot area for several years. It is the last sizable tract of land available for development on the west side of Lake Houston,” said Parke Patterson.This 400-acre site has been held in a partnership managed by the seller, the McAlister Company for years. Parke Patterson and 35-year industry veteran Jim Box will be developing the project for sale to homebuilders and a selected retail developer. Two homebuilders have committed to the project – Kimball-Hill Homes and Imperial Homes. The project will include 70’ – 80’ wide lots, estate lots and patio home lots. Trees and water amenities will be a predominant factor in the design and development of the project as the site has approximately 2000 feet of shoreline along Lake Houston
Jan. 10, 2008 - Dow Chemical Co. has leased 280,000 sf in a new building under construction in the Energy Corridor, according to CBRE. For more details please go to our Leasing Briefs page. .................. Two hotels will be developed in Interwood, 440-acre master-planned business park located at the intersection of Beltway 8 and John F. Kennedy Boulevard. The business park is being developed by Wolff Cos. In addition, Friendswood Development purchased 12 acres in Interwood and BRG Development bought four acres in Interwood where it will construct a office/service center project. For more details go to Houston Deals.
Jan. 9, 2008 - A Santa Fe, N.M. group has purchased an office building in Houston's Energy Corridor area. The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) handled the sale Kirkwood Atrium II, an 11-story office building in west Houston. HFF senior managing director Dan Miller, managing director Robert Williamson and associate director Martin Hogan led the investment sales team exclusively on behalf of the seller, KBS Realty Advisors. BGK Group of New Mexico purchased Kirkwood Atrium II for an undisclosed price. The building is located along Interstate 10 at 11767 Katy Freeway. The 224,630-sf property is 87.8% occupied and is connected to a seven-story, 707-space parking garage.
Jan. 8, 2008 - Rich Oak Properties, LLC has sold 9.4 acres of retail land located at the northwest corner of Richmond Avenue and Post Oak Boulevard in Houston’s Galleria area to Lasco Ventures, LLC. Simmi Jaggi and Elizabeth Clampitt of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller in the transaction. The ste has also been eyed by condo developers.
Jan. 6, 2008 - Land Tejas Cos. and General Electric have announced plans for a community with homes partially powered by solar energy. The 1,150-acre community, called Discovery at Spring Trails, will have homes ranging from the $170’s to the high $300’s. “Land Tejas is committed to developing environmentally responsible communities that are more energy efficient, less emissive, and more self-sufficient," said Land Tejas co-founder Al Brende. "The sustainability program at Discovery at Spring Trails will allow us to manage the environmental impact of two major components of master planning – the community land-use plan with regards to its infrastructure, energy and water use management, and common area design; and the coordination of all of its builders and development partners to provide programs for energy and water use reduction, solar energy production, clean indoor air and recycling.”
Jan. 4, 2008 - Officials of The Situs Companies announced the Houston-based global real estate services firm has released Situs COMPASS – a secure, online platform that centralizes proprietary commercial real estate property data as well as comprehensive market information and reports.
The e-library database application, which features a search engine and interactive digital mapping, allows subscribing companies to reduce the cost, time and effort to maintain and access relevant property and market information. Situs COMPASS catalogues global news and market reports along with proprietary information such as appraisals; extracted sales and expense comparables; site inspections; lease abstracts; rent rolls; cash flow models, and; subscription research and publications.
Jan. 3, 2008 - The Phoenix office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced that a subsidiary of Hines U.S. Core Office Fund, L.P. (Core Fund) has acquired Renaissance Square, a two-building office complex totaling 965,508 sf in Phoenix, from a joint venture between The Pauls Corporation and GE Asset Management. The Core Fund is an investment vehicle organized to acquire a geographically diverse portfolio of core office buildings in the U.S. Eastdil Secured represented the seller and Hines represented the Core Fund in the transaction. The property is located in the heart of Phoenix’s CBD on a full city block bounded by Adams, Central and Washington streets and 1st Avenue. One and Two Renaissance Square were designed by the architecture firm Emery, Roth & Sons, Inc., and were completed in 1987 and 1989 respectively.
Jan. 2, 2008 - Finger Companies has announced that it is expanding the number of penthouse units in its One Park Place, which is being developed in downtown Houston. The 36th floor will be configured for six penthouses, in addition to the four on the 37th floor. The 346-unit project is downtown Houston’s first high-rise rental apartment tower to be constructed in over 40 years. Construction of the tower is proceeding on schedule with one structural floor completed each week. Models will be ready for showing by fall of 2008. It is the only residential building adjacent to Discovery Green, Houston’s new downtown park set to open in March 2008. For more information, please go to Multi-Family Magazine.

2007
Dec. 27, 2007 - A new office condominium project in Chinatown has been fully sold. Moody Rambin Interests has been retained to manage Houston’s first newly built, Class A office condominium building, American First Tower, 9999 Bellaire Boulevard. Jo Wyatt and Wayne Reyes of Moody Rambin will oversee property management of the 12-story, 211,587-sf building. American First Tower was completed in 2007. It is 100 percent sold as office condominiums. American First National Bank is the property’s developer and anchor tenant and occupies four floors.
Dec. 26, 2007 - A partnership led by David Wu and Marsha Kao has announced plans to develop three high-rise condo towers in the Chinatown area of west Houston, according to an article by Purva Patel in the Houston Chronicle. The project, called Park 8, will be located between Bellaire Boulevard and Beechnut on the west side of Beltway 8.
Dec. 25, 2007 - Merry Christmas
Dec. 24, 2007 - Hines, in partnership with RREEF’s Real Estate Opportunity Fund (REOF), has acquired Hawthorne Plaza in San Francisco’s South Financial District. The two-building office complex, located on Hawthorne Street, was purchased from TMG Partners and Farallon Capitol Management. Eastdil Secured represented the sellers. Hawthorne Plaza is comprised of a 20-story office building and a five-story office building containing a total of 441,428 sf.
Dec. 20, 2007 - The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has handled the sale of two buildings in Houston's Galleria area - 1001 and 2425 West Loop South.The HFF investment sales team was led by senior managing director Dan Miller and associate director Marty Hogan who marketed the properties exclusively on behalf of the seller, Fuller West Loop, LLC. Steve Darnall, a Principal of Fuller Realty Advisors handled the disposition on behalf of the selling entity, Fuller West Loop, LLC. Companies affiliated with The Ellman Companies of Phoenix purchased 1001 and 2425 West Loop South for an undisclosed price free and clear of existing debt. The 1001 West Loop South, a 221,913-sf building, is 89% leased to tenants including Xerox and AT&T. The 2425 West Loop South, which is adjacent to Hotel Derek, contains 281,590 sf and is currently 75.4% leased to BlueCross BlueShield among other tenants. Both properties are situated in the Galleria/Uptown area of Houston on the east side of Loop 610.
Dec. 17, 2007 - Post Investment Group acquired Whispering Winds Apartments, a 286-unit multifamily community in the suburban Houston of Pearland. The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) announced today that it arranged financing and joint venture equity with a total capitalized value of approximately $17 million for the purchase and renovation of the project. Whispering Winds Apartments is situated on 17.4 acres at 2902 Whispering Winds Drive, adjacent to Highway 518. The 88 percent occupied property has one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging 900 square feet each.
Dec. 15, 2007- Hines U.S. Office Value Added Fund II, L.P. (HVAF II) has acquired 600 Clipper Drive from Broadreach Capital Partners. The three-story, 160,000-sf office building is located in Belmont, California, in the Redwood Shores office submarket, just minutes from the Bay Area’s San Francisco International Airport. The seller was represented by Edward Suharski of Grubb & Ellis Company. Hines represented itself in the transaction. Hines will manage the property, and Cornish & Carey will handle the leasing.
Dec. 8, 2007 - Winstead PC, one of the largest business law firms in the state of Texas, has leased 14,500 sf in the new 24 Waterway Avenue building in The Woodlands, according to the international commercial real estate services firm, Studley. Winstead will occupy the fifth floor of the new building, which is the focal point of The Woodlands Town Center, a premier mixed-use development in The Woodlands community. The 24 Waterway building will be completed in February. For more details go to Leasing Briefs.
Dec. 4, 2007 - Fuller Thompson Ten, Ltd. has purchased 403 acres at Thompson Road and I-10 in Baytown, Texas. Scott Davis, Larry McWherter and Laura Smith with CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer in the transaction. The seller, Burnet Bay, Ltd., represented themselves
Dec. 3, 2007 - Apartments are coming to the Grand Parkway in far west Houston. Grand Apartments Limited Partnership purchased 13-acres in the Grand Mission subdivision located just off of the Westpark Tollway and the Grand Parkway in southwest Houston. The buyer plans to develop a multi-housing community on the site which is situated on the northwest corner of Harlem Road and Mission Park, just off of FM 1093 and Grand Mission Boulevard. Simmi Jaggi and Elizabeth Clampitt of CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer in the transaction while Joe Rollins of Shelby Estus represented the seller.

2007

November Blog

Nov. 27, 2007 - Gaylord Entertainment of Nashville has agreed to buy the Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio for $252.5 million. The 691-acre resort includes 508 hotel rooms, 39,000 sf of meeting space and two golf courses. Gaylord has also purchased 90 acres of adjacent land. Gaylord plans a $250 million expansion that will bring the resort to 1,000 rooms and 160,000 sf of meeting space. San Antonio is one the nation’s most popular tourist destinations, with nearly 21 million people visiting the city each year.

Nov. 26, 2007 - Cameron Management has acquired a 24-story tower at 1001 McKinney in downtown Houston. Built in 1947 and hailed as the first post-war skyscraper of the southwest, 1001 McKinney is a 372,000-sf concrete and steel structure designed by noted Houston architect Alfred Finn and originally commissioned by renowned Houston lawyer and banker, James A. Elkins, Sr. Beginning in 1999, the building underwent a three-year, $19 million renovation that preserved the timeless architectural features while adding state-of-the-art systems and an adjacent 12-level parking garage. Dougal Cameron is CEO of Houston-based Cameron Management. Cameron also purchased two office buildings in San Antonio. For more information please go to Texas Roundup.

Nov. 21, 2007 - Hines REIT has acquired Chase Tower in Dallas from 2200 Ross, L.P. The 55-story, Class A office tower is located at 2200 Ross Avenue in the Arts District/Midtown area of Dallas. The seller was represented by Holliday Fenoglio Fowler in the transaction. Hines is the sponsor of Hines REIT, and is responsible for the management and leasing of its assets. The 1.3 million sf office tower was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and was completed in 1987. It is recognizable by its unique architecture, which includes a curved glass top and a seven-story keyhole in the center of the building near the top. Parking is provided on six floors beneath the building, as well as in an adjacent 14-story garage. The property is 92 percent leased to tenants including: JPMorgan Chase; Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP; Deloitte & Touche LLP; and Fulbright & Jaworski.

Nov. 20, 2007 - The Texas General Land Office (GLO) of the State of Texas has sold 134 acres on behalf of the Permanent School Fund to investor Jeffrey A. Read of Read King Commercial Real Estate. The Permanent School Fund was created specifically for the benefit of Texas’ public schools. The tract, located 22 miles southwest of downtown Houston in Sugar Land is situated in Fort Bend County along the south frontage of the Grand Parkway (SH 99) and Harlem Road. The site is located at the entrance into Aliana, a 2,044 acre master planned residential community featuring over 5,000 homes, office, retail and apartment sites. The buyer plans to develop a mixed use development and has tracts available for both sale and lease. Read King is a local retail development and brokerage company that has been active in the Houston Market since 1987. Donna Kolius, Pierce Owens, Cody Persyn and Jeremy Richmond of CB Richard Ellis’ Portfolio Services along with Hudson and Marshall of Texas represented the GLO in the sale of the property. The buyer was represented by Walter Salek of Read King.

Nov. 19, 2007 - A pair of Bellaire office buildings has been purchase by a joint venture of Chase Merritt, a Newport Beach, Calif.-based investment firm, and Pacific Coast Capital Partners. The mid-rise buildings, located in the 6500 block of West Loop South, contain a total of 313,873 sf and are called West Loop I and II. The seller, Lionstone Group, was represented in the transaction by Robert Williamson of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler. Financing for Chase Merritt was provided by GE Capital Corp. Transwestern's David Baker is exclusive leasing and management representative.

Nov. 18, 2007 - A new office project is under way in Northwest Houston -- the 168,000-sf Sam Houston Technology Park, 1717 North Sam Houston Parkway West. A project of LoneStar Alliance, a Houston real estate investment and development company, Sam Houston Technology Park is a two-building, office park on 18 acres, situated on North Sam Houston Parkway, between SH 249 and IH-45. Phase I of the park, an 84,125-sf, one-story office building, is currently under construction with completion scheduled for May 2008. Phase II is planned as an 84,000-sf, one-story office building. Mark Preston, Senior Vice-President of Moody Rambin Interests, will handle leasing for the property. Ambrose, McEnany and House, Architects, Houston, is the architect for Sam Houston Technology Park, Phase I. Rosenberger Construction, Sugar Land, is the general contractor.

Nov. 14, 2007 - LAS VEGAS - The nation's housing market should be pulling out of its slump in 2008, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors. Some real estate markets in the nation, including Texas, are still performing well. Yun told reporters at the annual convention of the NAR that the overall market is probably near the bottom right now and appears to be poised for a mild upswing next year. Existing-home sales are projected at 5.67 million this year, edging up to 5.69 million in 2008, in comparison with 6.48 million in 2006 which was the third highest year on record.

Nov. 9, 2007 - The new 2,800-acre Woodforest community north of Houston is taking shape. The project is being developed by Larry Johnson of Johnson Development Corp. Woodforest, which is in the preliminary stages of development, is located in Montgomery County, six miles west of Interstate 45, four miles north of The Woodlands and three miles south of FM 2854. It will be a large-scale master-planned community with a population that could approach 18,000. A ceremony was held today to mark the groundbreaking of the community's 4,300-sf information center.

Nov. 8, 2007 Houston's economy is outpacing most cities because of strong job growth and a strong energy industry, said Dr. Barton Smith, economist for the University of Houston. Smith said Houston will create about 55,000 new jobs in 2008, which will be enough to continue to propel the housing market forward. The Houston area will have about 42,000 new households in 2008, which is enough to create demand for 30,000 new homes, Smith said at his annual fall symposium at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Houston. Home prices are still rising in Houston, unlike many housing markets on the east and west coasts.

Nov. 6, 2007 - PinPoint Commercial is developing Hobby Business Center, a 350-acre business park, just southwest of Hobby Airport. It is the biggest business park to open inside the Beltway in a decade, PinPoint said. David Toone is principal in PinPoint. For more information please go to the Houston Deals page.

Nov. 1, 2007 - There are plenty of dark clouds on the economic horizon, but Texas is in pretty good shape and can weather the storm, according to a panel of economists and researchers speaking to the D/FW Real Estate Research Forum in Dallas Thursday. Job growth in Dallas is still very positive. Editor's note: I had the pleasure of visiting the D/FW RERF luncheon and the presentations there were very enlightening. I still feel positive about the Texas economy. It was great to see friends in the crowd including Jeanette Rice of Verde Realty, Robert Kramp of RR Donnelly, Ariel Guerrero of Grubb & Ellis, Charlotte Wheeler of HHF and Tamara Adamson of Arledge Partners.

October Blog

Oct. 29, 2007 - Cameron Management has purchased the Minute Maid Building located at 2000 St. James Place in the Galleria area from The Coca-Cola Company. The 2000 St. James Place building is a 12-story structure comprised of approximately 350,899 sf of rentable office space located in the Galleria/Uptown submarket. The building is located between Westheimer Road and San Felipe Street, just a few blocks west of Post Oak Boulevard. Built in 1978 on a 6.23 acre site, the building received over $11.8 million in capital improvements in 2006. Please go to the Houston Deals page for more details.

Oct. 26, 2007 - Mac Haik will develop Energy Tower II, a 17-story, 447,000-sf office tower at the corner of the Katy Freeway and Kirkwood, according to a report by Nancy Sarnoff of the Houston Chronicle. Technip USA has leased much of the building. ... In other news items, the 314-room Hotel Derek, located at the northeast corner of Westheimer and Loop 610, has been sold to a partnership involving Warburg Pincus and Crestline Hotels, according to an article by Amy Wolff Sorter of GlobeSt. The hotel sold for more than $60 million.

Oct. 23, 2007 - Two Extended-Stay hotels located in Houston have been sold. Lisa Hankamer, CB Richard Ellis’ Hotels Group, announced the sale of the Baymont Suites Hotel I-10 West Corridor and the Baymont Suites Hotel in Sugar Land. Highly visible within their respective marketplaces, the properties will immediately be converted by the new Owner, The Lightstone Group, to their upscale Extended Stay Deluxe hotel brand, a division of Extended Stay of America.

Oct. 21, 2007 - LA Fitness will anchor a 60,000-sf shopping center, the first major retail center in the Tuscan Lakes community in League City. The center, being developed by Steve Chandler of Cencor Realty Services, will be at the northwest corner of League City Parkway (Texas 96) and South Egret Bay Boulevard (FM 270). Houston-based Johnson Development, led by Larry Johnson, is the developer of Tuscan Lakes.

Oct. 19, 2007 - Ground has been broken for JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa in northeast Bexar County. Upon its opening in March 2010, the project will offer a 1,002-room JW Marriott and two 18-hole Tournament Players Club (TPC) golf courses. The hotel will be part of the 2,800-acre Cibolo Canyons, which is being developed by Forestar Real Estate Group, a Temple-Inland company. It is located near Bulverde Road, north of Loop 1604.

Oct. 16, 2007 Houston's office market has hit its lowest vacancy rate since 1999, according to Grubb & Ellis. During the third quarter, Houston’s overall vacancy fell by 30 basis points to 12.4 percent in third quarter of 2007, down 3.7 percentage points from the year ago quarter. Overall asking rents increased by $1.24 or 5.5 percent to $23.64 psf annually, which marks a new record high for citywide asking rents, according to a report by Ariel Guerrero of Grubb & Ellis. Office construction is at its highest point since 1998 with 4.3 million sf of spec space being built. Much of the construction is centered around the Energy Corridor, Westchase and Northwest Freeway. Some major towers have been announced for downtown also.

Oct. 15, 2007 - Keller Williams Southwest, part of a nationwide real estate company, has leased 10,835 sf in The Offices at Kensington, 1650 Highway 6, Sugar Land, for its area headquarters. Keller Williams Southwest is expanding by 2,700 square feet and relocating from 2415 Town Center Drive, Sugar Land. With the Keller Williams lease, The Offices at Kensington is 94 percent leased.
Kim Grizzle and John Spafford of PM Realty Group, Houston, represented the landlord, KBS Capital Advisors Houston Portfolio, in lease negotiations. Keller Williams Metropolitan represented Keller Williams Southwest. The Offices at Kensington is a two-building, 170,436-sf office complex.

Oct. 11, 2007 - About 50 Rise & Dine restaurants will be built in Texas over the next 10 years. The average Rise & DIne is 2,400 sf to 2,800 sf, according to the Columbus, Ohio-based franchisor. Joseph Spates, an experienced, multiple-unit restaurant operator and developer, signed on in late 2006 to lead development of 20 units in Dallas/Ft. Worth. The early success of Spates’ first location for Rise & Dine, which opened at 4135 Beltline Road in Addison in August, spurred his interest in securing statewide development rights. Spates has invited David Wehner and Michael Krell, co-founders of Krell Commercial Construction, to join him in developing 50 Texas units.

Oct. 10, 2007 - Lowe Enterprises and Buchanan Street Partners have acquired 3D/International Tower, a 406,415-square-foot, Class A office tower near the intersection of San Felipe and the West Loop in the Galleria area of Houston. The seller was Transwestern, which was represented by Rudy Hubbard and Leah Gallagher. The 21-story building, 1900 West Loop South, was developed in 1979.

For more information, please go to our Houston Deals page.

Oct. 9, 2007Houston-based Dienna Nelson Augustine Company announced the groundbreaking of two speculative office buildings totaling 436,300 sf in Westway Park, which is located in Northwest Houston off Beltway 8, near Clay Road. The two Class A office buildings – a 250,000 sf, ten-story office tower and a 186,300 sf three-story office building will be built to LEED specifications as green buildings. Transwestern is leasing the buildings. The land purchase is the last parcel in Westway Park, a business park developed by David Wolff of Wolff Cos.

Oct. 8, 2007 - Levcor, a Houston firm led by Larry Levine, has acquired the Northwest Mall for $19 million from Glimcher Realty Trust. The mall is located at Highway 290 and Loop 610.

Oct. 7, 2007 - CB Richard Ellis is has been awarded the assignment to bring to market one of downtown Houston’s most noted landmarks, 71-story Wells Fargo Plaza, located at 1000 Louisiana Street. ”Wells Fargo Plaza has been a prominent asset in MetLife’s real estate portfolio for almost 25 years,” said Robert Merck, Senior Managing Director, Real Estate Investments for MetLife. “Scarcity of available space in the CBD, strong office market fundamentals, and Houston’s stature as one of the most dynamic and fastest growing economies in the nation were some of the key factors in our decision to gauge market interest in this property.” Wells Fargo Plaza is 91 percent leased. The property is owned by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and its affiliate, Metropolitan Tower Realty Company, Inc. The Houston marketing team is headed by Richard Rudd and Kent Peters.

Oct. 4, 2007 - Hines and architect Cesar Pelli have been selected to create the Transbay transit center and office tower in San Francisco. The project will include 1.7 million sf of office space. It will be the tallest building west of Chicago. The project will include City Park, a 5.5-acre public park that will sit atop the new transit center. In addition to being an amenity for a growing neighborhood, City Park will double as a “green roof” for the transit facility. Crowning these elements, Hines' 1,200-foot office tower will become a landmark addition to the San Francisco skyline.

