Real Estate News Blog

Toyota recalls 58,000 cars in Canada

2009-01-30T13:57:00.001-08:00

Toyota is recalling 58,000 of its Yaris cars sold in Canada. (Toyota Motor Co./Assciated Press)

Toyota is recalling 58,000 of its Yaris models sold in Canada because of a seatbelt defect, company spokeswoman Dawn Soulis said Wednesday.

The move is part of the recall of 1.3 million vehicles worldwide, including 134,900 Yaris subcompacts sold in the United States in model years 2006 and 2007.

A seatbelt could cause a foam pad in the car to catch fire if the vehicle is involved in a severe front-end collision.

But there have been no reported incidents, Soulis said.

The company is mailing Yaris owners a letter telling them they can take the car in for a free fix of the problem at a dealership, she said.

With files from the Associated Press

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Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.013-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

The deal under discussion is a sale-leaseback transaction in which Times Co. would sell the 19 floors it occupies at its 52-story headquarters to W.P. Carey & Co., an investment-management company, a person familiar with the talks said. Times Co. would continue to occupy and manage the space and have the right to buy it back in 10 years when its lease expires. Times Co. owns an additional six floors that it leases to other tenants; those floors aren't part of the deal.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

A spokeswoman for Times Co. said the company is pursuing a sale-leaseback of the building for as much as $225 million, and added: "Because the discussions are ongoing, we decline to comment on the status of the sale-leaseback."

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

Times Co. has $1.1 billion in debt and $46 million in cash and a substantial amount of debt maturing over the next couple of years. With print advertising declines accelerating across all newspapers, Times Co. has been forced to consider a number of options to free up cash.

The company in November cut its dividend by 75% and is trying to sell its stake in the company that owns the Boston Red Sox and the team's Fenway Park. Earlier this week Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim agreed to invest $250 million in the company in return for senior unsecured notes with detachable warrants convertible into common stock.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.011-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.009-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Developers preferring sale over lease

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.007-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.005-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Developers preferring sale over lease

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.003-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:27:00.001-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:26:00.005-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Developers preferring sale over lease

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:26:00.003-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Post Properties Finds No Takers

Times Co. Nears Deal On Building

2009-01-29T17:26:00.001-08:00

By RUSSELL ADAMS and PETER GRANT

New York Times Co. is nearing a deal to sell a portion of its Midtown Manhattan headquarters in the latest of a string of recent efforts to reduce its debt load.

Getty Images

The building, designed by the architect Renzo Piano, was completed in 2007. Times Co. owns 58% of the tower, and the developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest.

The talks were previously reported Thursday night on the New York Times Web site.

W.P. Carey is a 36-year-old firm that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions and has $10 billion of assets under management.

Write to Russell Adams at russell.adams@wsj.com and Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B2

Finolex to Sell Pune SEZ Land for Rs 400 cr

Developers preferring sale over lease

Zuckerman Takes Manhattan

Maguire Is Forced Out

Japanese Retail Sales Fall for A Fourth Month

2009-01-29T14:35:00.001-08:00

Japanese Retail Sales Fall for A Fourth Month

Japanese Retail Sales Actual -2.7%, Expected -1.6%, Previous -0.9%

Release Explanation: Retail sales are the measure of the total sales of goods and services by retail stores in Japan. This is also an important part of figuring the country’s GDP. Retail sales are an important measure of consumer spending and inflationary pressures. Steady increases in retail sales apply significant inflationary pressures to consumer prices. With retail trade being the foremost indicator for consumer spending, this figure is extremely important in understanding the Japanese economy.

Trade Desk Thoughts: Retail sales in Japan have slumped for a fourth straight month in December. This is further proof that the economy has fallen into a recession. Retail sales have decline 2.7 percent and was the worst one month fall seen in the past three years, as well as being well below expectations of a 1.6 percent drop. Large retailers took the biggest hit, seeing a year over year decline of 6.3 percent.

Forex Technical Reaction: The yen has weakened slightly after this report was released. The pair is currently oscillating near the 20 day moving average at 90.35.

TheLFB Risk Disclaimer can be found at http://www.thelfb-forex.com/content.aspx?id=174.

The Copying, Broadcast, Republication or Redistribution of TheLFB Content is Expressly Prohibited Without the Prior Written Consent of LFB Services, LLC.

10 Percent Per Annum Growth in Unorganised Retail Sector

NEC Plans to Enter Indian Retail Sector

Home Data in Spain Spell Gloomy News

Reliance, Vornado Join on Shopping Centers

Vacancies Rise at Retail Centers

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:21:00.003-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

As the economy slowed last year, the commercial-building unit of Kokosing Construction Co. had $130 million in projects -- a year's worth of revenue for the division -- halted in a three-week stretch. But now, with the prospect of a massive public-spending package by the Obama administration, the Ohio-based contractor is out recruiting workers.

