123 N Wacker Ready To Exit Bankruptcy
A new era is set to begin for one of the last casualties of the real estate market collapse. A Cook County judge signed a judgment of foreclosure on 123 N Wacker Dr, setting the stage for the property's lender to assume ownership after years of litigation.
The 30-story building was owned by scores of investors under a tenant-in-common structure, which can be unwieldy and lead to disputes between owners. In this case, a JV of 35 different companies led by Sovereign Capital bought the building in 2005. Sovereign proposed a recapitalization in bankruptcy court over the objections of the other owners. The building was slapped with a $135M foreclosure lawsuit in December 2014.
Judge Fredrenna Lyle signed the foreclosure judgment and order of sale earlier this month, according to Crain's. This allows the trustee and loan servicer, LNR Property, to sell the building at a future date. The building isn't out of the woods yet. Its occupancy rate is at 65% and one of its highest-profile tenants, Morton Salt, is leaving for new digs in River Point. [Crain's]