Oct. 2, 2007 - Mosaic on Hermann Park has announced the start of construction on the second tower of its $211 million residential high-rise property, located near Hermann Park and Highway 288. Recently, Phillips Development and Realty (PDR) gathered with Mosaic partners near the construction site to celebrate the groundbreaking of the second 30-story tower. The second tower has an expected completion date in Fall 2008. Bridging the two towers will be a one-acre amenity deck complete with a resort-style pool and 7,000 sf athletic center. In addition, the towers will feature approximately 800 residences; a six-story parking garage; and 22,500 sf of ground-level retail. Mosaic on Hermann Park is located at 5925 Almeda Road........ ...The office market in downtown Fort Worth is getting a big lift from the energy boom. Vacancy rates are low and rents are strong. Prescott Realty of Dallas, a firm led by Jud Pankey, has just purchased the Summit Office Park on the edge of downtown Fort Worth. “We are bullish on the Fort Worth economy and especially the Central Business District which enjoys 90 percent occupancy rates - among the strongest Metroplex submarkets,” said Pankey. For more details, please go to our Texas Roundup page.

Oct. 1, 2007 - More warehouse development is on the way in Houston. Colliers International handled the sale of 2.9 acres of land on Rankin Circle North for intended development of freestanding industrial warehouses. Todd Edmonds and Cody Christoph of Colliers represented the seller, Rankin Circle North LLC. The buyer, National Realty Group, was represented by Jim Nelson.

September Blog

Sept. 29, 2007 - HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has announced that it arranged a $93 million construction/mini-permanent loan for a three-property, 649-unit multifamily portfolio in Dallas and Houston, Texas. Working on behalf of Conservatory Senior Residences, HFF senior managing director Whit Johnson placed a three-year, adjustable-rate loan with Merrill Lynch Capital Real Estate Finance. Due for completion in late 2007, the Class A portfolio includes a senior housing community and two traditional multifamily properties. Amenities at the properties include clubhouses, fitness centers, 40-seat movie theatres, business centers, game rooms, pools and libraries. Included in the portfolio are: the 237-unit Conservatory at Alden Bridge at 6203 Alden Bridge Road in The Woodlands; the 190-unit Conservatory at Champion Forest at 8215 Cypresswood Drive in Spring; and the22-unit Conservatory at Plano at 6401 Ohio Drive in Plano.

Sept. 20, 2007 - Tighter credit for home mortgages will measurably dampen home sales in the short term and postpone an expected recovery for existing-home sales until 2008, according to the latest forecast by the National Association of Realtors. Existing-home sales are projected at 5.92 million this year and then rise to 6.27 million in 2008, compared with 6.48 million in 2006. New-home sales should total 801,000 in 2007 and 741,000 next year, below the 1.05 million in 2006. Housing starts, including multifamily units, are expected to total 1.37 million this year and 1.26 million in 2008, compared with 1.80 million in 2006.

Sept. 19, 2007 - General Growth Properties has acquired 1,234 acres of land in Northwest Houston from the state of Texas for $21.6 million, according to an article by Nancy Sarnoff in the Houston Chronicle. The land will be used for an expansion of the Bridgelands community, an 11,000-acre master planned community south of Highway 290 near Fry Road.

Sept. 18, 2007 - Most commercial real estate markets are enjoying relatively low vacancy rates and healthy rent growth from a fundamentally sound economy, according to the latest Commercial Real Estate Outlook report by the National Association of Realtors. NAR Senior Economist Lawrence Yun said, “Commercial real estate responds to economic growth and job creation, which have been fairly strong over the past two years and have created the need for additional commercial space,” he said. “These fundamentals will continue to support commercial real estate markets in 2008. There has not been much overbuilding in the commercial sectors, and investors are more diverse.” For more on this report go to: National Items.

Sept. 17, 2007 - Houston's Cypressbrook Company announced the following transaction: Cypressbrook 2920, LP purchased 23.59 acres of land located on FM 2920 near FM 2978. Todd Edmonds of Colliers International represented the buyer and Bob Nagy with R.H. Nagy and Company represented the seller.

Sept. 14, 2007 - KBS Real Estate Investment Trust purchased 2200 West Loop South, an 11-story, 196,217-sf office building in the Galleria/Uptown submarket of ouston. The seller was CCD Acquisitions. For more details go to Houston Deals.

Sept. 11, 2007 - Construction has begun on the first phase of Beltway Lakes, the newest “green” office project to be developed in Northwest Houston. The first phase of Beltway Lakes under construction includes a 165,000 sf, 6-story office building and a parking garage. Beltway Lakes Phase I recently become Pre-Certified at the Gold level under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. Beltway Lakes Phase I is part of a six building master planned office development owned and developed by Radler Enterprises, Inc. Yancey-Hausman Interests. is co-developing and marketing the first building of the Beltway Lakes development, which was designed by Morris Architects and is being built by D.E. Harvey Builders, Sterling Bank is providing the construction financing for the project. Beltway Lakes is located along SH 249 and Beltway 8.

Sept. 7 , 2007 A major construction project has begun near the Port of Houston. Vantage Companies has begun Phase II at Bayport North Distribution Center. This second phase totals 772,500 sf of warehouse/distribution space on 41.7 acres at the corner of Fairmont Parkway and Underwood Drive in LaPorte. The site is minutes from Barbours Cut and the new Bayport Terminal, with easy access to Beltway 8 and Highways 146 and 225. For more details please go to the Houston Deals page.

Sept. 4, 2007 - Crown Team Texas has sold a 2,795-acre land tract located on Bolivar Peninsula near High Island in Galveston County. The site, known as Cade Ranch, is considered one of the largest remaining beachfront properties on Texas’ Gulf Coast with over 13,000 feet of frontage on the Gulf of Mexico and the Intracoastal Waterway. Bruce Endendyk and John Endendyk of CB Richard Ellis’ Land Services Group represented the seller. The buyer, Provident Realty Advisors, represented themselves

Sept. 3, 2007 - Oilfield service companies are leasing space in close proximity to the Port of Houston. Christopher Klein, Senior Vice President of Colliers International in conjunction with Cidema Three Limited Partnership announced three crane-served leases. Made Well Company leased 45,686 sf at 1410 Harris St. Another firm, Welding & Machine Services leased 31,580 sf on Clinton Drive. Crescent Directional Drilling leased 16,400 sf at 7775 East Little York.

Sept. 1, 2007 - KBS Realty Advisors has purchased 3355 West Alabama, a 12-story, 234,231-sf office building in the Greenway Plaza submarket of Houston. The seller was School Employees’ Holding Corp., Dallas. Bill Rogalla, Senior Vice President/Acquisition Officer, represented his firm, KBS Realty Advisors, in the transaction. Danny Miller, Marty Hogan and Rusty Tamlyn of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, LP), Houston, represented the seller. Mike Hackett and John Spafford of PM Realty Group, Houston, will handle leasing at 3355 W. Alabama. PM Realty Group will also manage the property. With the acquisition of 3355 W. Alabama, the BS portfolio in the Houston area now totals 4.1 million sf in 27 office, retail and office/warehouse properties.

August Blog

August 31, 2007 - Approximately 1,226 acres in the Jacintoport project in east Houston has been purchased for an industrial park with deep water and rail access. A venture of Houston-based Pinto Realty Partners and ING Clarion purchased the property. "By providing deep water access that is connected to major rail and interstate highway infrastructure, companies with global demands are afforded an opportunity to receive and distribute products by truck, rail, ship or barge. The efficiency of a true multimodal location is essential for logistics-based companies in today’s global marketplace,” says Ernest D. Cockrell of Pinto Realty Partners. The Houston office of Colliers International represented both the purchaser and seller in this transaction with Michael J. Taetz, Principal/Director and Gary A. Mabray, Principal negotiating on behalf of the purchaser, and James H. Glanville, Principal/Director representing the seller. The site is at the intersecton of Beltway 8 and Interstate 10 East.

August 25, 2007 - IS AUSTIN HEADING FOR A CONDO GLUT? Seven projects (high-rise and mid-rise) are under construction in downtown Austin. Those projects have a total of 1,400 units and additional proposed projects could add another 3,200 units, according to an excellent article by Shonda Novak in the Austin American-Statesman. Mayor Will Wynn advocates expansion of residential in downtown. He wants Austin's downtown population to grow from 6,000 to 25,000 by 2015, Novak reported..... The ULI Houston Chapter played to a packed house at their event at the Hilton Americas Houston Hotel last week. More details on that meeting will be posted in an upcoming story on this blog soon.

August 24, 2007 - The Bank of America Center, a 1.2 million-sf office property in downtown Houston has been purchased by a joint venture of Dallas-based Novati Group and an affiliate of General Electric Pension Trust, advised by GE Asset Management. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler managing director Jeff Hollinden, executive managing director Scott Galloway and senior managing director Glenn Whitmore represented the seller, Hines U.S. Office Value Added Fund. An HFF debt placement team arranged the acquisition loan through Principal Global Investors for the acquisition of the property.The Bank of America Center is located at 700 Louisiana Street in Houston’s downtown Theatre District. Designed by architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee, the property features 56 stories of office space, a 12-story banking hall and underground parking for 295 vehicles, all in a neo-gothic Dutch renaissance style building. Also included in the sale was the adjacent 966-space Alley Theatre garage. Bank of America Center is currently 93 percent occupied.

August 23, 2007- Hines is embracing Main Street. The world's largest real estate developer has announced plans to build a million-sf tower at 811 Main Street in downtown Houston. Hines is also looking at another building proposal for the corner of Main and Texas, catty-cornered from the Rice Hotel. An article by Nancy Sarnoff of the Houston Chronicle gives an excellent overview of all of the proposed downtown office developments. Crescent Real Estate is moving ahead with Six Houston Center at the southeast corner of Rusk and San Jacinto, Sarnoff reported. The energy companies are filling Houston's office towers. Occupancy and rents are rising, making new buildings feasible. For more information on the new Hines tower please click here to go to our Houston Deals page.

August 22, 2007 - Remington Growth Partners, LP has purchased 13.7 acres of land located at Fallbrook and FM 1960 in northwest Houston. Scott Davis, Larry McWherter and Laura Smith of CB Richard Ellis’ Land Services Group represented the seller, Isleworth Adult Community, Inc. in the transaction. Josh Jacobs and Charlie Christ of Page Partners represented the buyer.

August 20, 2007 - MOSCOW NEEDS A GALLERIA - Hines, a Houston-based real estate firm, has announced plans to develop a mixed use project near Moscow in a joint venture with Belaya Dacha Agrofirma. The first phase will be a planned retail development as part of a 120-hectare integrated multi-use project to be jointly developed over the next several years. This multi-phased development will comprise a mixture of retail, office and residential uses, which when combined with diverse social and sporting facilities, will create a European-style suburban community unique to the Moscow Region. The first phase of this development will create 968,400 square feet of mixed retail space, and will attract a range of local and international retailers. Construction is scheduled to start early in 2008. Visit www.belaya-dacha.ru for more information.

August 16, 2007 - END OF AN ERA - The Estate of Harold Farb has retained CB Richard Ellis to market the last three Harold Farb Apartment Communities in Houston. Harold Farb, who died in October 2006 at the age of 83, gained fame as one of Houston’s most successful developers. At one time, Mr. Farb was noted by Forbes magazine as the largest private owner of multi-housing properties in America.

“Harold Farb chose outstanding locations and developed apartment complexes with amenities no one else had at the time,” said Craig LaFollette, executive vice president of CB Richard Ellis. “He built the best, the biggest and the most desired communities in Houston. The properties that we are bringing to market are strategically located, well built and have been well maintained.”

The exclusive property offering is comprised of three notable Houston communities: Broadway Square, a 2,469-unit community located at the entry to Hobby Airport; Nob Hill, a 1,326-unit community located 1.25 miles west of Loop 610 near Meyerland Plaza Mall; and West Point/Creekside, a 1,280-unit community fronting the north side of Westheimer, just 3 miles west of the Galleria.

Craig LaFollette, Todd Stewart, Todd Marix and Tre Banks of CB Richard Ellis are exclusive advisors for this 3-property, 5,075-unit multi-housing investment opportunity.

August 13, 2007 - The Houston office of Trammell Crow Company announced that it has begun construction on three new buildings in its Cole Creek Business Park. These distribution facilities, at 252,000 sf, 80,000 sf and 94,930 sf, feature modern designs with stone accents and reflective glass. The project is located at the northwest corner of West Little York and Fairbanks North Houston. The new buildings are owned in a partnership of Trammell Crow Co. and ING Clarion, as part of a national industrial development program. The development team includes Powers Brown Architects; Cobb Fendley Associates; Haynes Whaley Associates; Redding, Linden, Burr; Rosenberger Construction; and Wong & Associates. Faron Wiley with CB Richard Ellis will continue to lead the leasing team for the project

August 12, 2007 - OliverMcMillan LLC is advancing with its plans to develop River Oaks District, a large mixed-use project planned the Inner Loop, according to the Houston Business Journal. The project will include two hotels, 350,000 sf of retail space, office space and residential units, according to an article by Jennifer Dawson of the HBJ. The site is just east of Loop 610, between Westheimer and San Felipe, including the old Westcreek Apartments.

August 11, 2007 - Hines, in a joint venture with Chicago entrepreneur, Larry Levy, has announced plans for a new 50-story, 1.1 million-sf office tower in downtown Chicago. The building will be constructed in the West Loop on a prime 2.5-acre site along the Chicago River at Lake and Canal streets. The anchor tenant is expected to be Chicago investment firm William Blair & Co., which has signed a letter of intent to lease 325,000 sf. Construction on the building is expected to begin in late 2008 with a projected delivery date of June 2011. The office tower was designed by New Haven, Conn.-based Pickard Chilton Architects.

August 10, 2007 - Morgan Stanley Real Estate has completed its $6.5 billion acquisition of Crescent Real Estate, a publicly traded company headquartered in Fort Worth. Crescent was one of the largest owners of office buildings in Texas. When Crescent was a new company, it made its smartest buy ever --purchasing the 127-acre Greenway Plaza mixed use development in 1996 for only $206 million. Greenway, which has over 4.3 million sf of office space, a hotel, retail and other development, is now worth significanly more. The Crescent portfolio includes a portfolio of 54 premier office buildings totaling 23 million sf located in Dallas, Houston, Denver, Miami, and Las Vegas. Crescent also holds investments in resort residential developments in locations such as Scottsdale, Ariz.; Vail Valley, Colo.; and Lake Tahoe, Calif.

August 9, 2007 - The Sugar Land Medical Pavilion office building in suburban Houston has been sold to Triple Net Properties, LLC. The property is a 79,629 sf medical office building located in the Sugar Land on the southwest side of Houston. The property is 97 percent leased. Rudy Hubbard and Leah Gallagher of Transwestern, represented the seller, Park Medical Pavilion, Ltd.

August 8, 2007 - Weaver Davis & Jacob Realty Group will develop a new retail development at Highway 6 and Sienna Parkway in Missouri City. The development, called Sienna Village, will feature 90,000 square feet of retail including five pad sites for banks, shops and restaurants and a new 113,771-square-foot H-E-B Plus that will open in late 2008. Weaver Davis & Jacob purchased 28 acres of land from Sienna/Johnson, the developer of Sienna Plantation, and sold 16 of those acres to San Antonio-based grocery chain, H-E-B........ In other news, a subsidiary of Todd Land Co. has contracted to buy 287 acres of waterfront property in the Texas City/Dickinson area for a development that will residential units, a marina, a hotel and other development. The sales price is anticipated to be $16 million, according to the seller, American International Industries Inc. of Kemah.

August 7, 2007 - Houston-based Hines REIT has acquired One Wilshire from Carlyle One Wilshire II, L.P., a subsidiary of The Carlyle Group, a global private equity firm. The 30-story office tower is prominently located at the junction of South Grand Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard, in the central business district of Los Angeles. The seller was represented by Eastdil Secured in the transaction. The building, which opened in 1966, has 664,000 sf of Class A office space.

August 6, 2007 - Trammell Crow Co. has announced plans for one of the finest infill development sites in Houston - 24 acres at the northeast corner of Richmond Avenue and Weslayan. The land was formerly housed the headquarters building (called the Taj Mahal by critics) of the Houston Independent School District. HISD sold the land in 2006. The Trammell Crow project, called Greenway Commons, will include 256,700 sf of retail space, including a Costco store and LA Fitness.The Morgan Group will build a 536-unit mid-rise apartment project on the northern portion of the tract. Construction will begin in December. Institutional investors advised by Prudential Real Estate Investors (PREI) are backing Greenway Commons. For the full story please go to Houston Deals.

August 5, 2007 - Existing home sales were up in July in Houston, compared to July of last year. According to the Houston Association of Realtors, a total of 8,114 properties were sold in July, a 1.1 percent increase over July 2006. Properties sold during the month reached a total of nearly $1.7 billion, a 5.3 percent increase over $1.6 billion in July 2006. "While the Houston housing market has held up much better than the rest of the nation, the mortgage finance problems that have been widely reported have resulted in some volatility in our market in the lower price ranges,” said Rob Cook, HAR Chairman and broker/owner of Robert D. Cook Properties. “The good news for Houston is that energy prices remain strong, job growth continues and the local economy shows resilience. If any market in the country can withstand the impact of the lending woes it will be this region.”

August 2, 2007 - Macfarlan Capital Partners and Buchanan Street Partners joint venture has purchased three vacant office buildings and one flex building formerly occupied by Hewlett-Packard in northwest Houston. The joint venture partnership plans to renovate the project for office use. Transwestern, in an effort led by Michelle Wogan, has been retained to provide management, leasing and marketing services on the renamed Centre at Cypress Creek. The project includes three, four-story, Class A office buildings and one office/flex building, which will be converted to 100 percent office space during the renovation. Upon completion in 2008, the properties will total over 630,000 sf and will have four parking garages. Situated on a 44.5-acre site within the former Hewlett-Packard campus, the properties are located on State Highway 249, just south of Louetta Road. Holliday Fenglio Fowler arranged financing.

August 1, 2007 - Houston-based US Oncology has announced plans to relocate to a new corporate campus in The Woodlands. An 8-story, 200,000 sf building will be constructed.The Woodlands is a 28,000-acre community located 27 miles north of downtown Houston. It is home to more than 85,000 people and 1,500 companies. Over 42,000 people work in The Woodlands. The Woodlands is being developed by The Woodlands Development Co., a limited partnership of Morgan Stanley and General Growth Properties.

July Blog

July 31, 2007 - Crescent Real Estate Equities has sold 13 Dallas office buildings for $382 million. The 2.9 million sf portfolio was purchased by San Diego-based Equastone. The largest building in the Dallas portfolio is the 634,000-sf Stemmons Place. Crescent will be acquired in early August by Morgan Stanley Real Estate.

July 26, 2007 - Ralph Howard, the CEO of Houston-based Situs Cos., is leading the firm on a big expansion. Situs has undertaken a five-city expansion, adding offices in Tokyo, Los Angeles and Atlanta and laying the groundwork to open locations in Delhi, India and Berlin, Germany before year’s end. The expansion brings Situs’ base of operation to 11 cities worldwide. The firm, founded in 1985, added offices earlier this year in Little Rock, Ark., and Robbins, N.C., and more than doubled the size of its offices in London and Boca Raton, Fla. Situs provides commercial real estate services and consulting solutions for all property types to financial institutions, institutional investors, private owners and developers.

July 25, 2007 - CB Richard Ellis delivered a load of new trends and tidbits a roundtable luncheon at its downtown office this week. New retailers coming into the market and looking for locations include: Wild Oats Markets (upper-end health oriented grocery), Staples office supplies and Dick's Sporting Goods. Land prices in the Inner Loop are exceptionally strong. Banks are paying big bucks for pad sites on prime corners, pricing service stations out of the market for corners. However, some strip center developments have overbuilt in suburbia. Speakers at the CBRE program included Paul House, Matt Keener, Simmi Jaggi, Sanford Crinerand Derek Hargrove.

July 24, 2007 - Colliers International has handled the sale of 44 acres of land at the corner of Interstate 10 and the Grand Parkway in West Houston. The seller, the Ernstes family, was represented by Charlie Herder of Colliers. Todd Edmonds of Colliers and Ron Dagley of Raymond R. Betz Interests represented the buyer, I-10 Katy Ltd.

July 23, 2007 - Corrections Corporation of America has purchased a 108,900 square foot industrial/warehouse facility located at 16038 Vickery Lane in north Houston. Glynn Mireles and Jeff Everest of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, World Houston Air Cargo Center, Ltd.

July 22, 2007 - Hines is reportedly planning another office tower in downtown Houston. The project, to be built at the corner of Main and Rusk, will be 47 stories tall, according to a report by Jennifer Dawson of the Houston Business Journal. The building is slated for a 2010 completion, the Business Journal said. Houston's office market has been exceptionally tight as energy firms and other companies have been expanding. The last major tower completed in downtown Houston, the 717 Texas Avenue, opened in 2003.

July 20, 2007 - The Khoshbin Company, a commercial real estate management and investment company based in Irvine, California, has purchased approximately 338,012 square feet of industrial space consisting of three projects situated in the north Houston market. The portfolio includes three industrial centers with 11 buildings that are 83% occupied to 58 tenants. Bill Rudolf and Glynn Mireles of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, First Industrial Realty Trust.

The portfolio consisted of the following properties:

• Intercontinental Business Center located at 16611 – 16651 W. Hardy

Includes four buildings with a total of 103,199 sf and is situated on 7.69 acres.