"I told my managers that based on the expectation of a stimulus plan, we should continue interviewing people at colleges, hoping to have work for them by the time they graduate in the spring," says Brian Burgett, president and chief executive of Kokosing, a family-owned firm in Fredericktown, Ohio, that has built highways and industrial facilities for half a century.

After a rough year on the ground and in the stock market, engineering and construction companies are eager for the financial tap to be reopened. As the incoming administration assembles its stimulus plan, many contractors are lobbying hard for projects that will spend money fast rather than focusing on longer-term environmental and smart-growth policy goals.

That is largely because the industry has had steep job losses and foresees more bloodletting this year unless the government applies shock treatment to the economy. In December, construction accounted for 101,000 lost jobs, or nearly one-fifth of all U.S. jobs, capping a year in which the sector shed 632,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment in nonresidential and heavy-engineering construction shrank by 7% and 9%, respectively.

The Associated General Contractors of America, the country's largest trade association of nonresidential builders, recently polled its members and found that, barring a change in the business climate, expected layoffs could cut construction employment by 30% this year.

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

The contractors association has submitted a white paper to the presidential transition team and to Congress that outlines the economic benefits for all types of infrastructure and emphasizes road and bridge work.

Mr. Burgett of Kokosing, who hopes to add fresh college graduates to his payroll, notes that Ohio has identified $1 billion in highway projects that could be started by June. Repairs to a bridge in Cleveland and upgrading an Interstate highway junction, not to mention the state's crumbling sewer lines, mean that "there is just an immense amount of work," he says.

Highlighting the industry's holding pattern, though, Mr. Burgett has put all equipment orders on hold until the stimulus package clarifies the environment. Typically, he orders $35 million of equipment a year.

Stephen Sandherr, chief executive of the contractors association, says there are some $64 billion of approved "shovel ready" transportation projects. The imperative to spend big and spend fast creates a potential clash between some contractors and proponents of environmentally friendly policies that President-elect Barack Obama espouses. "If the objective is to get things out quickly ... it would be counterproductive to add smart-growth requirements to any of these projects," Mr. Sandherr says.

The public-relations battle is on for portraying major infrastructure projects -- whether or not they are part of the stimulus plan -- in the greenest possible light. Shaw Group Inc., a Baton Rouge, La., engineering firm, has attracted investors' interest after firming up a $4 billion nuclear power-plant contract.

"With the importance that is being placed on developing new sources of clean energy, we are anticipating a nuclear renaissance that will assist in reinvigorating the U.S. economy," says Gentry Brann, director of corporate communications at Shaw.

Company executives last week said they also are well positioned for levee, environmental remediation and other potential infrastructure work in a stimulus plan. The company is adding about 1,000 jobs to its 26,000-strong work force.

Contractors point out that their work is often subject to increasingly stringent environmental regulations. "A lot of the stimulus [spending] will go to projects that are green at some level," says J. Doug Pruitt, chairman and chief executive of Sundt Cos. in Tempe, Ariz.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

David Goldberg, communications director for Transportation for America, a nonprofit coalition of transit, housing and urban-planning groups, counters that "the real issue is whether we are creating more car dependence and oil dependence." He and other smart-growth advocates agree that road and bridge repair can be an effective use of quick stimulus money.

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

In addition to highway maintenance, Transportation for America supports funding mass-transit authorities to preserve jobs and investment in rail, bicycle and pedestrian facilities that expand transportation options.

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Housing Slump Hits Latino Workers

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:21:00.001-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

CWAB Awards to be held on Aug 22

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:20:00.009-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

CWAB Awards to be held on Aug 22

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

CWAB Awards to be held on Aug 22

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:20:00.007-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

CWAB Awards to be held on Aug 22

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:20:00.005-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:20:00.003-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

Housing Slump Hits Latino Workers

Construction Industry Counts on Obama

2009-01-22T15:20:00.001-08:00

By JONATHAN KARP

If a stimulus package included funding for infrastructure projects, however, some 85% of the survey's respondents said they wouldn't lay off workers and in fact would hire more.

Don Weaver, vice president of Weaver Bailey Contractors Inc. in El Paso, Ark., says, "The highway industry doesn't get a lot of credit, but we're one of the biggest recyclers."

"We also want to make sure that for the longer term, we give ourselves a minute to think about the infrastructure we need for the post-oil-dependent economy," he says

Write to Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page C10

L&T Considers realty Mutual Fund

Construction Poised for Rebound

Crane Collapses in New York

As unemployment rises, Americans spending less, producing less

2008-12-25T13:56:00.001-08:00

A trio of U.S. economic indicators released Wednesday show an American economy continuing to veer off course as Christmas approaches.

