News
KINGS OF REO
October 11, 2012
| We bestowed that noble title on Transwestern’s Brad Cohen (pictured) and Larry Thiel. So what's their first decree? Telling us that Denver’s economy might be strong, but they don’t see the CMBS default market slowing down locally. | |
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| We asked Brad and Larry about their most recent sales—all of which are REOs. The duo have been extremely active in that sector in recent years¸ and despite the booming economy, REOs are plentiful here. “A market like Denver with strong growth metrics creates great demand for distressed properties with a strong upside," Brad says. | |
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| The duo’s most recent sale was Conifer Town Center, a 107k SF Safeway-anchored neighborhood shopping center in Conifer, which LNR sold to Dallas-based Tabani Group for an undisclosed sum. Given Safeway’s tenancy, Larry says this asset attracted a lot of bids. “This property was caught up in the bad economy more than anything else,” Brad says. And while it had a good tenant roster when it delivered in 2006, rental rates “were aggressive,” which made it a challenge to backfill when the market tanked in 2009. “[Tabani] felt the value of the Safeway alone was evident." | |
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| Other recent REO sales include Rustic Hills, a 234k SF shopping center sold by LNR, and New Windsor Marketplace, a 95k SF retail center. Brad says there’s still plenty more in the pipeline that could come to market over the next three years: “That’s because in some cases, special servicers actually hold onto the asset and try to stabilize it before selling. That happened with Syracuse Hill I (above), an 85k SF, Class-B office building in Greenwood Village that CWCapital is finally selling with Brad and Larry. “CW did 25k SF leasing on that property before they took it to market,” Brad adds. |