• Central Park North Business Center located at 600 Kenrick

Includes 5 buildings with a total of 155,131 sf and is situated on 10.68 acres.

• North Freeway Business Center located at 16745 – 16749, I-45 North

Includes two buildings with a total of 79,682 sf and is situated on 3.86 acres.

July 19, 2007 - Take note of this significant land sale in the NASA area. Aaron Howes of CB Richard Ellis and Kirk Laguarta of Land Advisors Organization – Houston recently represented Kinder Morgan in the sale of approximately 411 acres located east of Space Center Blvd and north of West Clear Lake Blvd in southeastern Harris County. The Buyer was Fidelis Realty Partners, which is owned by Alan Hassenflu and Lynn Davis. Fidelis was represented by Marvin Stapper of M. M. Stapper Commercial Real Estate.

July 17, 2007 - Saad Development Corp. has purchased 25 acres of land located directly southwest of Hobby Airport at Orem & Mykawa Road. The land is the Houston Business Center, a 351-acre business park development by PinPoint Commercial, LP. Jeff Pittman and Brendan Lynch of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, PinPoint Commercial in the transaction. Billy Gold and John Simon with CBRE represented the buyer.

July 12, 2007 - Galveston's East End is hot. Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors has opened a new office on Galveston's East End at 823 Broadway.The firm's Kelly Kelley said that the new office gives the company a larger stake in the single-family residential market, as well as multi-family properties and the growing number of resort properties on the East End. "The office is close to the University of Texas Medical Branch and the new developments on East Beach," said Kelley. Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors also has offices at Pirates Beach, Tiki Island, and an affiliate office in the Bolivar-Crystal Beach area.

July 11, 2007 - Cabot Properties has purchased over 191,122 sf of industrial space consisting of four projects located in Houston and Stafford, Texas. The portfolio included seven buildings that are approximately 92% leased to 46 tenants. Tom Lynch and Alisha Renshaw of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller, First Industrial Realty Trust. The portfolio consisted of the 17401 Village Green in Houston and three properties in Stafford: 4007 Greenbriar, 4111-4115 Greenbriar, and 4230-4234 Bluebonnet.

July 10, 2007 - Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has closed the sale of Kempwood Tech Center, a 113,052-sf flex service center in Houston. The HFF investment sales team was led by senior managing director Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Mike Parker who marketed the property exclusively on behalf of the seller, Midway Companies, a Houston-based real estate development and investment firm. Colette Farms, represented by Frank Fitzgerald at Newquest Properties, purchased Kempwood Tech Center for an undisclosed price free and clear of existing debt. Kempwood Tech Center is located on a 7.2-acre site at 2704-2778 Bingle Road close to Highway 290, Sam Houston Parkway, Hempstead Highway and Interstate 10 in northwest Houston. The property is fully leased to seven tenants including Page International, Amerisciences and Aqua-Sol Controllers.

July 9, 2007 - Houston home builders are expected to see reduced volume in the lower-end home sales market in 2007. But the Houston area will still have about 40,000 home starts, which means 2007 will still be one of the strongest years ever for home construction, says Mike Inselmann of MetroStudy. The Houston area had 50,000 starts and about 100,000 new jobs in 2006. While the entry-priced market is the most affected by current trends, the upscale housing market is still strong, Inselmann said. Inner-city urban housing demand remains strong, move-up home builders are enjoying steady demand, upscale master-planned communities are experiencing demand at levels close to the past three or four years and the prime neighborhoods of Memorial, Tanglewood, River Oaks, West University and Bellaire remain in high demand.

July 4, 2007 - Celebrate the existence of our great nation.

July 3, 2007 - International Business Machines (IBM) leased 55,600 sf at the 12301 Kurland Building in Houston. Eric Anderson of Transwestern and Rob Evans of Capital Commercial represented the landlord, Capital Commercial. John Pruitt of CB Richard Ellis, Inc. represented IBM in the transaction.

12301 Kurland is a four-story, 200,000-sf, Class B office building, conveniently located at the intersection of I-45 South and Beltway 8 near both Hobby Airport and Ellington Field. Capital Commercial, a real estate investment firm based in Austin, Texas purchased 12301 Kurland when the building was 100% vacant and in January 2006 completed a full renovation of the asset....... In other news, Hines REIT bought an office building in downtown Seattle.Hines REIT bought Fifth & Bell, a Class A office building located on 5th Avenue between Bell and Battery Streets in Seattle’s dynamic north Central Business District. The building was purchased from Touchstone Seattle Venture II, which was represented by Pacific Real Estate Partners, Inc. (PREP). Hines represented Hines REIT in the transaction. Hines is the sponsor of Hines REIT, and is responsible for the management and leasing of its assets.Completed in 2002, the six-story property consists of 197,140 rentable sf of office space and street-level retail.

June Blog

June 28, 2007 - Scott M. and Toni C. Hairston sold 1,481. acres on County Road 208 near County Road 210 in Danbury, Texas to Ancona Properties, LLP. Daniel O. Perrier and Carlos Bujosa of McDade, Smith, Gould, Johnston, Mason + Company represented the sellers.

June 25, 2007 - An office building developed by Harold Farb has been sold. Transwestern announced it has brokered the disposition of the Centre One office building on behalf of Phoenix Life Insurance Company to Pacifica Companies LLC. Centre One is a 217,381 sf Class A multi-tenant office building located in the Southwest Beltway 8 submarket of Houston. Rudy Hubbard, Eric Johnson and Leah Gallagher of Transwestern, represented the seller, Phoenix Life Insurance Company. ...... ... In other news, The Seattle office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that Hines REIT has acquired the Seattle Design Center a 390,000-sf project located at 5701 Sixth Avenue South, just minutes from downtown Seattle. The complex was purchased from Bay West Seattle, LLC, on behalf of Hines Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc. (Hines REIT). Bay West was represented in the sale by Pacific Real Estate Partners, Inc. (PREP).

June 24, 2007 - Johnson Development is developing a master planned community called Woodforest, about 38 miles north of downtown Houston. The property is near Honea Egypt Road. McDade, Smith, Gould, Johnson Mason + Co. has been involved in Johnson's assemblage.

June 22, 2007 - Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. handled the sale of Northwest Place Distribution Center II, a multi-tenant warehouse in northwest Houston. Senior managing director Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Mike Parker led the HFF investment sales team exclusively on behalf of the seller, RREEF. DCT Industrial purchased the property for an undisclosed price free and clear of debt. Ralph Tullier of Trammell Crow Company also assisted with the marketing efforts. Located at 7170 West 43rd Street, Northwest Place Distribution Center II is positioned on 10.5 acres between US 290 and the Hempstead Highway in northwest Houston. The 10,432-sf building was completed in 1997 and is fully leased. DCT Industrial Trust is a leading real estate company specializing in the ownership, acquisition, development and management of bulk distribution and light industrial properties located in 24 of the highest volume distribution markets in the U.S. as well as Mexico.

June 21, 2007 - Trammell Crow Co. is building a business park to service the rapidly expanding Port of Houston area. It is the second phase at East Belt Business Park. The 12-acre light industrial development will feature two concrete tilt-wall uildings totaling 170,000 sf. Located on East Sam Houston Parkway South in Pasadena, it offers frontage on Beltway 8 and access to Highway 225.Phase I of East Belt Business Park was completed in 2004 and was recently purchased by Morgan Stanley’s Prime Property Fund.

June 20, 2007 - Florida-based DCL Investment Corp. has purchased another property in Houston -- the Northborough Atrium I and II buildings. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P handled the sale of Northborough Atrium I and II, office buildings totaling 168,799 sf. The HFF investment sales team was led by senior managing directors Dan Miller and Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Marty Hogan who exclusively represented the seller, Goddard Investment Group. DCL Investment Corporation purchased the property for an undisclosed amount free and clear of debt. Goddard Investment Group is an Atlanta-based real estate investor that has been investing in Houston office properties for a number of years. DCL Investment Corporation is based in Naples, Florida and has also been investing in Houston office buildings for several years.
Northborough Atrium I and II are located at 12600 Northborough Drive and 350 Glenborough Drive, west of Interstate 45 and north of Beltway 8 in the Greater Greenspoint District of Houston. Northborough Atrium I has 84,882 sf of space that is 87.5% occupied. Northborough Atrium II has three stories of office space totaling 83,917 sf that is currently 89.6% leased.

June 19, 2007 - The Energy Corridor sector of west Houston remains hot as energy firms pump up that market. A recently constructed office building in the Energy Corridor drew significant interest from buyers, according to the Transwest firm that marketed the property, 1401 Enclave Parkway. The seller was Triple Net Properties. The buyer was Parkway Properties Office Fund, Inc. The 1401 Enclave Parkway building is a 207,435 sf Class A multi-tenant office building located in the Energy Corridor submarket of Houston. The six-story property was approximately 100% leased at the time of sale. Investor interest in the project was extremely high, over two dozen offers were received in the first round of bidding from institutional investors. In the end, Parkway Properties acquired a newly constructed, Class A asset in arguably Houston’s strongest submarket. The project's tenant roster includes The Meridian Resource Company , Parker Drilling Company, and the Shaw Group, Inc.

June 18, 2007 - Transwestern announced that construction should be substantially complete this summer for its new Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center, which is being built on one of the hot corners in Pearland. La Madeleine restaurant just closed on a ground lease there and expects to open in October. The project is located at the northwest corner of FM 518 and Highway 288. For more details please go to Houston Deals.

June 12, 2007 - Sterling American Property Inc., in a joint venture with Hines, announced today the $281 million acquisition of 333 Bush Street. The 542,743-sf Class A office property is located in the heart of the Financial District of San Francisco. The 43-story building is 75 percent leased to a roster of tenants including America Online (AOL) and the San Francisco law offices of Heller Ehrman LLP.

June 7 , 2007 - A 22-story office tower in downtown Austin has been acquired by a joint venture of Hines and CalPERS. The seller was Crescent Real Estate Equities of Fort Worth. The office tower, 301 Congress, is 87 percent leased and is located near the state capitol. For more information please go to our Texas Roundup page

June 6, 2007 - TAEP Stafford, LP has purchased 53,000 sf of industrial space at 10101 Stafford Centre Drive. John Simons, Micheal Palmer and Susana Rosas epresented the seller, Wycoff Stafford Centre, LLC in the transaction. The property is in Greenbriar Southwest Business Park and is 100% occupied by long-term tenants on Triple Net Leases.

June 5, 2007 - The Woodlands Country Club and two public golf course in The Woodlands have been purchased by Sequoia/Canongate Golf LLC. The seller was The Woodlands Development Co. As of midnight on May 31, all employees of The Woodlands Country Club became employees of Sequoia/Canongate, which owns a number of golf courses in Atlanta.

June 4, 2007 - Newport Beach, Calif.-based John Laing Homes announced today that the company has agreed to acquire Lindenwood Homes and all of its assets in Houston. Jim Lemming, founder of Lindenwood Homes, will lead John Laing's operations in Texas. Lemming founded Lindenwood in 2003 after a career that included leading Ryland Homes in Houston and a management position at General Homes.

June 3, 2007 - Concern is apparent within the business community -- particularly among larger employers -- about the lack of affordable housing for employees, with companies reporting the shortage as being problematic in hiring and retaining entry- and mid-level workers, according to a new survey released by the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

The survey was unveiled in Philadelphia at the 41st Annual Conference of the National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE) . For more information, please go to the National Items page.

June 2 , 2007 - The nation's real estate markets haven't hit bottom yet and the fallout from the subprime market will continue for awhile. While housing is fine in some parts of the nation, the overall recovery won't begin until later in the year, according to economists and experts at the National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE) conference in Philadelphia. The speakers included Ted Jones, chief economist of Stewart Title. Bernard Markstein, vice president of forecasting and analysis for the National Association of Home Builders, Doug Duncan, chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association, Frank Nothaft, chief economist for Freddie Mac and Mark Obrinsky, chief economist of National Multi Housing Council.

June 1 , 2007 - Sales of the nation's existing home including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops fell 2.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.99 million units in April from an upwardly revised level of 6.15 million in March, and are 10.7 percent lower than the 6.71 million-unit pace in April 2006. Lawrence Yun, NAR senior economist, isn’t surprised. “We’ve been anticipating slower home sales because many subprime loan products are no longer available,” he said. “In addition, increased scrutiny by lenders is stopping risky mortgage origination, which is good for both consumers and the lending community. Fortunately, a wide availability of conventional mortgage products and the 4.5 million jobs created over the past 24 months will help to stabilize the market going forward. ” The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $220,900 in April, down 0.8 percent from April 2006 when the median was $222,600

May Blog

May 30, 2007 - Martin Fein Interests isdeveloping four apartment projects worth approximately $100 million in suburban Houston. BlackRock Realty, an advisor to institutional investors, is a participant in the Fein program, says Hal Holliday of Live Oak Capital. Initial occupancy in the first of the projects will occur in 2007 and the four apartment communities should be completed in 2008, said Timm Wooten,EVP of Fein. Please click here to go to the Multi-Family Magazine page for more details.

May 26, 2007 - Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has been selected to market the sale of 1001 McKinney, a 372,000-sf 22-story, fully-renovated historic office tower located in Houston's central business district. HFF senior managing director Rusty Tamlyn and managing director Robert Williamson will lead the investment sales team on behalf of the seller, 1001 McKinney Venture, L.P. "Located on the METRORail line at Main Street Square in the geographic heart of the Houston CBD, 1001 McKinney is ideally positioned to benefit from the strong leasing momentum currently underway in this area," said Tamlyn.

May 25, 2007 - Ernst & Young LLP announced that it will move its North Texas headquarters to the One Victory Park office building located in Victory Park, which will also house Haynes & Boone, LLP and PlainsCapital Bank. E&Y will lease 150,000 sf in the top floors of the 20-story office building being co-developed by Hillwood and Hines. Ernst & Young’s Dallas office personnel will move to the new space in July 2009.

May 24, 2007 - Crescent Real Estate Equities, one of the major owners of Texas office buildings, will be acquired by Morgan Stanley Real Estate for $6.5 billion. Crescent owns and manages a portfolio of 70 office buildings totaling 27 million sf across the United States with major concentrations in Dallas, Houston, Austin, Denver, Miami, and Las Vegas. Crescent, based in Fort Worth, owns Houston Center, Greenway Plaza and other major properties in Houston. The acquisition price includes Morgan Stanley's assumption of $3 billion in debt. Richard Rainwater, one of the founders of Crescent, agreed to vote in favor of the transaction. Morgan Stanley will pay $22.80 per share. For More Details please go to Texas Roundup.

May 21, 2007 - The Simpkins Group, a Houston firm led by Doug Simpkins 215 acres of land surrounding the Katy Mills Mall off of Interstate 10. The site is in Katy, Fort Bend and Harris counties. Greg Young of Live Oak Capital arranged a loan for $22.6 million from Wrightwood Capital of Chicago for the land purchase.

May 18, 2007 - Rida Development Corp. of Houston, in partnership with Hilton Hotels Corp. and Appollo Real Estate Advisors, have broken ground on a 1,400-room hotel adjacent to the convention center in Orlando. The 18-story hotel, which will sit on 26.4 acre-tract, will cost $380 million and open in the summer of 2009. Established in 1972 by David Mitzner, Rida Development has its headquarters in Houston, with major operating divisions in Orlando and Central Europe. Its principal officers are David, Jacob and Ira Mitzner.

May 17, 2007 – GenCap Partners and Transwestern have broken ground on an office project in northwest Houston called Four Chasewood. Construction is expected to be completed in August of 2008. Located in the Chasewood Technology Park on State Highway 249 at Chasewood Park Drive, Four Chasewood will be a five-story, Class A office building containing 105,121 sf. For full details please go to Houston Deals.... .... In other news, Mercedes Homes will open two single family communities in Houston this summer. The first, Inverness, will be located in North Houston. The second, Aliana, will be in West Houston. Both communities with feature traditional homes priced from the $200,000s. In addition, Mercedes Homes expects to have six communities in the Houston market by summer 2008. C.J. Rogers is Regional President for the Central Texas division of Mercedes Homes.

May 16, 2007 - Groundbreaking will be held Thursday for Water Color, a 2,000-acre community with a polo club in Fort Bend County. Aliana Development is the developer of the project, which will include canals. The project is near the intersection of FM 1464 and West Airport..... ... In other news, RIDA Development purchased a 90,000-sf office building at 3120 Southwest Freeway from Unilev Management. Logan Brown of Grubb & Ellis handled the sale.

May 15, 2007 - Airgas Southwest is currently in the engineering and design phase of a new fast fill plant after recently acquiring 13.5 acres in LaPorte. The site is a consolidation of facilities in Pasadena, LaPorte and Houston and will incorporate state-of-the-art cylinder filling technology to house atmospheric and specialty gases, and hydrocarbon blends. According to Troy Collins, Vice President of Yancey-Hausman’s Industrial Division, the innovative fast fill plant in LaPorte is expected to be a $10 million development.

May 12, 2007 Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has been retained to market the sale of 919 Milam, a 26-story, 542,000-sf office building located in downtown Houston. Formerly known as 910 Travis, the building was originally constructed in 1956 and recently underwent an $11 million renovation. The project was financed and is owned by National Office Partners Limited Partnership (NOP), a partnership of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and Hines.

May 11, 2007 - The Houston Association of Realtors has hit a cyberspace milestone. Its web site, HAR.Com, received 1 billion hits in a single month, says Bob Hale, president and CEO of HAR. The HAR.com is one of the most popular real estate web sites in the nation -- and is in a league with the major national web sites. The HAR web site generates millions worth of business for its member Realtors, Hale said in a speech to the Houston Society of Association Executives. Serving as the current president of HSAE is Toy Wood, who works full-time as the CEO of the Greater Houston Builders Association.

May 8, 2007 - Houston's real estate market looks good compared to other parts of the nation, says Dr. Barton Smith, a University of Houston economist. Houston is one of the few major cities showing an increase in residential building permits. Houston's housing affordability is outstanding and foreclosures have not shown huge increases. The energy industry has created a large number of new jobs. The job growth will taper off some, but Houston should perform well. Smith, in his annual symposium, also suggested that Houston should become the world leader in Alternative Energy and start a major convention for Alternative Energy, similar to Houston's massive Offshore Technology Conference (OTC). Smith is part of the Institute for Regional Forecasting at UH and he incorporates research by Evert Crawford of Crawford Realty.

May 7, 2007 - Crown Castle International Corp. bought the 1200 Augusta Building, which will houses its headquarters. The building contains 112,000 sf. Chris Winters, Robert Parsley and Jay Kyle of Colliers International handled the deal.

May 5, 2007 - The National Multi Housing Council and the National Apartment Association have filed suit against HUD over the new HUD guidelines that will require documents to be translated into languages other than English. Please go to Multi-Family Magazine for details.

May 3, 2007 - John Giries and Mary and William Edmonds sold two buildings on 33,000 sf at 3307 Audley and 3311 West Main in Houston to Robert Bland, president of Pelican Builders. Robert Fleming of McDade, Smith, Gould, Johnston, Mason + Company represented the seller. Mike Sarfati represented the buyer............. .....

In other news, the Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has been named to market the sale of the 2000 West Loop South, a 356,750 sf, 21-story, office tower and 1,299-space parking garage in Houston. HFF managing directors Jeff Hollinden and Robert Williamson will lead the investment sales team on behalf of the seller, a joint venture between Means-Knaus Partners and U.S. Advisor, the Tenant in Common Advisors. The building, developed by Hines in 1970, is 97% leased and long-term anchor tenants include the Houston office of Pace Entertainment, an affiliate of Live Nation, AM/FM Operating/Clear Channel Communications, and United Healthcare

May 2, 2007 -- The Houston office of HFF (Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P.) has closed the sale of First Colony Commons, a 410,117-sf multi-anchored shopping center in Sugar Land, Texas. Senior managing director Rusty Tamlyn and associate director Mike Parker, formerly with Trammell Crow Co. now with HFF, led the investment sales team exclusively on behalf of the seller, Weingarten Realty Investors. Covington Realty Partners purchased the property. Ralph Tullier, vice president of development management at Trammell Crow, also assisted with the sales effort. First Colony Commons is located on nearly 38 acres at 15201 – 15555 Southwest Freeway at the intersection of US-59 and Williams Trace Boulevard in Sugar Land. The property was completed in 1992 and is 93% leased to tenants including Home Depot, Office Depot, Conn's Appliance, Michaels and Babies R' Us. To purchase the property, Convington used a $50.6 million, 10-year, 5.73% fixed-rate securitized acquisition loan and a $9.5 million mezzanine loan. Financing was arranged for First Colony Commons by Jeff Knowles of HHF

April Blog

April 29, 2007 -- A shopping center near Westwood Mall in southwest Houston has been sold, according to real estate broker Robert Lowery of Coldwell Banker Commercial United. The 30,913 sf project, called Lone Star Shopping Center is located at 9651 Bissonnet. It is 100 percent leased, said Lowery, who represented A&T Properties in the transaction....... David Lereah is leaving his post as chief economist of the National Association of Realtors to joing Move Inc. The Move Inc. firm operates the www.Realtor.Com web site for NAR.

April 26, 2007 - Transwestern Houston represented Ben E. Keith Co. in its acquisition of 82 acres of undeveloped land in BC Business Park dba Beltway Crossing located in Missouri City, Texas. Jude Filippone of Transwestern represented Ben E. Keith in the transaction. Located in Fort Bend County, Beltway Crossing is a 330-acre business park situated along Highway 90, Beltway 8 and Gessner Road in Missouri City, Texas.