Americans spent less in November, the first real proof that the yuletide selling season will be tough for retailers, while U.S. durable goods orders slumped in the same month, a further sign that American manufacturers still face bleak economic prospects.

Finally, in mid-December, the number of first-time jobless benefit claimants hit the highest level in 26 years.

"Today’s releases support our view that the U.S. economy is continuing to experience pronounced weakness in the fourth quarter. We expect the economy will remain weak in [the first half of] 2009," said Josh Heller, an economist with RBC Economics.

Americans cut their spending by 0.6 per cent in November, the fifth month in a row in which U.S. consumers — a famously profligate bunch — cut spending. In October, personal spending fell by one full percentage point.

Interestingly, the news was not all bad. Retailer discounts were a big factor in the month's reduced spending. Once prices were equalized between months, individual outlays actually rose by 0.6 per cent.

That rise will not help retailers but does indicate that buyers are still willing to purchase goods — if the price is right.

Durable order dip

New orders for U.S. durable goods fell by one per cent in November. That meant that the amount of cash going to manufacturers and other producers fell by $1.8 billion US in the month, dipping to $186 billion.

The reduction was actually a bit better than the 3.1-per-cent tumble economists had projected for the month and was much better than October's revised plunge of 8.4 per cent for the same indicator.

In addition, once transportation orders were subtracted, new orders rose by 1.2 per cent.

Still, the figures from the U.S. Commerce Department represented the fourth month in a row in which new orders dropped, a further sign that U.S. goods producers will not have much to cheer about in the coming months.

The number of American men and women who asked for employment benefits for the first time rose by 30,000 for the week ending December 20, boosting total first-time claimants to 586,000 — the highest number since November 1982.

This indicator is often viewed as a proxy for U.S. firings rather than voluntary leavings and a hint as to how these people see their chances at getting new work quickly.

India to attract $40 billion FDI this fiscal

Jobless Claims Soar for Week

Beazer Posts Narrower Loss

Gehry Lays Off Staff

2008-12-20T13:56:00.003-08:00

Frank Gehry laid off more than two dozen staffers in late November after client Forest City Ratner ordered the architect to put down his pencils on the $4 billion Atlantic Yards project, according to people familiar with the matter. A Gehry Partners LLP spokeswoman declined to comment.

A Forest City spokesman declined to comment and pointed to a previous statement that said work on the Brooklyn, N.Y., project was delayed because of legal challenges. Forest City has said it is committed to the 22-acre site, slated to be anchored by a basketball arena plus residential and office skyscrapers.

Forest City Ratner's parent, Forest City Enterprises Inc., said last week that it has cut off its new development pipeline, except for Atlantic Yards. But the project faces challenges given the recession and the financial markets. A $153 million land loan from Gramercy Capital Corp. that has accrued to $177 million, is due at the beginning of February. Forest City is in talks with Gramercy to extend the loan.

Taking Office in Washington

Most of the deals getting done these days are ones where the buyer can take over an existing mortgage, obviating the need to find new financing.

Take, for example, a portfolio of eight suburban Washington office buildings that just traded hands. Asset Capital Corp. sold the block of buildings with 650,000 square feet to Creaney & Smith Group for $75 million. The blended cap rate is around 10.5%, according to people familiar with the deal. That is around two percentage points higher than it would have sold in the boom years.

The deal wasn't easy to get done. Asset Capital marketed the properties a year ago and found a buyer, but that deal fell through. Creaney & Smith came along and inked a contract in early summer. But then came negotiations with the eight lenders who had to sign off on the deal. The buyer had to post additional reserves to cover cash-flow decreases from potential vacancies. That lowered the loan-to-value ratio on the deal from around 78% to about 75%.

Collins Ege, of Jones Lang LaSalle, brokered the deal.

Miami River Condos

Riverfront, a cluster of condo towers along the Miami River that is envisioned as an affordable rival to more luxurious parts of the city, is off to an inauspicious start.

Wachovia Corp. has filed for foreclosure against the first building to open, the 489-unit Wind tower owned by Neo LLC. The construction loan came due in April, according to a lawsuit filed in Circuit Court in Miami-Dade County. But two forbearance agreements and a takeover by Wells Fargo & Co. later, Wachovia declared a default on $46.6 million in unpaid principal, plus interest and other fees.

Neo Chief Executive Lissette Calderon said her company is cooperating with Wachovia. More than 40% of the building's units had closed when the foreclosure was filed; 19 have closed since then, she said.

—Alex Frangos and Jonathan Karp

Parsvnath launches group housing project

New Pact for NYC Rail Yards

Canary Wharf Gets J.P. Morgan

Here’s Donald, to Assist Ed McMahon

U.S. Wants Building Tied to Iran

2008-12-20T13:56:00.001-08:00

By EVAN PEREZ

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. government is attempting to seize a piece of a storied Manhattan skyscraper, alleging it is owned by a front for the Iranian government.