April 25, 2007 - Murphy Oil Exploration and Production Co. International, a subsidiary of Murphy Oil Corporation, is preparing to relocate to The Offices at Park 10, a Class “A” office complex located at 16290 Katy Freeway, at the intersection of IH-10 and Park 10 Blvd. The group, originally located on Westlake Blvd., will occupy 108,000 sf, amounting to four full floors of space. The move to The Offices at Park 10 will allow Murphy, represented by Jim Vann of Moody Rambin Interests, greater IH-10 visibility and easier accessibility. Developed by Yancey-Hausman Interests, Inc. and owned by an affiliate of Franklin Street Properties, The Offices at Park 10 Phase and II encompasses a total of 312,000 sf. “Murphy Exploration and Production is one of three new tenants. The Offices at Park 10 complex will still have approximately 155,000 sf of space remaining available to lease,” said Tony Allen, Vice President of Yancey-Hausman’s Office Division.

April 24, 2007 - In a year when national home prices are expected to drop, a research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University predicts Texas will emerge as one of the brightest stars in the housing market. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced last week that home prices across the United States will probably fall in 2007 — a first in at least 38 years. But the Center’s Dr. James Gaines says Texas’ home prices will likely buck that trend. Although it is too early to know exactly how 2007 will play out, Gaines said the year is off to a good start. Texas’ median existing home price increased by 3 percent from February 2006 to February 2007, and the state has less than a five-month inventory of unsold homes. Gaines said Texas benefits from not having experienced the run-up in prices that other areas saw. “For the last five or so years, areas like California, Florida, Arizona, Nevada, Virginia and Washington, D.C. have enjoyed their biggest housing boom. Now they’re seeing a huge decline in median sales, and it’s dragging the numbers for the country down,” Gaines said.

April 22, 2007 - The Houston office market is at its strongest level since the 1990s. Energy firms have leased a lot of space and almost 6 million sf of absoprtion was recorded in 2006. Over the last year, vacancy has dropped to 11.7 percent in 1st quarter of 2007, down from 14.5 percent in the first quarter of 2006. Rental rates are up sharply. Downtown rents have gone up at least 25 percent in the last year, according to Sanford Criner of CB Richard Ellis. Several firms are looking to build new towers in downtown, including a proposed Trammell Crow project near the convention center and the new downtown park near where Marvy Finger is building a new residential high-rise. Even the Galleria office market is up, said John Pruitt of CBRE. Office occupancy in the Galleria is over 90 percent for the first time in seven years, CBRE reports.

April 20, 2007 - The merger between CB RIchard Ellis and Trammell Crow has been completed very nicely, reports John Holland, senior managing director for CBRE' Houston offices. In Houston, CBRE now has 450 employees in 10 offices citywide, Holland says. CBRE is doing property management for 30 million sf of Houston commercial space. And it also has office leasing, investment sales, mortgage banking and $200 million of real estate development under way in Houston. Worldwide the new CBRE now has 24,000 employees...... ...... ... . Crescent Real Estate Equities sold its Exchange Building, a 295,515 sf office property located in downtown Seattle. The property was sold for $80.6 million, or $273 psf. Crescent is streamlining its portfolio.

April 18, 2007 - A lot of optimism was in the air at the Commercial Expo last night in Houston. This is a prime event in Houston's commercial real estate scene and hundreds of people turn out every year. Houston's office, industrial, retail and multi-family markets are all good and you could tell it by the mood at the J.W. Marriott event center The people at the Houston Association of Realors do a great job putting on this annual event. HAR CEO Bob Hale and HAR President Rob Cook were on hand last night, along with the association's Sam Scott, Lori Carper and Rita Klein. Several former HAR presidents were in the crowd, including Ted Jones of Stewart Title, Jim Peters, Kelley Parker, Todd Mason and Dave Cook. Promoting Pearland at his booth was Fred Welch of the Pearland Economic Development Council and Richard Browne, who is developing the Presidential Park at WaterLights there. The Betz Co. had a booth manned by Tom Condon, Ron Dagley, Karl Willmann and others. Pat O'Connor of O'Connor & Associates had a booth promoting his property tax, appraisal and cost segregation services. Also spotted in the crowd: David Hightower of Wolff Cos., Marty McAdams, David Goswick, Craig Guidry, Mark Evans, Jerry Crawford, Perry Zieben, Kathleen O'Connor, Edward Pennington, David Schwarz, Walker Barnett, Charles Iupe, John Pruitt, Mike Boyd, Chuck Jacobus, Welcome WIlson and many more.

April 17, 2007 --- Move over Highway 290. There's a new kid in town. The Highway 290 corridor in northwest Houston had been the hottest market for warehouse construction and leasing for many years. But much of the northwest land has been used up and developers are looking for new locations, according to Michael Palmer of CB Richard Ellis. The North Belt market near Bush Airport has 3 million sf of warehouse space under construction and a lot of new projects are being built in the Bayport area in southeast Houston, Palmer said Tuesday at a press luncheon at CBRE's downtown office. Houston's containerized shipping industry red hot because of a surge of imports from China.......Celox sold 3.31 acres of land in the 3300 block of NASA Road One, where a number of high-rise condo developers have been making plays. The property is on the north shoreline of Clear Lake in Seabrook.. Lamrock 3/2001, LP, purchased the property. Wayne Vitale and Ron Simons of McDade Smith, Gould, Johnston, Mason + Company represented the seller.

April 16, 2007 - Griffin Partners has purchased 27 acres near the entrance to NASA's Johnson Space Center for a major $150 million mixed-use development. Griffin, a Houston firm led by Fred Griffin, wil demolish 12 old office buildings on the site and develop retail, office, residential and hotel buildings. The site is in city of Nassau Bay and NASA Parkway (formerly NASA Road One) and Space Park Drive. The 12 buildings on the site, built between 1964 and 1970, have a total of 325,000 sf and were originally occupied by NASA and space contractors. The city and the Harris County government are working with Griffin on economic development incentives, according to the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership. Ken Page of Cushman & Wakefield assisted in negotiating the property sale.

April 13, 2007 - Wayne Murray, owner of Weichert Realtors – Wayne Murray Properties has broken ground on a new Fort Bend office for the realty company. The 6,000-sf building, located at 4722 Riverstone in the Offices of Riverstone complex, will be completed this fall. This is Murray’s third office. As owner of the building, Murray will lease space to other occupants including First Capstone Mortgage, Todd Cook Insurance Agency and a title company.

April 10, 2007 - Houston home resales were down 8.8 percent in March, the first decline in monthly sales totals in years, according to the Houston Association of Realtors. One month does not make a trend and monthly sales can be impacted by bad weather or other events. As a whole Texas is still one of the strongest real estate markets in the nation.

“Interest in Texas real estate has been magnified by the declining markets elsewhere across the nation,” said Dr. Mark Dotzour, the chief economist for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M, calling the current Texas housing market as one of the strongest in the United States.

Dotzour said population growth is a key factor contributing to the state’s healthy real estate climate.“The latest figures show Texas is growing by about 400,000 each year,” he said. “All of these people need homes or apartments in which to live.”Job growth is also strong, with Texas outperforming the national average and likely to continue doing so for the foreseeable future.

Texas still has home price appreciation, and the housing market specifics look good. “Building permit activity has slowed in Austin, Dallas and San Antonio. Meanwhile, the inventory of unsold homes is still very modest,” Dotzour said, singling out Austin, where 3.2 months of inventory ranks the city as one of the tightest markets in the country.

If the otherwise robust Texas market faces any risk, Dotzour says it is from the mortgage market and increasing foreclosures, especially for houses priced at under $200,000. “Relaxed lending standards have increased the number of homeowners dramatically,” Dotzour said. “Consequently, higher levels of foreclosures are to be expected.”

April 9, 2007 - Hines is selling a major Houston office property. Hines retained Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. to market the sale of the Bank of America Center, a 56-story, 1.3 million-sf office tower located in downtown Houston. Developed by Hines in 1983 and managed ever since, the tower was designed by the renowned architectural team of Philip Johnson and John Burgee. Located at 700 Louisiana Street in the heart of Houston’s theater district, Bank of America Center’s dramatic gabled roofline has become an integral feature of the Houston skyline. Prominent tenants at the 93 percent-occupied tower include KPMG, Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, Deutsche Bank, Simmons & Company, CBRE and Bear Energy. Bank of America is a long-term tenant which occupies approximately 20 percent of the building........... ....... Grubb & Ellis Co. represented Lake Houston Retail, Ltd., in the sale of the 17,900-sf Parkway Commons Shopping Center in Kingwood, approximately 25 northeast of Houston. The Purchaser, FKM Partnership, Ltd., was represented by States Mortgage Company. George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer in the Houston office of Grubb & Ellis.

April 8, 2007 - Happy Easter.

April 6, 2007 - Legacy Partners is developing a 25-story residential building in the Montrose/Heights area just west of downtown Houston. The 274-unit rental project will be located at the corner of Memorial Drive and Studemont... ..... RHS Interests, a group led by Bob Schultz, is working with Metro to develop a transit-oriented mixed-use development in the Midtown area south of downtown Houston. The project is proposed for two blocks bounded by Main, Holman, Travis and Winbern. The sales price for the land is reportedly $7.2 million or 64 psf. Todd Mason is directing the project for Metro.

April 3, 2007 - The Houston office of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has closed the sale of The Offices at Kensington, two Class A office buildings in Sugar Land, Texas. HFF managing directors Robert Williamson and Jeff Hollinden exclusively represented the seller, ING Clarion Partners. KBS Realty Advisors purchased the property for an undisclosed amount. ING Clarion is the U.S. investment management arm of ING Real Estate and together they have $119.8 billion in real estate assets under management. Completed in 1998, The Offices at Kensington has 170,436 sf of office space in twin four-story buildings that are 86% occupied combined by tenants including Noble Drilling, Morgan Stanley, Humana, Progressive and Fidelity National Title. The property is located at 1600 – 1650 Highway 6 in Sugar Land, a southwestern suburb of Houston.

April 2, 2007 - Post Properties has announced plans to develop a 30-story, 166-unit Four Seasons condo project in downtown Austin. Please go to Multi-Family Magazine for more details.... .... ...... In other news, the 12,020-sf Sweetwater Shopping Center in the Houston area has been sold to an investor represented by Brantly Minor. The new center has a Wachovia bank and a Starbuck's. Specializing in retail investment sales, George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer in the Houston office of Grubb & Ellis Company exclusively represented the Seller.

April 1, 2007 - The prime parcel of Houston land where the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation is located may be sold, according to a front page story by Melanie Markley in the Houston Chronicle. The facility is located on six acres on West Dallas street, between Dunlavy and Shepherd. The nonprofit group leases the tract from the City of Houston. The city is contemplating a sale of the land, according to Bob Christy, who heads the city's real estate department. Christy was with CB Richard Ellis for many years. The land is between River Oaks and downtown and it will bring a huge price, probably from a high-rise residential developer, if this proposal goes forward.

March Blog

March 29, 2007 - Trammell Crow Co. will build a 31-story office tower in downtown Houston near the George R. Brown Convention Center and the new Discovery Green park, according to a story by Nancy Sarnoff in the Houston Chronicle's Business Section. The 631,000-sf project will be located on a block bounded by Walker, McKinney, LaBranch and Crawford. The tight conditions in the downtown office market have encouraged several firms, including Crescent, Hines and Brookfield, to consider constructing new office buildings. For more information please go to Houston Deals.

March 26, 2007 -- Transwestern is planning a large warehouse project near the corner of Reed Road and Highway 288 in the Pearland Corridor...... ... Tudor Pickering, a boutique integrated energy investment and merchant banking firm, is moving into the top two floors of downtown Houston’s Heritage Plaza. Tudor, Pickering & Co. was formed last month when Tudor Capital Partners and Pickering Energy Partners agreed to merge.The building is owned by Goddard Investment Group of Atlanta.

March 26, 2007 - The Texas Legislature is considering new legislation regarding the disclosure of real estate sales prices. The law, proposed by State Sen. Jeff Wentworth and Rep. Michael Villarreal, a pair of legislators from San Antonio, would require public disclosure of the sales price in a private real estate transaction. Please go to the Texas Roundup page to see a thoughtful opinion article on this by David Lewis of Lewis Realty Advisors.

March 23, 2007 - Atos Origin, a Paris-based, international information technology services provider, has leased 23,141 sf feet in Southwest Corporate Center, which was formerly Westwood Mall. With its North American headquarters in Houston, Atos Origin is expanding and will operate a help desk for data centers worldwide from the Southwest Corporate Center. Steve Bryant of Moody Rambin Interests represented the landlord, YoungWoo & Associates in lease negotiations. Gerry Trione, Doug Elliott and Bill Boyer of CB Richard Ellis represented Atos Origin. Southwest Corporate Center is a 535,000-sf, two-story atrium office property on 53 acres on Bissonnet at the Southwest Freeway. YoungWoo & Associates purchased Southwest Corporate Center in 2005.

March 22, 2007 - Cameron Management has purchased the landmark Houston Club Building in downtown Houston from JPMorgan Chase. The 18-story tower is home to the Houston Club, an organization that has been a hub for the city’s leadership since the club opened in 1894. The building was developed by Jesse H. Jones, a famed business and civic leader who was publisher of the Houston Chronicle in the 1900s. Cameron Management plans a major renovation for the 416,000-sf Houston Club building, which was completed in 1948. Mark Russell, senior vice president of Studley negotiated the transaction along with Drew Morris, managing director of Studley

March 20, 2007 - Newland Communities sold 28 acres of land to two institutional and non-profit users in its Summerwood master-planned community at Beltway 8 and W. Lake Houston Parkway on Houston's northeast side. Newland sold 18.7 acres to the Humble Independent School District for a middle school campus. The site is located along Woodson Park Dr., adjacent to Beltway 8. And 9.3 acres adjacent to the school site was sold to the YMCA of Greater Houston.

March 19, 2007 - The details of financing the new CityCentre project in Houston have been disclosed. Capmark Finance arranged project capitalization that included a $94 million floating-rate construction loan for a portion of CityCentre, a landmark mixed-use development being constructed at the southeast corner of Interstate 10 and Sam Houston Tollway. Brant Smith, Vice President in the Houston office of Capmark Finance arranged the construction financing through LaSalle Bank, NA, which acted as the lead agent and a syndicate of other banks including Amegy Bank, CitiBank Texas and Compass Bank. The borrower, Midway CC Venture I, LP, is a partnership of Midway Cos. and L&B Realty Advisors representing the Michigan State Public Employees Retirement System.

March 18, 2007 - The Fairfield area northwest of Houston will be getting 1.2 million sf of new retail space in a pair of projects by SImon Property Group and its Chelsea Property Group division. Chelsea will develop Houston Premium Outlets, a 430,000-sf project on 75 acres off of U.S. Highway 290 between Mason Road and Fairfield Drive. The outlet center willl have 120 stores. To the east of the Chelsea outlet center, a 100 acre project, Fairfield Towne Center, is being developed by the Simon's Community/Lifestyle Center Division. This 800,000 sf Simon project is slated to open fall 2008/spring 2009. Both projects combined will create over 1.2 million square feet of high quality retail space in this northwest corridor.

March 16, 2007 - Crescent Real Estate Equities has agreed to sell off several hotels, including the Renaissance Houston hotel in Greenway Plaza and the Omni Austin hotel for $550 million, according to a SEC filing. The Buyer is Walton TCC Hotel Investors. Other properties in the sale include the Denver Marriott, Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, Ventana Inn and Spa and Park Hyatt Beaver Creek. Crescent, in a strategic move, is focusing much of its future efforts on the office market.

March 15, 2007 - The Trada Group is developing a 225-unit apartment complex in the Round Rock area in Central Texas. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler arranged a $16.72 million construction loan for the development of the project, called Links at Forest Creek.

March 10 , 2007 - CB Richard Ellis has been named the leading global brand in commercial real estate, according to a survey of real estate professionals from around the world. Conducted by The Lipsey Company, the survey measures the perception of commercial real estate brands. More than 20,000 professionals from REITs, institutions, lenders, commercial brokerages, and asset and property management firms participated in the survey.

March 9 , 2007 - The Houston area gained 95,000 new jobs in 2006, the best year in over a decade, according to a new report by the Texas Workforce Commission. A large portion of the growth can be attributed to the energy industry, including manufacturing jobs for oilfield equipment. This is good news for all real estate - industrial, office and residential.

March 8 , 2007 - Newport on the Lake, L.P., led by the principals of Cambridge Development Group, Inc. and Atticus Real Estate Development, have announced the construction of the 234-unit Newport on the Lake Apartments in West Houston. The ten-acre site is located on the west side of Barker Cypress Road near Saums Road. John Fenoglio and Kelvin Wascom of Live Oak Capital arranged financing for the project. For more details plase go to Multi-Family Magazine. ......... .......... .... The massive Fort Bend County residential market in suburban Houston is off to a strong start in 2007, according to Toni Nelson of Prudential Gary Greene. The complete story is available on our Residential Topics page.

March 7, 2007 - Taste's Great or Less Filling? Either way, the Miller Brewing Co. is sold on FM 1960 as an office location. The Milwaukee-based brewer, has renewed its lease of 3,700 sf for its Houston sales office in the 616 FM 1960 West building. Scott Fikes and Bob Bantly of Grubb & Ellis represented Miller Brewing Company in lease negotiations. Wanda Wilson and Marci Phillips of PM Realty Group represented the landlord, KBS Realty Advisors Houston Portfolio. The building is an eight-story, 143,606-sf property on FM 1960 between Red Oak Drive and Interstate 45 in North Houston.

March 6 , 2007 - Realtor David Dalzell of Abilene has been elected chairman of the Advisory Committee for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. D. Marc McDougal, a Lubbock Realtor, is the new vice chairman. For more details please click here go to the People Blog. ..........The Simpkins Group purchased an 88,000-sf building on 9.7 acres at 5203 Aeropark. Mahindra USA has leased the building. Jarret Venghaus of the Staubach Group represented the buyer and tenant. J. Michael Boyd and Alexander Reilly of Boyd Commercial represented the seller.

March 5, 2007 - Barker Cypress Market Place a 67,000-sf shopping center anchored by an HEB grocery has been purchased by Houston Structures LLC, a California investment group. The center is located in northwest Houston adjacent to the Copperfield master planned community. George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer of Grubb & Ellis represented the seller, Investcorp.

March 4 , 2007 - The One City Centre building, formerly known as First City Main, has been sold to Broadway Partners, a New York real estate investment firm. The sales price was in excess of $100 million. The 31-story, 591,000-sf building had been owned by an inves tment group led by Rick McCord of Houston. The building is located at 1021 Main St. in the center of downtown Houston. The deal represents the first acquisition in Houston for Broadway. “This is a well-located asset in a thriving market – it presents considerable strategic opportunity for us and our investors,” said James Hennessy, Director of Acquisitions for Broadway. The building is currently 88.7 percent leased, according to Transwestern, a firm that has been retained to lease the building, and the top two floors are available. McCord has been a long-term player in Houston real estate. In addition to downtown, McCord is active in the the West Loop office market, particularly in Bellaire. Editors research note: I wrote an article about McCord's Bellaire office holdings, published in the Houston Chronicle on Nov. 12, 1989.

March 1, 2007 - Crescent Real Estate Equities will sell all of its buildings in Austin, many of its office buildings in suburban Dallas, its hotels and resort properies, as part of a corporate overhaul. The Fort Worth-based company, one of the largest real estate firms in the nation, will focus on office building investments and now calls itself a "pure-play office REIT." Crescent currently owns and manages a portfolio of 71 premier office buildings totaling 28 million sf located across the United States with major concentrations in Dallas, Houston, Austin, Denver, Miami, and Las Vegas.

February Blog

February 28, 2007 - Construction has begun on the Houston Pavilions mixed-use project in downtown Houston. The project will have 360,000 sf of retail space and 200,000 sf of office. Anchored by a House of Blues and other entertainment facilities, the Houston Paviions will cover four blocks bounded by Dallas, Polk, Main and Caroline. William Denton and Geoffrey Jones are the developers.

February 27, 2007 - Sales of existing homes rose in January, reaching the highest level in seven months, according to the National Association of Realtors. Total existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – increased 3.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.46 million units in January from an upwardly revised pace of 6.27 million in December. Sales were 4.3 percent below the 6.75 million-unit level in January 2006. Total housing inventory levels rose 2.9 percent at the end of January to 3.55 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 6.6-month supply at the current sales pace – unchanged from the revised December level. Supplies peaked at 7.4 months in October. “Inventories are looking better, but price softness should continue until spring when the market is expected to become more balanced,” said David Lereah, chief economist for NAR. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $210,600 in January, down 3.1 percent from January 2006 when the median was $217,400.

February 26, 2007- Liberty Property Trust, a publicly-traded firm based in Malvern, Pa., has been actively purchasing industrial buildings in Houston. Liberty recently purchased three properties in the Greens Crossing business park, which is located near the intersection of Beltway 8 and Interstate 45 in north Houston.

February 24, 2007 - Mack-Cali Realty Corp. has agreed to develop a 250,000 sf office building for the Wyndham Worldwide hotel firm for its corporate headquarters. The building, which Wyndham Worldwide has pre-leased for 15 years, will be developed on a land site located on Sylvan Way at Mack-Cali Business Campus in Parsippany, N.J.

February 22, 2007 - The massive home builders convention sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders in Orlando is one of the biggest conventions anywhere. In addition to a seeing a wide array of products and interesting show homes, there are some very interesting education sessions. Did you know, for example, that there were over 150,000 condo units built in 2005, a 30 percent increase from 2003? The convention also allows us time to visit with friends we may not see at other times of the year. I enjoyed having lunch at the convention last week with my friend David S. Jones of the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M. Jones and his staff have prepared an informative report about the convention, which is called the International Builders Show. Please go to our Residential Topics page for this report.

February 20, 2007 - Marvy Finger of Finger Cos. announced that construction has begun on the 37-story, high rise apartment tower, One Park Place, on a site next to Houston's new downtown park, Discovery Green. It will be the first residential high rise apartment building to be built in downtown in more than 40 years.Occupancy for the 346-unit project is scheduled for February 2009. Levels two through seven of the 501-foot tall tower will accommodate 793 parking spaces. Plans include 21,800-square-feet of retail lease space in two sections on the street level to feature a specialty gourmet market, wine merchant, specialty coffee shop and sidewalk café. The general contractor for the project is D. E. Harvey Builders and the construction lender is Guaranty Bank.

February 15, 2007 - Plans were announced at a press conference Thursday for a half-billion-dollar mixed-use development at the southeast corner of the Katy Freeway and Beltway 8 in Houston. The 37-acre site was formerly the location of the Town & Country Mall. Developed by Midway Cos., the new project will include 400,000 sf of retail space, a 217-room hotel, 500,000 sf of office space, 375 apartment units, 250 loft-style units, 40 Brownstone townhomes and 140,000 sf health fitness center. The first parts of the development will open in mid-2008 and the office tower and hotel will open in 2009. Jonathan Brisden, executive VP of Midway, said the 77024 Zipcode where the development is located is one of the most affluent Zipcodes in the nation. The retail space in the project, called CityCentre, is being leased by Page Partners, a firm led by Ed Page.Simmons Vedder will develop the multi-family segment of the CityCentre.Chip Colvill is handling leased for the office space. Midway CEO Brad Freels toured projects in 17 cities to gain inspiration for the design of CityCentre. The project will consist of a number of multi-use buildings with street-level retail and office or residential space up above. The announcement event was held at the RA Sushi in Highland Village. RA Sushi will be a tenant in the new project ... ............................... ..... Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, a Houston-based commercial real estate and capital market services firm, leased 31,570 sf in the Nine Greenway Plaza building for its corporate headquarters, relocating from the Galleria area. The lease was handled by the Studleycommercial real estate services firm. For more information, please go to Leasing Briefs..

February 14, 2007 - Hines, a Houston-based real estate firm has broken ground on an 18-story hotel/residential tower in Flower Mound in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The project will include 64 condo units for sale and a 289-room hotel that will be operated by Benchmark Hospitality of The Woodlands. Please go to the Texas Roundup page for more details.......................An urban building in Houston's Montrose District has been sold. A 7,750-sf building at 4314 Yoakum was purchased by Leo and Judy Borrell. The seller was Gary Barton. CB Richard Ellis’s Tommy Wilson and Jay Cliburn represented the seller while Beverly Berry of Greenwood King represented the buyer.

February 13, 2007 - Yancey Hausman Vice President David Carter represented PCA Properties I, LP in the sale of the two-story, class B office building located at 3334 Richmond Avenue in Houston to Ameridge Properties, LP represented by Charlene Nickson.“The 26,765 sf building is a quality asset in an excellent location. It was renovated in 2005/2006 and was 100% leased at the time of sale. The building boasts a strong tenant base including residential builders Rohe & Wright as the main tenant,” said Carter.................... ... Hines, the Houston-based real estate firm, announced today the acquisition of Two MacArthur Ridge, a six-story, 247,000-sf office building located on a 7.5-acre site in the Las Colinas submarket of Dallas. Two MacArthur Ridge was acquired from CalSTRS, which was advised by ING Clarion Partners LLC. The seller was represented by Ken Page and Brad Thornburg of Cushman & Wakefield.

February 12, 2007 - Deloitte & Touche has leased 300,000 sf in Heritage Plaza in downtown Houston. Deloitte, with more than 1,400 Houston partners and staff, is the largest professional services organization in Houston. The new 12-year, 10-floor lease will consolidate staff from two Houston locations to one downtown location and make Deloitte the largest tenant in Heritage Plaza. With the new lease, Heritage Plaza is now 85 percent leased. Goddard Investment Group, an Atlanta-based real estate investment firm with holdings in five Sunbelt markets, acquired Heritage Plaza in 2005. An extensive renovation program has been completed in the common areas of the 53-story, 1.2 millon sf tower.

February 11, 2007 - The strength of the Houston economy is being demonstrated in the hotel market. The average daily rate in Houston was $101 in 2006, up 7.7 percent from the previous year, according to PKF Consulting. The citywide occupancy rate was up for the year, coming in at 68.9 percent, up from 68.8 percent in 2005. The hotel market in downtown Houston was particularly strong with a 66.5 percent occupancy rate in 2006, up from 62.7 percent in the prior year. The state of Texas, as a whole, also showed upward trends. The statewide occupancy rate was 69.3 percent in 2006, up 1.5 percent from 2005. Statewide daily rates were up 8.8 percent in 2006, PKF said.

February 10, 2007 ORLANDO -- The nation's home building industry is about to begin a revival from a downturn that flattened home sales in many parts of the nation, leading economists told journalists at the International Builders Show in Orlando, Fla. Some parts of the nation, such as Texas and North Carolina, have had strong housing markets, but California, Florida and parts of the East Coast have seen rocky times. David Seiders, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders said the national market had bottomed out and conditions will improve gradually in 2007. Overbuilding has caused significant difficulties and softer prices, said David Berson, chief economist for Fannie Mae. In a press conference at the massive builders convention in Orlando, Frank Nothaft, chief economist for Freddie Mac, warned that investors who scooped up single-family homes in mass quantities in recent years may be heading for the exits quicker in 2007. The investor sell-off will be a drag on the market.

February 8, 2007 -- Samco Properties of Florida has purchased the Cypresswood Commons shopping center in the Spring area north of Houston. Grubb & Ellis' George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer represented the seller, Gulf Coast Commercial Group. The 87,000-sf project has a newly built LA Fitness.

February 6, 2007 - The Woodway Square Apartments, a 595-unit, Class “A” luxury, multi-housing complex in the Galleria area of Houston has been sold. CB Richard Ellis' Craig LaFollette, Executive Vice President; Todd Stewart, Executive Vice President; Todd Marix, Senior Vice President; and Tre Banks, Senior Associate, represented Houston Square Inc. in the transaction. The buyer, INVESCO Real Estate, represented themselves. Houston is the 4th largest rental market in the nation with 2,522 apartment complexes and 491,925 total units. Hanover Co. built Woodway Square in the early 1990s. An earlier version of Woodway Square occupied the site in the 1960s and 1970s, before a fire demolished most of the old complex. The seven-alarm fire, which occured in the summer of 1979, was the largest structural fire in Houston's history. The day after the fire, the City Council responded by passing an ordinance outlawing the use of wood shingles on apartment complexes. The Hanover bought the site, near the corner of Winrock and San Felipe, from San Jacinto Savings in 1991 after the land had been sitting vacant for several years.

February 5, 2007 - Baybrook Gateway, a 237,000-sf retail center in the Clear Lake area has been sold to a joint venture of New Plan Excel Realty Trust and JPMorgan Investment Management. The center is located at West Bay Area Boulevard and I-45 South on the southeast side of Houston. PM Realty Group represented the seller. The center is fully leased.

February 2, 2007 - Alliance Wood Group Engineering, a Houston-based, worldwide engineering firm, specializing in oil and gas production and transmission projects, has expanded its headquarters offices in the Energy Corridor on Houston's west side. Please go to Leasing Briefs for full details.

February 1, 2007 - A-Spire Financial Corp. has acquired Northwest Crossing, a class A office building in on U.S. 290 in Northwest Houston. The mid-rise office building was acquired for approximately $23.1 million.Northwest Crossing was developed in 1999 on a five-acre site on the Northwest Freeway at Hollister Road. The six-story steel-frame building features a two-story lobby finished with Italian slate and granite.Northwest Crossing is leased to seven tenants, including Pate Engineers, the U.S. Government, Instromet Inc., PipeLine Machinery, and South Trust Bank. A-Spire is based in Portland, Ore.

January Blog

January 30, 2007 - Wayne Murray , president of Houston-based Weichert Realtors Wayne Murray Properties, has announced the acquisition of a brokerage firm in Fort Bend County -- Weichert Realtors Reichardt & Associates, located at 301 Commerce Green Boulevard in Sugar Land. The deal provides Murray with a second location and more complete coverage of Houston's southwestern side. For more information, please go to Residential Topics. ............. .... The Situs Companies, a Houston-based firm, announced a significant expansion in New York. Situs, a global real estate services firm, has signed a 10-year lease with SL Green Realty Corp for 12,064 sf on the fifth floor of 1 Madison Avenue, and plans to hire an additional 30 people to work due diligence assignments from the location. According to Situs Principal Steven Powel, who has relocated to New York from the firm’s Houston headquarters, the expansion will take the firm to 60 people in New York and over 300 companywide. Situs also has a second New York office at 60 East 42nd St.and additional offices in Boca Raton, Fla., and London.

January 29, 2007 - Walton Street Capital has purchased One Westchase Center, a 12-story office building in West Houston. Robert Williamson and Jeff Hollinden Of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler represented the seller, Granite Properties. One Westchase Center is situated on 5.35 acres at 10777 Westheimer in the Westchase submarket. The 466,000-sf property was 100 percent occupied by tenants including EDG, Inc., Brown & Gay Engineers, Petrobras America Inc. and U.S. Fire Insurance Co. Granite Properties. is a diversified real estate investment and management company with offices in Atlanta, Dallas, Denver and Houston that currently owns, manages and leases more than 8.6 million sf of office, industrial and retail property. Granite director of investments, Paul Bennett was responsible for negotiating the One Westchase Center disposition.

January 26, 2007- Houston home sales were up 10.7 percent in 2006, over 2005 levels. According to the Houston Association of Realtors, year-end sales totaled 87,435 properties with dollar volume exceeding $16.6 billion, compared to 79,012 properties worth $14.2 billion for all of 2005. Houston's strong job growth has sustained the sales surge, said HAR chairman Rob Cook of Robert D. Cook Properties. The median single-family home price was $150,000 in December, up from $148,000 in December of 2005, the HAR reported.

January 25, 2007 - Trying to put a price on that listing?

Which is more appealing to buyers -- $99,999 or $100,000?

Find out what works best with buyers. It's not guess work. Solid consumer research has been done. Please click here to go to the David S. Jones column for the story.

January 24, 2007 - A major mixed-use development covering 24 acres of Houston's north Montrose area has been announced. GID Urban Development of Boston will demolish the Allen House Apartments and develop a project called Regent Square, which will cover four blocks with 1,750 residential units, a boutique hotel, 330,000 sf of retail and 60,000 sf of office, according to a story by David Kaplan and Nancy Sarnoff in the Wednesday business section of the Houston Chronicle. Morris Architects of Houston is executive architect of the project, which will be bounded by Allen Parkway, West Clay, Dunlavy and Tirrell streets, just west of downtown, according to the Chronicle.

January 23, 2007 - Groundbreaking was held Tuesday for the initial warehouse buildings in a 4 million sf industrial project in La Porte near the Port of Houston. The warehouses are being constructed in a 300-acre business park - Port Crossing Commerce Center. The business park is located off of Highway 146 and Export Drive, between the Barbours Cut Terminal and the new Bayport Terminal. This is a major location for containized shipping activities and Houston is at the forefront of that trend. Michael Luecht, president of ML Realty Partners, and Russell Plank of National Property Holdings are working in partnership to develop the project. Billy Gold of CB Richard Ellis is marketing the project, which is rail-served by 22 tracks. In attendance at the rainy groundbreaking ceremony was John Huarte, former Notre Dame quarterback and winner of the Heisman Trophy in 1964. Huarte's firm, Arizona Tile, will be a tenant in the project.

January 22, 2007 - Transwestern Houston today announced that it has been retained by Greenwich, Conn.-based Tower Associates, LP to provide management services for Marathon Oil Tower in Houston. Located at 5555 San Felipe in Houston’s Galleria submarket, Marathon Oil Tower is a 1 million sf office building. Marathon Oil Company executed a 600,000 square foot lease agreement at the project in late 2005. .. ..... .....The Bethany Group of Irvine, Calif. has purchased eight multi-family projects with 2,500 units in suburban Houston from the Sendera Investments of Austin, according to the Houston Chronicle. Russell Jones and David Oelfke of Apartment Realty Advisors and Jim Hurd of Hendricks Partners handled the sale.

January 21, 2007 - The Houston apartment market is expected to see lower occupancy rates in 2007 in Class B and C units, despite the city’s outstanding job growth and an economy fueled by high oil prices, according to multi-family analyst Patrick O’Connor. The reduction in the bubble of Katrina evacuees, many of whom are returning to New Orleans or finding other housing options, will have a dampening effect on the Houston occupancy rate this year, said O’Connor of O’Connor & Associates at the company’s recent apartment forecast luncheon. A large number of new apartment projects – some 13,000 units are under construction – will put downward pressure on occupancy. For the full story please go to our Multi-Family Magazine page .

January 19, 2007 - BC Sterling Ridge LLC, an affiliate of Trammell Crow Residential, purchased an 11-acre site in the Terramont area of The Woodlands’ Village of Sterling Ridge for construction of a 310-unit apartment community, according to Dan Leverett, vice president of commercial for The Woodlands Development Co. The site is located just north of Woodlands Parkway on the west side of Terramont Drive near the western entrance to The Woodlands at Woodlands Parkway and FM 2978. To be called Alexan Sterling Ridge, the three-story apartments are being designed with an “urban garden” look and feel, according to Brian Austin, senior managing director of Trammell Crow Residential. The apartments will range in size from 1-3 bedrooms and 700-1,400 sf. Construction will begin in the second quarter, with the first units available in early 2008.

January 18, 2007 - Transwestern Houston announced that RoomStore Inc. has leased 275,600 sf 11711 Clay Road at Claymoore Business Park. Brian Gammill of Transwestern represented the landlord and Jeff Everist of CB Richard Ellis, Inc. represented RoomStore. RoomStore is a retailer of home furnishings and accessories and has 78 locations in the U.S.

Built in 1999, 11711 Clay Road is owned by Claymoore Northwest, Inc. and is within the Claymoore Business Park. Situated on 40 acres, the park is located at the intersection of Clay Road and Beltway 8 in Northwest Houston.

January 16, 2007 - Grubb & Ellis Co. represented Gulf Coast Commercial Group in the sale of the new 300,000-sf Conroe Marketplace Shopping Center. The center was purchased by a joint venture between Kimco Realty Corp. and Crow Holdings. Conroe Marketplace is located on Interstate 45 and Teas Nursery Road in Conroe, with traffic counts in excess of 150,000 cars per day on I-45. Conroe is 40 miles north of downtown Houston and 10 miles from The Woodlands. Tenants in the center include T.J. Maxx and Bed, Bath & Beyond. G&E's George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer negotiated.

January 14, 2007 - The appreciation of single-family homes in Houston has improved in the past year to more than 6 percent annually, the best home appreciation rate since 2001, according to Mike Inselmann of MetroStudy. The rate of appreciation in 2005 was 4.0 to 4.5 percent, said Inselmann, a housing consultant. Houston gained approximately 100,000 jobs in 2006, the best in 20 years. The strength of the energy business is giving momentum to Houston housing. Texas is the strongest state for job growth with more than 300,000 new jobs added in both 2005 and 2006. Houston home sales are good and the inventory of homes for sale is in balance. “Houston has set a new record for home starts for five consecutive years from 2001-2006,” said Inselmann. “It is unrealistic to expect that we can continue to set records every year. It will probably not happen again in 2007, but it might, if most of the local economic trends persist strongly this year.”

January 12, 2007 - Transwestern Houston announced that it has negotiated a 15,458 sf lease with Mustang Engineering at Cypress Lakes Office Building in Houston. Built in 1984 and renovated in 1997, Cypress Lakes is a 119,072 sf office property located in the North Belt submarket The building os owned by Radler Enterprises, which was represented by Michelle Wogan of Transwestern. Mustang Engineering was represented by Steve Hesse of CB Richard Ellis.

January 11, 2007 - Stream Realty Partners will manage and lease a large portfolio of buildlings in Northwest Houston that have just been purchased by an investment group led by Agellan Capital Partners. The 1.15 million-sf portfolio includes nine buildings of flex space and bulk warehouse buildings. Agellan purchased the portfolio from Teacher's, according to Justin Robinson of Stream Realty. For more detail, please go to Houston Deals.........................................................Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has arranged a $20.7 million financing for 55 Waugh, a 246,000-sf, 12-story office building in Houston. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler associate director Cameron Cureton represented 55 Waugh L.P. Cureton placed a 10-year, mid-5% fixed-rate securitized loan with JP Morgan Real Estate, a conduit lender. The financing will be used to acquire the property. 55 Waugh is located off Memorial Drive in the Midtown office submarket of Houston. The property was extensively renovated in 1991 and 2001 and is currently 94 percent leased.

January 10, 2007 - Transwestern Houston announced that Hobby Lobby has leased 59,166 sf at Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center a center under development in Pearland, Texas. Will Deane of Transwestern represented the owners and Scott Shillings of Staubach Retail represented Hobby Lobby. Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center is a joint venture of Transwestern Development Company, WCF Development and Buchanan Street Partners. Located at the northwest corner of Highway 288 and FM 518, the center will be anchored by H-E-B. Substantial construction will be completed by the summer of 2007.

January 9, 2007 - Chicago Bridge & Iron Co. leased 115,000 sf at Two Riverway, a Class A building in the Galleria area in Houston. CB&I is a leading engineering, procurement and construction companies.Two Riverway is owned by a partnership controlled by Coventry Investment Group of Houston. Coventry acquired Two Riverway in 2004 and recently completed a substantial renovation program. The Galleria/Riverway submarkets have experienced six consecutive quarters of positive leasing absorption. Transwestern agents David Lee and Brad Sinclair represented the landlord in this transaction. CB&I was represented by Scott Wegmann and Justin Leighton of Cushman & Wakefield of Texas

January 8, 2007 - Houston ranks along side Washington DC and Los Angeles as the top markets for commercial real estate investment, according to Grubb & Ellis. Population growth and the strength of the energy industry supported the outlook for outstanding investment opportunities in Houston, even though there was softness in some other parts of the nation. Houston's industrial real estate market ranked 2nd in the nation, behind Los Angeles in the 2007 forecast. Houston also ranked in the top 10 in investment potential for office, multi-family and retail real estate, Grubb & Ellis said.

January 7, 2007 - Newland Communities is reporting a 30% increase in new-home sales in its six Houston area master-planned communities. A total of 2,633 new homes were sold in Newland Communities’ six Houston area developments in 2006, compared to 2,019 sold in 2005. Newland operates Cinco Ranch, Greatwood, Telfair, Eagle Springs, Seven Meadows, Grayson Lakes and Summerwood. Newland Communities also reported a steep increase in commercial land transactions in Houston, with revenues for commercial land sales totaling $78.5 million for 2006. Among the largest transactions in 2006 were the sale of 112 acres in Telfair to WDJ Realty Interests, for the Crossing at Telfair mixed-use development. In Cinco Ranch, 70 acres were sold to Thor Equities for a new retail development.

January 3, 2007 - Weichert Realtors Intown Properties, a brokerage firm led by Stephen A. Thistle has opened at 2323 South Shepherd Drive, Suite 910 in Houston. Thistle is on the board of the Houston Association of Realtors............ Transwestern’s Multifamily Investment Services Group announced the sale of The Village at Riverside in Austin, Texas. The Village at Riverside is a 408-unit room, student housing property located at 1500 Crossing Place, Austin, TX. The project was sold for an undisclosed amount to a private capital investor and was 99 percent occupied at the close of the sale. Transwestern exclusively represented the Seller, TriMont Real Estate Advisors.

January 1, 2007 - An office building on the Katy Freeway, just west of downtown, has been sold to a California investor. Roshan Towers LLC bought the 112,585-sf Midtown Plaza, 5225 Interstate 10, just east of T.C. Jester. The seller of the building was Asset Plus. A brokerage team led by Rusty Tamlyn handled the sale. Tamlyn recently left Trammell Crow and joined Holliday Fenoglio Fowler.

2006

December Blog

December 31, 2006 -- Existing home sales were up in November and it appears the national housing market may have bottomed out. Total sales, including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – rose 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.28 million units in November from a level of 6.24 million in October, but were 10.7 percent below the 7.03 million-unit pace in November 2005, the National Association of Realtors said. David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, said modest gains are expected for home sales. “As the housing market recovers from its correction, existing-home sales should be rising gradually during 2007 – it looks like we may have reached the low point for the current cycle in September,” he said. “We’ve entered a more sustainable period of home sales now, and we expect greater support for prices over time as inventory levels are eventually drawn down.”

December 26, 2006 - Behringer Harvard REIT of Dallas has purchased The Eldridge One and Eldridge Two - a pair of office buildings in Houston's Energy Corridor. The Eldridge Place acquisition consists of a 12-story building built in 1984 and a 14-story building built in 1986. The two office towers share a prime 6.4-acre site and provide 518,746 sf of rentable office space. The buildings are 94 percent leased.

December 22, 2006 - Will Penland, who has directed the operations of CB RIchard Ellis in Houston since 1990 is leaving the company in early 2007. Penland will be replaced as senior managing director bu John Holland of Trammell Crow. CB Richard Ellis has 450 employees, including 80 sales professionals, in its Houston office. Trammell Crow is merging with CB RIchard Ellis. For more information please go to the People Blog.

December 21, 2006 - The nation's commercial real estate market is strong and investment sales are rising, according to a study by the National Association of Reatlors. David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, said performance varies among the commercial sectors. “The office and industrial markets continue to shine, supported by job growth and trade, while the rental apartment sector is seeing healthy rent increases,” he said. “The retail sector is essentially flat, but the hotel industry is doing better than at any time since 2001.” Over $236 billion in commercial real estate transaction volume was recorded in the first ten months of 2006, up from $231.9 billion in the same period of 2005 ( not including properties valued at less than $5 million or any hotels.)

December 20, 2006 - SunCal, a California-based community developer, has acquired 57,000 acres near Albuquerque. “This is one of the most significant land transactions in recent history,” said George Rizk, head of real estate investments at the D.E. Shaw group, parent company of SunCal. “Development of this land will reshape the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County region – potentially the entire Southwest."

December 19 , 2006 - CBL & Associates has completed the purchase of 147 acres in Pearland, south of Houston, for a 1.2 million-sf mixed-use project. The Pearland Town Center will have retail, office, residential units, a hotel and restaurants. Construction will begin in the first quarter of 2007 and the project will be complete in the fall of 2008. Pearland Town Center wll include 710,000-sf of open-air retail with Dillard's and Macy's as anchors. The hotel will be a four-story, 110-room Courtyard by Marriott. Office space will be located above the retail. The project will be locted at the southwest corner of Highway 288 and FM 518. CBL & Associates is based in Chattanooga, Tenn.

December 17, 2006 - Long Reach Associates is developing a 236-unit apartment complex at the southwest corner of Dunlavy and Richmond. Steinberg Design Collaborative designed the complex -- a podium structure consisting of four floors of apartments above a two level parking garage. Davis Brothers Construction is the general contractor. A $26 million construction/permanent loan was arranged by Jim Kirkpatrick of Live Oak Capital through Guardian Life Insurance Co.

December 16, 2006 - Hakeem Olajuwon has received a lot of national publicity over the years for his outstanding play on the basketball court. Lately, he is getting notice for what he has done in the Houston real estate market. The New York Times, in a story written by Kate Murphy, recently chronicled Olajuwon's real estate investment activity in Houston. Hakeem has done very well, buying well located Inner Loop property and selling it to others for a profit. Hakeem pays all-cash because it is against his religion to pay interest on borrowed money. Hakeem has bought and sold property in and around downtown Houston and has done well with the Westheimer Moving & Storage tract on the Southwest Freeway at Kirby. Hakeem was fantastic as a center for the University of Houston and the Houston Rockets and has been a great asset for our city.

December 15, 2006 - Crescent Real Estate Equities announced the sale of Bank One Center, a 1.5 million sf Class A office property located in downtown Dallas. The property, of which Crescent owned a 50 percent interest, was sold for $216 million, or $141 per square foot.

December 14, 2006 - The Houston office of Trammell Crow announced that First Reliance Marketing sold the Woodway Office building, a 109,405-sf Class B office building to JMA Properties. The property, located at 7660 Woodway, was 88 percent leased at the time of sale with tenants including Pinnacle Engineering, Quilts, Dynowatt and the Thomas Nelson Group.

December 13, 2006 - Houston's hotel business is humming. For the first 10 months of 2006, Houston saw average occupancy rise to 70.4 percent, up 1.5 percentage points over 2005. The average room rate through October was $99.57, up 6.7 percent over the comparable period of 2005. In the month of October, hotel. occupancy stood at 71.4 percent and average daily rate was $104.81, up 6.3 percent over October of last year. The hotel report is prepared by PKF Consulting, which is headed up in Houston by John Keeling. Heavier business travel is making the difference.

December 12, 2006 - Crescent Real Estate Equities has sold its Three Westlake Park building in Houston's Energy Corridor for $87.3 million, or $210 psf. The 415,000-sf tower had been owned in partnership with a General Electric pension fund. Richard Rudd handled the sale............. Steve Montgomery has been named managing director of tenant advisory services for the Transwestern real estate firm in Houston. Montgomery is a veteran in Houston real estate and was most recently with Cushman & Wakefield..........Transwestern announced the development of Phase IV of Southpark Commerce Center Industrial Park, which will add 417,400 sf of industrial space to the Southeast Austin submarket.Transwestern will begin construction in February. Southpark Commerce Center, located on the southeast corner of I-35 and Ben White.

December 11, 2006 - Pearland, located south of Houston, continues to get a lot of development activity. A Courtyard by Marriott hotel will be developed at the southwest corner of FM 518 and Highway 288 in a CBL & Associates development, which will be anchored by Dillard's and Macy's. On another quadrant of the 518/288 intersection Transwestern is developing a 600,000-sf retail project anchored by HEB.... In east Pearland, Jim Fisher and Jeffco Development is developing a center at Fm 518 and Pearland Parkway. In addition to the gobs of new retail development, Pearland is getting new limited service hotels, new medical facilities, free-standing banks and some small office buildings.

December 10, 2006 - The Lyndon Baines Johnson Museum of San Marcos has opened in the central Texas town of San Marcos. The museum focuses on LBJ's days at Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos...... Nancy Sarnoff of the Houston Chronicle reported in her Sunday column that the tunnel retail level under the JPMorgan Chase Tower in downtown Houston is undergoing a major renovation and getting new tenants........... The real estate section of the Houston Chronicle noted that Bob Hale, president of HAR, had received recognition as one of "Real Estate's 25 Most Influential Thought Leaders" by Realtor magazine.

December 7, 2006 - Rob Cook of Robert D. Cook Properties was sworn in Thursday as 2007 chairman of the Houston Association of Realtors at a banquet at the Houston Inter Continental Houston Hotel. Other officers include Michael Levitin, Vicki Fullerton, Margie Dorrance, Carlos Bujosa and Lorraine Abercrombie. For more on the HAR event please to to the People Blog page........ Hines, the Houston-based real estate firm, purchased Doral Corporate Center, a 276,000-sf office complex in the Airport West submarket of Miami. The seller was a private REIT advised by Chicago-based LaSalle Investment Management .

December 6, 2006 - Two veterans of the Houston's investment brokerage community, Rusty Tamlyn and H. Dan Miller, have joined the Holliday Fenoglio Fowler firm. Tamlyn and Miller had been with Trammell Crow Co. Tamlyn and Miller both have been in investment sales for more than 25 years............Mortgage rates have dropped to their lowest point since January of 2006, according to a Freddie Mac national survey. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.11 percent for the week ending December 7. "Continued signs of slowing in the housing market and weakness in the manufacturing sector helped keep mortgage rates down this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. "As a matter of fact, the 30-year FRM is very nearly the lowest it has been this year. The only other time it has been lower was in January when it fell to 6.10 percent. Looking forward in the housing market, we think that housing is about 2/3 of the way through the correction, and should stabilize by mid-year 2007." The highest rate in Freddie Mac's weekly surveys was 6.8 percent in July.

December 5, 2006 - Atlanta-based Cousins Properties is developing a 360,000-sf office project in southwest Austin. The 22-acre project is called Palisades West. A 210,000-sf building will be occupied by Dimensional Fund Advisors of Santa Monica, Calif. In addition, a 150,000-sf spec building will be built. Cousins is no stranger to Austin. Earlier this year, Cousins sold Frost Bank Tower, a 33-story, 531,000-sf tower in downtown Austin, to Equity Office for $188 million or approximately $354 per square foot.

December 4, 2006 - Approximately 55,000 acres of land near Huntsville, Tx. will be purchased by the Rayonier company of Jacksonville, Fla. for $121 million. The acreage has a rich supply of timber that can be harvested. The land is also in the pathway of future development as Houston's growth pushes northward, said Dan Daniels of Greater Houston Marketing Services, which had been marketing the land. The acreage, known as the Gibbs Forest, is being sold by Global Forest Partners, LP. The property, mostly located in Walker County, is within a 30-minute drive of The Woodlands. The portions of the property near Interstate 45 have potential for development as master-planned communities.

December 3, 2006 - Bob Hale, president and CEO of the Houston Association of Realtors, has been honored by Realtor magazine for his outstanding leadership at HAR. The national magazine tapped Hale as one of "Real Estate's 25 Most Influential Thought Leaders." Hale is cited for his innovative work in making the association's web site, HAR.com, an exceptionally popular web site with consumers. Hale is also credited with the creation of a quality service program that allows buyers and sellers to rate the service provided by their salespersons. The Houston Association of Realtors is the second largest local association in the nation.

November Blog

November 30, 2006 - Tuscan Lakes, an 870-acre project on Houston's southeast side, is gaining some commercial development. Cencor Realty Services will develop a 60,000-sf retail project in Tuscan Lakes, which is two miles east of Interstate 45 in League City. Martin Fein Interests is developing apartments in Tuscan Lakes, which will have 1,850 single-family homes, priced from $150,000 to over $1 million. Tuscan Lakes is among the latest in the Johnson Development portfolio of master-planned communities in the Houston area, which includes Silverlake, Sienna Plantation, Fall Creek, Riverstone, Woodforest and Edgewater.

November 29, 2006 - Churrascos restaurant will open in The Woodlands in the spring. Cordua Restaurants, the parent of Churrascos, leased a 9,000-sf retail space in the 21 Waterway Avenue building in The Woodlands Town Center for another Churrascos, according to Dan Leverett, vice president, commercial, for The Woodlands Development Co. Tom Estus of Shelby/Estus Realty represented the restaurant and Greg Jordan represented the landlord................. Sales of exisitng homes were down 11.5 percent in October, as compared to October 2005, according to a national report by the National Association of Realtors. The national median home price was $221,000 in October, which is 3.5 percent below October 2005. There are parts of the nation where the housing market remains steady and strong, such as Houston. But the west coast and other markets that experienced wild price appreciation in recent years are going through a correction.

November 28, 2006 - Marvy Finger of the Finger Cos. has relocated several large oak trees in downtown Houston where he is starting construction on a 37-story apartment tower. The apartment tower, called One Park Place, will be the largest residential tower in downtown Houston............. Prudential Gary Greene Realtors has opened an office in Sienna Plantation in Fort Bend County.

November 27, 2006 - Transwestern has begun construction on a 600,000 sf retail project in Pearland. The project, Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center, will be located west of Highway 288 and north of FM 518. HEB will be the anchor tenant. The land at that interesection has been controlled by Wayne Fox of WCF Development.

November 26, 2006 - Triyar Cos. has put its Texas malls -- Greenspoint Mall, Pasadena Town Square, Mall of the Mainland, San Jacinto Mall and Crossroads Mall in Greenville - up for sale, listing the properties with CB Richard Ellis, according to Real Estate Alert newsletter.

November 25, 2006 - Sales of existing homes were down 12 percent in the third quarter nationally from the third quarter of 2005, according to the National Association of Realtors. The national median existing single-family home price was $224,900 in the third quarter, down 1.2 percent from a year earlier when the median price was $227,600. Said David Lereah, chief economist for NAR: “With the market in full transition, buyers now have choices and sellers are more willing to negotiate – under these circumstances it’s no surprise that overall home prices are slightly below a year ago. We expect this trend to continue in the months ahead, but we’ll see modest appreciation in most of the country in 2007.” The Texas market has performed better than the nation. However, Dr. Barton Smith, a Houston economist has warned that Houston home builders are overbuilding and Houston will see some softness in 2007.

November 24, 2006 - The nation's commercial real estate markets are continuing to climb, although the pace of expansion may ease up in 2007, according to the National Association of Realtors. Commercial leasing and sales activity in the first quarter of 2007 will be 2.9 percent higher than the first quarter of 2006, the NAR said.................................... In other news, Trammell Crow Co. anounced that its merger with CB Richard Ellis is expected to be finalized on Dec. 20. The Federal Trade Commission approved an early closing date on the mega-deal.

November 23, 2006 - Happy Thanksgiving

November 22, 2006 - David R. Richards, who played offensive lineman for several NFL teams, has been named senior vice president and managing director of the Dallas office of Grubb & Ellis. Richards was a starting offensive lineman for the San Diego Chargers, Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots before leaving the NFL in 1996..... ............... .............................. A partnership led by Hines has acquired the Riverfront Plaza , which consists of two 21-story towers in Richmond, Va. Riverfront Plaza's two office buildings – 901 and 951 East Byrd Street – that overlook downtown Richmond’s James River. Designed by HKS, Inc. Architects of Dallas, Riverfront Plaza was completed in 1990. The buildings, which contain a total of 950,475 sf, are 99 percent leased. The buyer is the Core Fund - an investment vehicle organized by Hines and Sumitomo Life Realty (N.Y.), Inc.

November 21, 2006 - Greg Thomas, real estate writer for The New Orleans Times-Picayune newspaper, has been named the winner of the fifth Annual NAREE Bivins Fellowship, which is awarded by the National Association of Real Estate Editors. Thomas will use the $5,000 Fellowship to study the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and its impact on the real estate market. The NAREE Bivins Fellowship entries are judged by George Harmon, head of the Business Writing Program at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. The award is named for NAREE past president Ralph Bivins to honor his decades of leadership to the NAREE group. Bivins, an award-winning, Houston-based journalist, is editor of RealtyNewsReport.com and a NAREE honorary life member.... ........................Curtice Commercial Real Estate has relocated its offices to Sugar Land Town Square, located at the corner of Texas 6 and Highway 59. The firm, which is led by Kolbe Curtice, has a second floor office above Johnny Rockets restaurant.

November 20, 2006 - Equity Office Properties Trust announced that it has signed a merger agreement to be acquired by Blackstone Real Estate Partners, an affiliate of The Blackstone Group, in a transaction valued at approximately $36 billion. Blackstone will acquire all of the common stock of Equity Office for $48.50 per share. The deal will close in the first quarter 2007. Equity Office is the nation's largest publicly trade owner of office properties. Equity Office owns whole or partial interests in 580 buildings with 108 million sf of space.

November 19, 2006 - Eminent domain has become the nation's most legislated and emotionally inflamed property rights issue with 30 of the nation's state legislatures passing new eminent domain laws in the last year and more legislation on the way. Voters in nine states approved have some form of eminent domain legislation in early November elections. Most of the new laws are designed to prevent eminent domain acquisitions that improperly deliver properties to private developers via the use of condemnation proceedings. But the nation's most seasoned eminent domain company, Lewis Realty Advisors, says these new laws won't come into play very often. "I would not say all of these state legislators were wasting their time. But if you take a balanced look at the thousands of eminent domain cases that have occurred over the years, this power to take land has not been abused very often," said David Lewis, founder of Houston-based Lewis Realty Advisors. For more information please go to National Items.

November 17, 2006 Houston's office market, pushed along by growth in the energy industry, has made significant gains in 2006. The citywide office availability rate dropped to 16 percent in the third quarter, a significant decline from the 20.3 percent in the third quarter of 2005, according to the Studley real estate firm. Please go to Leasing Briefs for more details.

November 16, 2006 - Two multi-family properties in Houston’s Westchase District, in an investment sale organized by Teresa Guidotti Lowery, a recognized multi-family investment specialist for Colliers International. Offers for the two projects are due by December 1, 2006 at 5 p.m. The two properties, the 296-unit Boca Springs Apartments and the 166-unit Pagewood Place, are being offered on an “all-cash” basis. For more information please go to Multi-Family Magazine.

November 15, 2006 - American Spectrum Realty Inc. has made an offer to buy all of the outstanding shares of Hartman Commercial Properties REIT for $10 per share. Hartman controls dozens of office buildings, office/service centers and retail properties in Texas. Both companies are based in Houston. Hartman Commercial was founded by Al Hartman.

November 13, 2006 - The Villages of Cypress Creek, a 384-unit artment complex in northwest Houston developed by GenCap Partners in 2003 has been sold, according to CB Richard Ellis. The buyer, Francis Property Management, Inc., was represented by International Realty Concepts, Inc. CBRE’s Craig LaFollette, Todd Stewart, Todd Marix, and Tre Banks handled the sale.

November 12, 2006 - New Orleans is still struggling to recover from Hurricane Katrina. In recent days I toured the devastation areas and witnessed acres and acres of boarded-up homes and storefronts. One of the bright spots is the Musician's Village in the Upper Ninth Ward. Musician's Village is a Habitat for Humanity charity project that is being promoted by jazzmen Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick Jr. The brightly colored homes, elevated four feet off the ground with pier & beam construction, are a sign of hope that is truly inspirational. New Orleans hosted the National Association of Realtors convention this weekend -- a 30,000 attendee confab. It was the biggest convention there in the Post-Katrina era. The city and its still-viable French Quarter proved it can handle big crowds. Former presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton told a Realtor audience there should be bi-partisan support of recovery efforts. Clinton told the Realtors to go back to their home towns spreading the word about New Orleans' recovery. Some 43 percent of the city's schools have reopened, 85 percent of the hotels rooms are online and 60 percent of the electricity service has been repaired.

November 10, 2006 - Builders home sales are still strong in the Houston area. But home builders are slowing down on their appetites to buy more lots. Third quarter lot deliveries declined 22.3 percent, from 16,405 in the second quarter of 2006 to 12,750 in the third quarter, according to MetroStudy. The decline in production is a cause of optimism in the market, said Houston housing analyst Mike Inselmann, president of MetroStudy. Third-quarter 2006 closings increased 1.4 percent over the third quarter new-home sales recorded in 2005, said Inselmann. For the full Inselmann report please go to Residential Topics.

November 9, 2006 - Dienna Nelson Augustine will break ground on a 144,000-sf, three-story multi-tenant office building in Westway Park on a 9-acre parcel located at the northeast corner of the Sam Houston Tollway and Equity Drive near the Sam Houston Tollway/Clay Road interchange. The 150-acre business park was developed by Wolff Cos., which sold the site to Dienna. The new building is already fifty percent pre-leased. EE Reed is the general contractor. The building is fourth in Westway Park designed by Kirksey architects.............In other news, Koll Development has announced a new tenant in Westway Park. St. Paul Travelers Companies have leased the 158,000 sf Intellicenter building at 4650 Westway Park Boulevard. Travelers will take possession of the 3-story, LEED certified building in July 2007, consolidating four offices in the metro region into one location............. Occupancy at Houston area hotels was down 11 percent in September in comparison to September 2005, according to PKF Consulting. Last September Houston hotel occupancy was bolstered significantly by Hurrican Katrina evacuees.

November 8, 2006 - The Woodlands Development Co. has announced plans for a 13-story building called 24 Waterway Avenue. The 308,000-sf building will be the largest spec building contrructed by The Woodlands Development Co. Waterway Square, an urban plaza with a 120-foot long waterwall is also underway. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn will preside at the groundbreaking ceremony today..........In another major announcement, The Woodlands has announced plans for developing a new 3,492-acre section that will be called Village of Creekside Park. The new village will be south of Spring Creek in northern Harris County. Homebuilding will start there in early 2007.

November 6, 2006 - A new residential community is being planned adjacent to Mall of the Mainland, located just east of the Gulf Freeway in Texas City. The buyer, 412 Central Park Ltd. is led by Joe Fogerty and Tom Moughton. The Mall of the Mainland have never been a top performer among Houston's regional malls. But continued growth, pushing southward out the Gulf Freeway, is making the Mall of the Mainland and other Galveston County retail enterprises look more promising every day. The 412-acre land parcel was marketed by Cushman & Wakefield...................... Rand Stephens and Josh LaRocca have been named managers of the new office of Mohr Partners in Houston. The office is located at 2425 West Loop South. Stephens was previously with Studley. LoRocca previously was with Blackstone Partners. Ted Fredericks is president of Dallas-based Mohr.

November 5, 2006 - A large number of new office projects will be built in Houston in 2007 as the energy industry fuels a construction boom. Trey Strake of Cushman & Wakefield told the RealShare Conference in Houston that 41 new buildings are proposed, planned or under construction in suburban Houston. Tim Relyea of C & W said one or two buildings will be started in downtown, which has tightened considerably because of a major expansion by Chevron.

RealShare conferences are produced by the Real Estate Media organization, which is led by Michael Desiato.

November 4, 2006 - Giorgio Borlenghi of the Interfin Co. has purchased a 2.6-acre parcel of land at the northeast corner of Weslayan and West Alabama for future development, the Houston Chronicle reported..................... ........ The Cosmopolitan Houston, an 80-unit condominium residence being developed by Randall Davis in Uptown, has signed as the first Luxury on Demand property in Houston. Luxury on Demand, offered by CenterPoint Energy, is part of a marketing campaign to encourage the use of of natural gas found in upscale condominiums .

November 2, 2006 - The merger of CB RIchard Ellis and Trammell Crow is an ideal match, said Will Penland, senior managing director of the CB Richard Ellis operations in Houston. Penland discussed the deal briefly Thursday while appearing at the Houston RealShare Conference at the Westin Galleria Hotel. "There is a great strategic fit for both companies. It is particularly meaningful for Dallas and Houston," Penland said. CBRE is expected to close on the purchase of Trammell Crow in late 2006 or early next year.

November 1, 2006 - A six-story, 155,000-sf office building is under development in northwest Houston in the new Beltway Lakes development at Beltway 8 and Highway 249. The project also has excellent access via Hollister Road, said David Carter of Yancey-Hausman, which is marketing the project. Radler Enterprises is developing the 40-acre Beltway Lakes. ........... Southern Cross Construction Co. has purchased the Class-B, 776-unit Baybrook Village apartment complex in Houston at 2702 West Bay Area Boulevard. The seller, an institutional investor, was represented by Craig LaFollette, Todd Stewart, Todd Marix and Tre Banks, all of CB Richard Ellis.......... CB Richard Ellis Group has agreed to acquire the Trammell Crow Co. for $2.2 billion to create what would be the world's largest commercial real estate firm. After the merger the combined company would have 21,000 employees and $4.4 billion in annual revenue. The sale will close late in 2006 or early in 2007. .

October Blog

October 31, 2006 - NewQuest Properties bought the Westheimer Market Place Center, a 136,000-sf shopping vcenter at Westheimer and Dairy Ashford. The seller was a jont venture of Regency Centers and Macquarie CountryWide Trust. Specializing in retail investment sales, George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer in the Houston office of Grubb & Ellis Company exclusively represented the Seller. A Randall's formerly anchored the center and it is leasing space which is no longer occupied.

October 30, 2006 - The River Oaks Country Club, a blue-chip faciity in Houston's most prestigious neighborhood, is considering the development of a new health club and spa. The River Oaks project will be analyzed by Herb Lipsman, formerly with The Redstone Cos. Lipsman has formed a new firm called The Health Club Company. Lipsman is also chairman of the city's Welness Council for Mayor Bill White.

October 26, 2006 -- Trammell Crow has broken ground on a 330,000-sf office building in the Energy Corridor of west Houston. The building, developed in partnership with the real estate arm of Principal Financial Group, will be located at the northeast corner of Eldridge Parkway and the Katy Freeway. The 13-story project will be completed in December 2007. The project was designed by Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (HOK), and Manhattan Construction Company is serving as general contractor. Phase II of the project, a 12-story building, is on the drawing boards. The building will be located adjacent to facilities occuped by Shell and ConocoPhillips.............In Sunrise, Fla., near Fort Lauderdale, construction has begun on a 293,000-sf IKEA store. David Iemolo is IKEA's real estate director. There currently are more than 240 IKEA stores in 34 countries, including 28 in the U.S., where the company plans to open three to five stores a year, including one planned for Round Rock, Texas. IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943....... Heritage Texas Properties, one of the largest residential realty firms in the state hosted a large open house at its West Loop office Wednesday night. Heritage Texas leadership, including Lynn Zarr, Robin Mueck and Cheri Fama, were on hand along with a large crowd of luminaries from the real estate business.... Please go to the People Blog for more details.

October 25, 2006 - The fastest growing consumer group in Texas - the Hispanic community - has large numbers of families that can purchase homes, but they just aren't aware that they can indeed qualify for a mortgage. That's according for former San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros, who recently completed a book "Casa Y Communidad." The book, underwritten by the National Association of Home Builders, educates builders on the importance of the Hispanic home buyer and disseminating information to the public. Cisneros spoke to a group of builders Tuesday night at an event sponsored by CasaNuevaHouston.com, a multi-lingual web site led by Anita Sparks-Bohn, Damon Thomas and Lisa Zapalac. Mayor Bill White told the audience that Houston is one of the most affordable home-buying markets in the nation, but home ownership is still out of reach for many famiies. White also disclosed an interesting personal tidbit -- that as a young man White bought his first home in a distant Houston suburb, a 1,300-sf budget dwelling, priced at $40,000 and it required a $2,000 down payment. A lot of significant players in the Houston home building business attended the event, held at the Museum of Fine Arts, including Oscar Gonzales, Toy Wood, Brian Binash, Tim Fitzpatrick and Mike Inselmann, to name a few.

Ralph Bivins of RealtyNewsReport.com and Houston Mayor Bill White

October 24, 2006 - The Johnson Development Corp. is purchasing 2,500 acres in southern Montgomery County. Formerly known as Fish Creek, the land will be developed as Woodforest, a master-planned community. Johnson Development has purchased 2,055 acres and is under contract to purchase an additional 459 acres. The land parcels are east of Honea Egypt Road, south of FM 2854, north of FM 1488. The site surrounds Woodforest Golf Club, a Steve Elkington-designed championship course that opened in 2001. Johnson Development developed numerous projects including master-planned communities such as Sienna Plantation, Fall Creek, Riverstone, Silverlake, Tuscan Lakes, Edgewater and Berkshire in Houston, and Towne Lake, BridgeMill and Lake Arrowhead in Atlanta.

October 23, 2006 - Another tract on San Felipe in Houston's Uptown area has been acquired in a important street widening effort by the Uptown Development Authority. The latest land purchase in this effort is a strip of land at the northwest corner of San Felipe and Garrettson. The property, which was purchased from William C. Morris III, runs in front of a Wachovia Bank location. The land transaction is one of several negotiated by Matthew Deal of Lewis Realty Advisors on behalf of the Uptown Authority near the corner of San Felipe and Post Oak Boulevard, one of the primary intersections in Uptown Houston. Please go to Houston Deals for more details. .......................................................................................Grubb & Ellis announced the sale of the 86,000-sf Westgate Shopping Center in Houston. A California group, Royal Investors Group, purchased the property. George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer, both of Grubb & Ellis, handled the sale.

October 22, 2006 - Yao Ming, star of the NBA's Houston Rockets, will open Yao's Restaurant and Bar in the 800,000-sf Houston Pavilions center under development in downtown Houston. Houston Pavilions, scheduled to October 2008, will have entertainment, retail, office and urban residential. The project, bounded by Dallas Street, Polk, Main Street and Caroline, will span three city blocks. It is being developed by Geoffrey Jones and William Denton. Other tenants will include House of Blues, McCormick and Schmick's, and Lawry's - The Prime Rib.

October 21, 2006 - New to Texas and new to Clear Lake City: Fidelis SeniorCare, a Schaumburg, Illinois-based, nationwide managed care company, leased 6,002 sf in Camino Center II, 17625 El Camino Real in Clear Lake, a suburb on the southeast side of Houston. It is Fidelis' first office in Texas. The firm currently operates managed care health plans in North Carolina and Michigan and is entering the Texas market. Dinah Roessler of Realty Executives of Clear Lake represented Fidelis SeniorCare in lease negotiations. Erik Haugen of PM Realty Group, Houston, represented the landlord, KBS Realty Advisors Houston Portfolio.

October 19, 2006 - Houston's home sales were up 17.8 percent in September over September of last year, according to the Houston Association of Realtors. "While national real estate news is not very good, we are enjoying steady growth and in many cases, breaking previous records,” said Lorraine Abercrombie, HAR Chair and Marketing Director for Greenwood King Properties. “We will watch with cautiously optimistic eyes as we approach the traditionally slower holiday season, but for now, we are pleased with the numbers.”........ .......... ........Planned Community Developers has announced two new national retailers have leased space in Sugar Land Town Square, located near the intersection of Highway 6 and Highway 59. The two new stores are Learning Express and Right Start, children's retailers. Randall Lerner of Wilson, Cribbs & Goren, PC represented Learning Express and Shawn Ackerman of Henry S. Miller Commercial represented Right Start in the transactions. Bruce Frankel represented the lessor, Town Center Lakeside, Ltd..

October 18, 2006 - The Hotel Icon, a redevelopment project in downtown Houston, has been sold to Loews Enterprises of Los Angeles, according to a story by Nancy Sarnoff in the Wednesday editions of the Houston Chronicle. The 135-room property, located at 220 Main, was redeveloped by Randall Davis in an old bank building..................... In San Antonio, the Fountainhead One office building has been sold, according to the Transwestern realty firm. Please go to Texas Roundup for more details.

October 17, 2006 -- Many Baby Boomers intend to keep working into their 70s and they won't be in the market for retirement housing as soon as some had anticipated, according to a new study by the National Association of Realtors. The massive post-war Baby Boomer generation was born between 1946 and 1964. A quarter of baby boomers own one or more other kinds of real estate in addition to a primary residence: 13 percent own land, 8 percent own rental property, 7 percent a vacation home or seasonally occupied property, 2 percent commercial real estate and 3 percent some other kind of real estate, the NAR reported.

October 16, 2006 - Another energy services firm has leased space to accommodate growth, an example of a significant trend in the Houston market. Patriot Mechanical Handling, a Houston-based mechanical handling equipment provider for the oil-and-gas industry, has leased 4,568 sf in Parkview II, 333 Cypress Run, for its executive offices. The building is located in the Energy Corridor. The firm is expanding and maintains its U.S. Operations Office at 397 N. Sam Houston Parkway East and its manufacturing facility at 14421 Chrisman Road. Danna Chenault-Sossen of The Real Estate Department, represented Patriot Mechanical Handling in lease negotiations. Doug Little of PM Realty Group represented the landlord, KBS Realty Advisors.

October 15, 2006 - Warehouse construction is surging in Houston. The boom is fueled by expansion at the Port of Houston, a thriving energy industry and continued job growth for the region. Grubb & Ellis realty firm reports 5.5 milllion sf of industrial space is currently under construction. Houston's industrial vacancy rate is 5.5 percent, the lowest in eight years. The southeast sector which includes the Port has 10 buildings being built. Some 2.1 million sf of speculative industrial space has been completed so far this year. Eleven buildings were completed in the third quarter, Grubb & Ellis said.

October 13, 2006 - Fasten your seat belt, please, because economic turbulence may be ahead, says David S. Jones, an editor in the Texas A&M Real Estate Center. Texas will probably be OK, but a recession may be in the future elsewhere. On a national basis economists predict an 11.5 percent decline in housing starts in 2006, followed by a similar drop in 2007. The nation's economy may be in for a recession next year, says Mark Dotzour, chief economist for the Texas A&M center. Dotzour is concerned because the United States has had a flat or inverted yield curve for nine months. This artificial situation occurs when short-term interest rates are higher than long-term rates. This typically causes a recession within 12 to 18 months, says Dotzour. The biggest risk to Texas is that national home builders construct an excessive supply of home in Texas to make up for slow sales elsewhere, Dotzour said. To read the entire David S. Jones column click here.

October 12, 2006 - Newmark Homes has purchased two tracts for upscale home building. Newmark bought 20 acres immediately adjacent to Greatwood, a Sugar Land community at U.S. 59 and Crabb River Road. Newmark also purchased more than 30 acres in Kelliwood, a Katy community on Fry Road near Westheimer Parkway. The Katy acreage abuts George Bush Park and Willow Fork Country Club............. Thomas Properties Group entered the Houston property market in October 2005 and has signed leases for 1,285,000 sf of office space during its first 12 months of property ownership and management in the Texas city. The firm worked with 20 real estate brokerage firms on the transactions that ranged from 600,000 to 2,000 sf.

October 11, 2006 - A lawsuit regarding the taking of a portion of the former REI sporting goods property on the Katy Freeway in Houston has resulting in a jury awarding $5 million to REI. As part of the freeway widening, TxDot used eminent domain to acquire 1 acre of REI's 3.5-acre site. The eminent domain taking resulted in REI losing more than half of its parking, said Mark Sikes, a principal at Houston-based Lewis Realty Advisors. A retail location without adequate parking has diminished value, said Sikes, who was an expert witness in the case. Please go to Houston Deals to learn more about the case.

October 10, 2006 - One of Houston's great apartment developers, Harold Farb, has died. He was 83. Farb developed more than 25,000 units, many of them in the 1970s and 1980s -- the go-go years of Houston's apartment industry. He also developed San Felipe Plaza, a high-rise office tower in the Galleria area. Mr. Farb was a friendly fellow, kind, courteous and truly interested in other people. I always enjoyed interviewing him or having lunch and just chatting. He will be missed.

Houston apartment magnate Marvy Finger said: "Harold was a giant in the apartment industry. He was a true pioneer in multifamily housing and built far ahead of the pack. He was the first, and at the time, only builder who set up his own construction company so he controlled all aspects of his developments, bringing his costs down and usually completing his projects early."

October 9, 2006 - Panattoni Development Co. has broken ground on a west Houston office building with Allstate Insurance as its primary tenant, according to CB Richard Ellis. The 132,000-sf project is off of Beltway 8 near Clay Road in the Beltway 8 Corporate Centre business park. Allstate leased 75,000 sf and the remaining 55,000 sf of space is available for lease. Craig Beyer, Bill Boyer, and Sanford Criner of CB Richard Ellis represented Allstate and Dena Wren and John Pruitt of CB Richard Ellis represented Panattoni. It was a pleasure to visit with some of my long-time friends at the groundbreaking ceremony Monday morning. There are a lot of positive things happening in Houston's office market right now. (See Chevron leasing story below). ..............Texas Iron & Metal has acquired a 75,000-sf industrial building at 4001 Homestead in Houston. Colliers International's Gary Mabray and Michael J. Taetz represented the seller, Friedman Industries, a steel manufacturer. Jack Butera of Brown, Butera and MacDougall represented Texas Iron & Metal in the transaction.

October 8, 2006 - Chevron has leased the former Enron headquarters building, a 1.2 million sf, 50-story tower in downtown Houston. The building, 1400 Smith, was just acquired by Brookfield Properties of New York for $120 million. "This acquisition underscores our confidence in the long-term viability of energy sector markets such as Houston and Calgary," said Ric Clark, President & CEO of Brookfield Properties. The deal comes as part of Brookfield's purchase of Trizec Properties. Paul Layne, formerly with Trizec, is now executive VP for Brookfield and oversees Brookfield's Houston region. The lease of the former Enron building, which is now called Four Allen Center, is the biggest lease to occur in America in more than five years. The lease transaction was negotiated by Paul Layne, Paul Frazier, Steven Lukingbeal, Jeremiah Larkin and Duncan McCuaig for the landlord. Steve Koliba, leasing manager for Chevron Business and Real Estate Services, and Tim Relyea of Cushman & Wakefield represented Chevron. For more information please go to Leasing Briefs.

October 7 , 2006 - Two Houston apartment projects have been sold. The 534-unit Sierra Vista Apartments, 5500 El Camino del Rey, and the 142-unit La Scala project were sold in separate transactions handled by CB RIchard Ellis. Please go to Multi-Family Magazine for more details.

October 5, 2006 - Dallas-based Verde Realty purchased 16 acres of land in northwest Houston for a multi-family residential project. the property located within The Villages of NorthPointe subdivision with the intention of developing a multi-family residential project on the site. The tract is located at Northpointe Boulevard and State Highway 249. Christopher D. Winters and David Butler, principals in the Colliers International office in Houston, represented Eastbourne Investments Ltd. in the disposition. William Wheless of Wheless Propeties represented Verde Realty in the transaction. It is significant to note the number of new units being constructed in Houston, said Teresa Guidotti Lowery, who leads Colliers Multi-Family Investment Properties group. Please go to Houston Deals for more details....... In other news, Hines is developing an office building in Phoenix. Please go to National Items for more details.

October 4 , 2006 - Trammell Crow Co. has been selected to provide leasing and management for three high-rise office towers -- Wells Fargo Plaza in Houston, One Shell Square in New Orleans and 100 Congress in Austin. The buildings are owned by MetLife. The 71-story Wells Fargo Plaza has 1.72 million sf of space. The 51-story Shell building is the tallest building in New Orleans. And the Austin building is a 22-story, 411,000 sf structure..... ..................... What to do when your property is a hurricane victim? Move in fast to start repairs, says Jenard Gross of Gross Investments. Gross owns a 234-unit apartment complex in Slidell, La. on the shores of Lake Ponchatrain. When Hurricane Katrina poured four inches of water into the project last year, the mold on the interior walls would visably expand everyday. Gross brought in 100 workers within three days to begin rebuilding despite the fact that the project had no water, electricity or telephones. Everything had to be trucked in, including a portable kitchen, Gross told the O'Connor & Associates Apartment Forecast Breakfast Wednesday.

October 3, 2006 - Transwestern Dallas office announced plans to break ground on Mesquite Business Center, a 555,200 sf warehouse/distribution facility located at the southeast corner of U.S. Highway 80 and Big Town Boulevard in North Texas. The project consists of three buildings ranging from 148,000 to 256,000 sf feet on 32 acres. Construction is set to begin in September on all three buildings and should be completed by May 2007 with an estimated project value in excess of $29 million. Transwestern’s equity partner for this project is California-based Buchanan Street Partners.

October 2 , 2006 - The rig count is at its highest point in 20 years, which is doing wonders for the economy in Houston -- the Energy Capital of the World. The Baker Hughes count of active oil drilling rigs in the nation averaged 1,741 in September, up 19.9 percent from September of last year. Baker Hughes reports that this is the highest rig count since January 1986. Employment in oilfield services is up 16 percent over the last year and it would be more if not for a scarity of workers. Some 300 new drilling rigs for on-land use are under construction, according to the Greater Houston Partnership. Chevron is leasing the old Enron Building, a 50-story, 1.2 million-sf building at 1400 Smith.( By the way, the Enron building was just purchased by Brookfield Development, according to the Houston Business Journal.) The closure of the Enron era is overdue. Real energy companies that produce oil are asserting themselves in Houston again -- and it is good news for the city's economy.

October 1, 2006 - The Houston office of Colliers International announced CHRISTUS Health signed a 109,000-sf lease at 1700 West Loop South in Houston’s Galleria office submarket. CHRISTUS Health is Catholic-based, not-for-profit health system made up of hospitals, inpatient and long-term care facilities as well as dozens of clinics, physician offices and health care services. CHRISTUS was represented by Robert S. Parsley, Co-Chairman and Principal, and Bill Byrd, Principal, of Colliers International and Michelle Wogan, Senior Vice President of Transwestern, represented the landlord, CMD Realty Investors, Inc.

September Blog

September 29, 2006 - James D. Kuehn, trustee, purchased 1,269 acres near Magnolia for a 450-lot residential community. Dave Ramsey of NewQuest Properties represented Mill Creek Ltd. in the sale................. .... Veteran shopping center broker Paula Foster, formerly of Grubb & Ellis, has joined the Baker Katz, a Houston-based real estate firm specializing in retail brokerage........................ Jeff Lokey of NewQuest Properties represented Treeline Golf Club in the sale of 130 acres on North Eldridge and Spring Cypress in Tomball, Texas, to Cobblestone Development, which will develop the property for high-end single-family homes....... Houston architecture firm Kirksey has produced “how-to” guide on operating a facility in a more eco-friendly way. The Kirksey Guide to the Green Facility. For a free copy contact Kirksey's Brian Malarkey. www.kirksey.com.

September 28, 2006 - Crescent Real Estate Equities has sold the Four Westlake Park office building in west Houston for $122 million or $217 psf. Crescent had owned the 561,065 sf building in partnership with a pension fund. Crescent, a Fort Worth-based company, has been subject to recent rumors that the entire firm may be sold....... Hines has formed a joint venture with the CalPERS pension fund that will focus on developing "green" buildings that are environmentally sound and sustainable. For more information please go to the National Items page.

September 27, 2006 - Groundbreaking will be held in January for the 37-story One Park Place apartment tower in downtown Houston. The rental project will be on a block bounded by La Branch, Lamar, Austin and McKinney streets. The 346-unit project will be developed by veteran developer Marvy Finger, president of the Finger Cos., on the edge of a new 12-acre municipal park. Some 21,000 sf of retail space will be on the street level of the Finger project, which is slated to open in the Spring of 2009. For more on the Finger project please go to our Multi-Family Magazine page.... ............ On a somber note, funeral services will be held Friday for Jeff Williford of Trammell Crow's Houston office. He formerly owned the Williford Property Group, a Houston office-building management firm. He was 45.

September 25, 2006 - Houston-based Camden Property Trust is developing a 368-unit apartment project in the Washington, D.C. metro area. Please go to the Multi-Family Magazine page for more details.

September 21, 2006 - Gal-Tex Hotel Corp. has purchased two historic hotels in Manitou Springs, Colo. The sale of the hotels, the Cliff House at Pike's Peak and the Wheeler House, was negotiated by Lisa Hankamer of CB Richard Ellis Hotels.

September 20, 2006 - Houstonian Tom Fatjo, who conceived and developed of The Houstonian Hotel Club & Spa in the late 1970s has announced plans to create a luxury resort in the Texas Hill Country. Planned to open in early 2008, Stablewood Springs Resort is located along Texas Highway 39 in Hunt, Texas. Andy Dolce is co-developer of the project. Stablewood Springs will have 100 villas that buyers may elect to put into a rental program.

September 19, 2006 - Opus West Corp. is developing The Crossing at Fort Bend Parkway, a 242,000-sf power center at the northwest corner of Beltway 8 and Fort Bend Parkway in southwest Houston.The Crossing at Fort Bend Parkway will be anchored by a 100,000-sf Home Depot, slated to open before the end of the year. Other committed retailers include Office Depot, Panda Express, Whataburger, National Tire & Battery and Jiffy Lube. The sellers of the land, Arthur S. Friedman and Max A. Friedman, were represented by David Cook of Cushman & Wakefield of Texas and Ed Ryland of Ryland Enterprise. The 56-acre development also will include 80,000 sf of in-line space and 13 pad sites and 12 acres of multi-family housing . Opus is partnering with Trammell Crow Residential on the residential component........................ In other news, Transwestern brokered the disposition of Westpark Business Center on behalf of Avalon Financial Group. Westpark Business Center is a 12-building 209,302 sf office/flex project located in Houston’s southwest submarket at Hillcroft and Westpark Drive. Built in 1970, the project was 80 percent occupied at the time of sale. Brian Gammill of Transwestern represented the seller. Steve King of CB Richard Ellis represented the buyer, Alessio Partners, Inc.

September 18, 2006 - Fondren Southwest Village, a 304,000-sf chopping center in southwest Houston has been purchased by Surrey Equities. The seller, Weingarten Realty, was represented by George Cushing and Wendy Vandeventer of Grubb & Elllis. The project is anchored by Fiesta grocery and Palais Royal................. The Houston office of Grubb & Ellis also announced a notable land sale. Northwest Katy Land Holding purchased 277 acres on Logenbaugh Road, west of Katy Hockley Road. Doug Nicholson and John Nicholson of Grubb & Ellis handled the sale.............The Woodlands Development Co. has selected Page Partners to market retail real estate on the Woodlands Waterway. Josh Jacobs and Chris Pitts of Page Partners will handle that assignment.

September 17, 2006 - Hines has begun construction on a 170,000 sf office building in Energy Corridor of west Houston for Shell Oil Co. The six-story building will be located in Shell's Woodcreek campus. The new building will house Shell's Exploration & Production Americas Company. In addition, Hines will build a 30,000 sf amenities center and an 800-car garage there. Tim Relyea and Joe Peddie of Cushman & Wakefield represented Shell. The project, scheduled for completion in December 2007, was designed by the Houston office of Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum

September 15, 2006 - The Woodlands Development Co., developer of The Woodlands, has purchased a 400-acre tract of land contiguous with the 28,000 acres that now comprise The Woodlands. The acreage is located at FM 2978 just west of neighborhoods now in development in the Village of Sterling Ridge, according to Tim Welbes, president of The Woodlands Development Co. Plans for the neighborhood, which will be called Spindle Tree, include over 900 homesites for single family homes and townhomes, two parks, and hike and bike trails. Martin O’Malley and Todd N. Edmonds, principal, both with Colliers International, represented the seller in the land transaction.

September 14, 2006 - Atlanta-based JMG Realty has acquired a Galveston apartment project that will be converted into condominium units for sale. The 264-unit Club of the Isle was purchased for $41.3 million or $156,400 per unit. The seller, the Chaparral Group, was represented by Bill Miller and Roberto Casas of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler. The project is located in the Campeche Cove subdivision near the Galveston Island Municipal Golf Course.

September 13, 2006 - CBL & Associates Properties announced it will break ground in the fourth quarter on the 1.2 million-sf Pearland Town Center. The mixed-use project, which will have retail, office, residential and a hotel, will have a grand opening in 2008. Located at the southwest corner of FM 518 and Highway 288, the project will have 710,000 sf of retail. A number of retailers have signed-on at Pearland Town Center, including Macy's, Dillard's, Barnes & Noble, Victoria's Secret, Eddie Bauer, Chico's, Coldwater Creek and Bath & Body Works. CBL is a publicly traded firm based in Chattanooga, Tenn. A significant amount of retail and restaurant space is being built in Pearland, where new home construction has been red hot. Transwestern Commercial Services is developing a 500,000-sf retail project across the street from CBL.

September 12, 2006 - The former Robert Mueller Municipal Airport, which is being redeveloped by Catellus Development, is providing some hot opportunities for residential development in Austin, according to Teresa Guidotti Lowery, principal of the Houston office of Colliers International. A significant 14-acre apartment site in the Mueller redevelopment was obtained for an apartment development by Simmons Vedder & Co., in a deal negotiated by Colliers. More residential development is planned for the former airport site. For the full story please click here to go to our Texas Roundup page.

September 11, 2006 - Discussions have been held about a private firm buying out Crescent Real Estate Equities, one of the largest publicly traded REITs, according to reports in the Houston Business Journal and the REIT Newshound newsletter. The tentative suitor was identified as Istithmar, a Dubai-based investment firm. The Fort Worth-based Crescent has office holdings in Dallas, Austin, Las Vegas, Denver, Miami and Houston, including Houston Center, Greenway Plaza and other significant holdings in Houston.

September 10, 2006 - NewQuest Properties is developing an 800,000 sf project in the Richmond/Rosenberg area. The development will include retail space, 320 multifamily units, 50 patio homes and 100,000 sf of medical/professional office space. NewQuest Properties recently purchased 125 acres of additional land near the project, located near U.S. Highway 59.

September 8, 2006 - Hines has announced plans to develop a 300,000-sf office building in the Lower Downtown "Lo Do" section of Denver. The eight-story building, designed by Hartman-Cox Architects, will be located at the corner of 15th and Wynkoop. The project will be complete in the fall of 2008.

September 7, 2006 - Men's Wearhouse has leased 130,000 sf for its new corporate headquarters near the intersection of Beltway 8 and the Westpark Tollway in the Westchase area. The men's apparel company will occupy two-thirds of an office building just completed by Myers, Crow & Saviers Ltd. at 6830 Rogerdale. Scott Ison of Axis Property Advisors represented Men's Warehouse in the lease negotiations. Myers, Crow & Saviers has completed seven office buildings in Houston, totaling 868,000 sf and it plans to start another spec building in Houston within 60 days at a location to be disclosed later....................In Galveston, it was announced that the Paradise Realty firm has been merged into Prudential Gary Greene, which now has 48 agents and three offices in the Galveston area.

September 5, 2006 - The Houston office of Trammell Crow Co. has, announced today the sale of two industrial projects to Cobalt Capital Partners. Trammell Crow Co.'s Rusty Tamlyn, Ralph Tullier, and Mike Parker negotiated the transaction on behalf of the seller, a subsidiary of ING Clarion Partners. David Broom with Cobalt Capital negotiated on behalf of the buyer. The properties, Griggs I and II located on Griggs Road and the Westpark buildings, located in the 8700 block of Westpark Drive, were all 98% leased at the time of sale. Both projects are dock-high distribution buildings.

September 1, 2006 - Litton Loan Servicing, one of the largest residential mortgage service companies in the nation, has expanded its Houston offices. Litton leased 21,500 sf in Loop Central Three, which is near the intersection of the West Loop and the Southwest Freeway in the Bellaire area. Marshall Clinkscales, President of MSC Properties,. represented the tenant in lease negotiations while Virgil Hydes, and Griff Jaggard, both of Lincoln Property Co., represented the landlord, IPC Loop Central.

August Blog

August 31, 2006 - Palisade Palms, a high-rise beachfront condominium project under construction on Galveston’s East Beach, has sold 85 percent of its units and is on target for initial move-ins in the fall of 2007.Palisade Palms will consist of two 27-story modern curvilinear towers designed to provide each condominium with views over the Gulf of Mexico and Galveston Bay. Prices for the 288 units, valued at approximately $167 million in total, range from $430,000 for a 1,044 sf one-bedroom up to $1.65 million for a 3,000 sf penthouse. Houston-based Falcon Group is developing the condo. ......... ..............................Studley, a commercial real estate services firm specializing in tenant representation, has named Jay L. Bonano as a senior managing director for its Houston office. Bonano had been with CB Richard Ellis.

August 30, 2006 - Technical Olympic USA has leased space in west Houston for the office of its Newmark Homes and Trophy Homes home building company. The home builders will occupy the entire second floor — 18,000 sf — of MetroNational’s Briar Lake Village at 10455 Briar Forest and Beltway 8. Newmark also will lease 3,500 sf on the ground level of Briar Lake Village for its design center. Combined, the builders completed 975 homes last year and are on target to build 1,500 this year. Ron McWherter of CB Richard Ellis represented the home builder in the lease.

August 28, 2006 - Trammell Crow Co. has broken ground on two new industrial buildings in its Cole Creek Business Park in northwest Houston. These 168,480 sf. and 211,680 sf. distribution facilities will be completed in January. Home Depot Supply has leased the larger building. Jim Foreman of Cushman & Wakefield represented Home Depot Supply, while Faron Wiley and Jim Casey represented the building owner. The buildings are owned in a partnership of ING Clarion and Trammell Crow Co. The project team includes Cobb Fendley Associates; Maverick Construction; Powers Brown Architects; Redding, Linden, Burr; Rosenberger Construction; and Wong & Associates. The Cole Creek Business Park covers 77 acres.

August 27, 2006 - KB Homes has started a community of 58 homes near downtown New Orleans. The River Garden community offers single family and attached homes featuring 12 floor plans from 1,257 to 2,305 sf priced from the low $300s. New homeowners will be across from a city park, have views of downtown New Orleans, and be walking distance to the Magazine Street shopping district and Warehouse and Arts district.

August 25, 2006 - U.S. Bank Commercial Real Estate, a lender providing construction, acquisition and permanent financing to developers and investors, has opened an office at 5555 San Felpe. The office, led by Ron Gray, will focus on Houston and San Antonio................ Equity Office, the nation's largest office REIT, has announced plans to sell all of its properties in Atlanta. In addition, the firm will sell some buildings in Chicago, Denver and Northern California.

August 23, 2006 - Transwestern Commercial Services will develop a 164,000-sf, four-story office building in southwest Austin for Overwatch Systems. The building will be located on a 48.32 acre site, adjacent to the Travis Oaks Office Park on Southwest Parkway............ In San Antonio, the 1,000-room Grand Hyatt Hotel is scheduled for completion in 2008. For more details please click to Texas Roundup.

August 22, 2006 - The Comfort Inn Galleria/Westchase, a 74-room hotel on 1.6 acres west of the Galleria has been sold for $2.6 million. PKF Capital Markets Group, an affiliate of PKF Consulting, represented the seller Westheimer Hospitality LLC. “The Houston hotel market continues to rebound and gain momentum,” said Shirish Patel, who is president of Othavaji & Sons, the new owner of the hotel. “With the completion of a major renovation and with its proximity to numerous local attractions, we believe this property has significant upside potential.” The property is located at 9041 Westheimer, between Loop 610 and Beltway 8. John Keeling heads the Houston office of PKF.

August 19, 2006 - Patrinely Group, a Houston firm led by Dean Patrinely, is developing a large business park in San Antonio that will be anchored by a corporate headquarters campus for Tesoro Corp., a San Antonio-based energy company. The 122-acre project will be located on San Antonio's north side at Highway 281 and Redland Road. Tesoro has acquired a portion of the land where it have 600,000 sf of office space, scheduled to be completed in 2009. Lou Cushman of Cushman & Wakefield and Steven Garza of Providence Commercial handled the land purchase. The Gensler architecture firm will design the overall master plan for Patrinely.

August 18, 2006 - Eminent Domain is certainly the most controversial Property Rights issue to bubble up in a long time. Earlier this month Eminent Domain was the cover story of Parade magazine, a national newspaper insert. The flash point for all of this was last year's ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that a municipality in Connecticut could obtain homes and turn the property over to a private developer for a mixed-use project. Since that time some 30 state legislatures, including Texas, have approved laws that limit the use of Eminent Domain. The process known as Eminent Domain has become an ugly word. But the cases of abuse are actually few, says David Lewis of Lewis Realty Advisors, a Houston firm that has been involved in thousands of Eminent Domain cases. Most of the time, Eminent Domain is used for much needed public facilities, such as assembling a site for schools or road expansions. For more on this topic please to to National Items.

August 17, 2006 - Although he has been a Realtor less than a year, Ryan Moody has closed 18 home sales and secured 25 residential listings. To say he started off with a bang, is putting it mildly. He sold a house last October during the first week he was a Realtor. Ryan, who is 27, works in Galveston in the Jamaica Beach office of Prudential Gary Greene Realtors. The company, which is one of the biggest residential realty firms in Texas, named Ryan its Rookie of the Year for 2006. Ryan, a Galveston native, is bullish on the Galveston economy. "The new Schlitterbahn Waterpark, condo projects and new home construction are clear indications of a bright future," he said. "Galveston has a lot of appeal for families and seniors interested in both primary and vacation homes. I would rather be here than anywhere else in the world.".....Ryan is mentioned on our People Blog. Please click through to the People Blog to see mention of several successful real estate people including, Travis Stone, Cullen Kappler, Mac Ruggles, Tre Banks and Drew Morris.

August 15, 2006 - If you lads and lassies can't go to Ireland, then we'll just bring Ireland to you. A bar in Ireland, The Goose's Acre, has been purchased and will be reassembled in a 7,400-sf space in The Woodlands. Celtic Concepts, a partnership of Brian Young and Colm O’Neill, is moving the authentic Irish pub from Midleton, County Cork, Ireland to The Woodlands Town Center. The partners owns Brian O’Neill’s Restaurant and Irish Pub in Rice Village in Houston and eight other pubs in Texas, Colorado, Michigan and Ohio. Bill Cole represented Celtic Concepts. Greg Jordan represented The Woodlands.................... In Fort Worth, Ed Bass has announced plans to develop a 16-story, 300,000-sf office tower in the Sundance Square project in downtown Fort Worth. The 1.7 million-sf of office space in Sundance Square is 95 percent occupied. EOG Resources will be a major tenant in the new building. The tower will be designed by David M. Schwarz/Architectural Services, which also designed the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall.

August 14, 2006 - HUD is expanding its offices in Houston. The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), acting on behalf of the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), has signed a lease expansion of 5,462 sf of office space at 1301 Fannin Street in Houston. This lease is an expansion of a 10-year lease on 20,864 sf of office space the GSA signed on behalf of HUD in 2002. The lessor, The Shidler Group, was represented by Louis Rosenthal of Jones Lang LaSalle. Don Foster of The Staubach Co. represented the GSA.

August 11, 2006 - Apartments rental rates are expected to rise in the Houston market, according to multi-family broker Teresa Guidotti Lowery of Colliers International. Lowery told the Houston Chronicle in an article published Friday that large increases in landlord's insurance costs will bring about rent hikes for tenants.

August 9, 2006 - The Gardere Wynne Sewell law firm has renewed and expanded its lease in Wells Fargo Plaza, a tower in downtown Houston. The firm added 20,000 sf to increase its total space to 139,000 sf. The 71-story building, 1000 Louisiana St., is owned by Metropolitan Life and leased by Lincoln Property Co. Steve Burkett and Edward Prejean, both of The Staubach Co,. represented Gardere in lease negotiations. Kevin Wyatt and J.P. Hutcheson, both of Lincoln Property Co., represented the landlord.............................. In San Antonio, the Hawthorn Suites Riverwalk Hotel has been sold in a deal marketed by Jim Savage of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler. Please go to Texas Roundup for more details.

August 8, 2006 - Midyear statistics show the Houston hotel business is ahead of last year's performance. Year-to-date through the end of June show an overall hotel occupancy rate of 72.3 percent, up from 65.6 percent at midyear 2005. According to PKF Consulting the average YTD room rate was $100.56, up 7.4 percent from the first six months of 2005........................ Hines has announced a joint venture land development project in Southern Pines, North Carolina. The 550-acre deal is a joint venture with the Bell Family. The project, called Pine Needles Village, will have a variety of residential products in a traditional neighborhood design as well as office and retail space................................................................. Houston-based Hospitality USA Management Group will open 221B Baker St. Pub & Grill in the new 25 Waterway Avenue building currently under construction near The Woodlands Waterway in Town Center, according to Dan Leverett of The Woodlands Development Co. The 6,500-sf British-themed pub and restaurant will open in November. Greg Jordan, represented The Woodlands Development Co. and Deborah G. Adams of Gulf Coast Commercial represented the tenant. Hospitality USA was formed in 1995 by partners Larry Martin and Edgar Carlson .

August 7, 2006 - Alliance Wood Group Engineering, L.P., a leading provider of services to energy companies, has signed a 110,480-sf lease with KBS Realty Advisors at 330 Barker Cypress in Houston's Energy Corridor, reducing the company's real estate costs by consolidating three locations into one. Mark O’Donnell of the Studley real estate firm represented Alliance Wood Group in the transaction. Doug Little of PM Realty Group represented KBS Realty Advisors.

August 6, 2006 Decades ago, when we first heard about The Woodlands development, it sounded pretty far-fetched to many Houstonians. The Woodlands was 27 miles north of downtown Houston. Who would want to live way up there? Of course, today The Woodlands is the leader in new-home sales in all of Texas. Looking ahead a decade or two, where is the next stop for development? Perhaps it will be in Huntsville. The Gibbs Forest property in Huntsville has just been placed on the market. It covers 54,000 acres. Gibbs Forest is the last great single-owner land holding north of Houston. Huntsville may be too far north for a commute to downtown Houston to be attractive to many. But with the office towers and growing employer base in The Woodlands, Huntsville could be a very attractive draw to people who work in the northern suburbs, says Dan Daniels of Greater Houston Marketing Services. For more on the Gibbs Forest sale please go to Houston Deals.

August 5, 2006 - A new office building will be constructed in the red-hot Energy Corridor of west Houston. CORE Real Estate, LLC, a Houston-based real estate developer, and Prudential Real Estate Investors, a Parsippany, N.J.-based real estate investment firm, have announced the development of the 173,815-sf, three-story 17000 Katy Freeway, an office building in the Park 10 development. Groundbreaking will be September 1 with first occupancy in the second quarter of 2007. Strength in the energy industry have given momentum to the Houston office market. Houston has long been called the Energy Capital of the World and many of the world's major oil firms have offices in Houston's Energy Corridor district along Interstate 10. For more details on this new office project please go to our Houston Deals page.

August 4, 2006 - Cousins Properties Incorporated has agreed to sell Frost Bank Tower, a 33-story, 531,000-sf office building in downtown Austin, to Chicago-based Equity Office for $188 million or $354 psf. The sale is expected to close in mid-September. In Atlanta, Cousins is purchasing the 50-story One Ninety One Peachtree Tower from Equity Office.

August 3, 2006 - A freestanding 100,000-sf JC Penney store will open Friday near the northeast corner of Highway 288 and FM 518 in Pearland. The intersection is a hot corner for retail. CBL & Associates is developing a regional center with Macy's and Dillards at the southwest corner of that intersection. And a Transwestern/Wayne Fox partnership is developing a 500,000 sf project with HEB at the northwest corner of 518 and 288.

August 2, 2006 - Alliance Wood Group Engineering, L.P., a provider of services to energy companies, has signed a 110,480-sf lease with KBS Realty Advisors at 330 Barker Cypress in Houston's Energy Corridor, reducing the company's real estate costs by consolidating three locations into one. Please go the Leasing Briefs page for full story................. Hines has sold a major project in Munich, Germany to a Singapore investment group. Please go to our International Dispatch page for more details.

August 1, 2006 - The 437-unit Estates at Memorial Heights apartment project, located new Memorial Drive and Washington Avenue in Houston's Inner Loop has been purchased by CH Realty Acquisitions IV, according to CB RIchard Ellis. CBRE’s Craig LaFollette, Todd Stewart,Todd Marix; and Tre Banks represented The Pauls Corp . Houston has 2,508 apartment projects with a total of 488,000 units, CBRE said.Rental rates are at record highs. .......................................................... Richland Investments of Houston has acquired a 10-building portfolio of office/flex buildings in San Antonio. The portfolio contains about 236,000 sf. The seller, Ramsey Loop Realty LP was represented by Alan Grilliette, Jeff Brown, and Rudy Hubbard of Transwestern’s Investment Services Group. The sale includes the 300 Ramsey Place project and the West Loop II complex.

July Blog

July 30, 2006 - Home building remains strong n Texas. In the new construction market, Houston posted 12,798 single-family closings during the second quarter of 2006, an increase of 17 percent over the 10,641 new homes sold in the second quarter of last year, according to MetroStudy, a research firm led by Mike Inselmann. Houston is on a pace to have 50,000 starts this year. The new home market in San Antonio is exceptionally hot. Second quarter new home sales in the Alamo City were up 24.5 percent over the comparable period of last year, MetroStudy reported.

July 29, 2006 - Equity Inns Inc., a Germantown, Tenn.-based REIT, has agreed to purchase three Marriott-branded hotels for $26.16 million or $69,000 per room.Two of the hotels are SpringHill Suites by Marriott located in the Texas, including a 122-room hotel located one mile north of the Houston Hobby Airport and a 122-room property located at San Antonio's northwest side at the intersection of I-410 and I-10. Additionally, the agreement includes a 144-room Fairfield Inn & Suites located in the Atlanta suburb of Vinings directly across from Home Depot's headquarters. The seller of the 378-room package is LinGate Hospitality.

July 28, 2006 - Interfin, a Houston firm led by Giorgio Borlenghi, is developing Vintage Park, a development with a 500,000-sf center at the southeast corner of Highway 249 and Louetta Road. According to the Interfin web site, Vince Kickerello, Mischer Investments, Jimmy Hill and Perrin White are part of the Vintage Park ownership group. HEB will build a 105,000 sf supermarket there. Four banks have contracted to buy pad sites in Vintage Park. Plans call for 27,000 sf of second-story office space. Interfin also developed the Uptown Park center, an upscale project just north of the Galleria. Curtis Henderson of CB Richard Ellis is handling retail leasing on Vintage Park, which is on the northwest side of Houston near the Hewlett Packard campus.

July 27, 2006 - The Edge Condominiums, a seven-story 93- unit condo, is being constructed in the Midtown area of Houston at the northwest corner of Bagby and Pierce. The first unit is expected to be available for occupancy fall 2007. Unit prices start from $192,500 to $469,500. The property is owned by Midtown Edge, LP and is being developed by Fidelity Mangement Company. Jim Richards of Live Oak Capital arranged a $29 million construction loan for The Edge through Regions Bank. G.T. Leach Construction is general contractor.

July 26, 2006 - CB Richard Ellis has relocated its downtown Houston office to the Bank of America Plaza building, 700 Louisiana St. The realty estate firm also maintains an office in Houston's Galleria area. CB Richard Ellis's downtown office had been at 1100 Louisiana. CB Richard Ellis assumed that space when it acquired the Trione & Gordon firm a few years ago.

July 24, 2006 - The River Oaks Theater and some adjacent retail buildings on West Gray may be demolished to make way for a new residential tower. Weingarten Realty Investors owns the site. The Greater Houston Preservation Alliance told the Houston Chronicle that the theater, built in 1939, is on its list of "endangered" buildings.

July 22, 2006 - White Lodging has announced plans to develop a 1,000-room hotel project in downtown Austin. Located on Congress Avenue between 2nd and 3rd streets, two blocks from the Austin Convention Center, the $185 million hotel development will feature a 6