In documents filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in New York's Southern District, federal prosecutors said the building at 650 Fifth Ave., long known as the Piaget building, is 40% owned by a company that funnels money to Iranian state-owned Bank Melli. The bank is subject to Treasury Department sanctions for allegedly financing Iran's nuclear proliferation efforts.

The building, in a prime commercial section of midtown Manhattan just north of Rockefeller Center, was built in the late 1970s by a foundation set up by the former Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran.

The Alavi Foundation, as it is now called, has been the subject of U.S.-Iranian tussles in the past, as some U.S. officials have tried to tie the foundation and its U.S. properties to the Islamic government that ousted the shah. The foundation continues to own 60% of the Fifth Avenue building.

Investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service allege that Bank Melli's interest in the building was disguised behind a company called Assa Corp. and associated entities incorporated in the offshore banking center of the Channel Islands.

Government documents filed in court cite emails and bank-account data to support the government's seizure of millions of dollars held in Assa accounts in U.S. banks. The government seized the money in a separate October proceeding.

Separately, the Bush administration added Assa and several affiliates to a Treasury Department sanctions list aimed at freezing assets of those implicated in proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

"This scheme to use a front company set up by Bank Melli -- a known proliferator -- to funnel money from the United States to Iran is yet another example of Iran's duplicity," said Stuart Levey, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

An attorney for the Alavi Foundation said the U.S. action doesn't affect the organization, which describes its mission as promoting Islamic culture and Persian language.

In response to accusations that Alavi is tied to the Iranian government, John Winter, the Alavi Foundation's attorney, said: "Every judge that has looked at this question, have concluded that those claims are without foundation or any merit."

Write to Evan Perez at evan.perez@wsj.com

LIC to Buy Land Worth Rs 2,000 cr

Mahindras to drive into low-cost housing projects

Sweden Sells Property Firm

Help for Home Buyers

Sands Drops Jobs, Bonuses

2008-12-13T13:55:00.001-08:00

By TAMARA AUDI

Casino giant Las Vegas Sands Corp. will cut 216 full-time employees from its Las Vegas properties as part of an overall effort to reduce costs at the struggling company.

The company confirmed it would notify employees starting Friday. Sands is also eliminating $6.5 million in management bonuses for 2008.

The cuts come as all of Las Vegas endures a sharp consumer downturn that has seen revenues plummet every month since late last year. This week, Nevada gambling regulators said gambling revenue on the Las Vegas Strip fell 26% to $475 million in October, compared with the same month last year.

A Las Vegas Sands official said the latest staff cuts were being made across all departments at the properties. The cuts are largely positions that don't interact with hotel or casino guests, a company spokesman said. "It won't impact the customer experience at our properties," said the spokesman, Ron Reese.

Sands employs 10,000 workers at two properties in Las Vegas, the Venetian and the Palazzo. The cuts follow an earlier staff reduction of 50 employees last month.

Like other major casino companies, Sands is grappling with billions in debt that it took on to fund expansion plans. But its stock has taken a dive and its controlling shareholder and chief executive, Sheldon Adelson, has had to contribute nearly $1 billion of his family's cash to keep the company from breaking debt covenants.

Write to Tamara Audi at tammy.audi@wsj.com

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Businesses Bring the Green to Portland

2008-12-11T00:23:00.009-08:00

By MAURA WEBBER SADOVI | SPECIAL TO THE WSJ

Oregon's bid to cash in on its green appeal has given Portland's weakening commercial-real-estate market an early holiday gift.

Denmark-based Vestas Wind Systems AS said this month that it is planning to build a new North American headquarters in the city. Negotiations still are under way and the site isn't set, but the project is likely to be more than 500,000 square feet and be valued at about $250 million.

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SolarWorld

SolarWorld recently opened a large solar-cell manufacturing facility outside Portland, Ore.

Vestas Americas, which has been in the city since 2002, has roughly 300 employees in about six leased office locations totaling about 100,000 square feet in the Portland area, says Roby Roberts, a spokesman for Vestas, one of the world's largest wind-turbine suppliers.

Vestas, despite the credit-starved times, hopes to start construction next year.

"Certainly the existing economic situation is one that's going to make you be careful, but we're reasonably confident that things are going to work out," Mr. Roberts said. The state has sweetened the deal with an offer of about $15 million in cash on top of incentives from the city that could be valued at $12.5 million, city and state officials say.

Other sustainable-development and renewable-energy businesses also have made a home in Oregon. The state has courted the industry with such initiatives as the Business Energy Tax Credits, says Jillian Schoene, spokeswoman for Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski.

First created in 1979 and expanded in 2007, the tax credits have helped draw solar-energy manufacturers to the state, Ms. Schoene says. Germany-based SolarWorld AG this fall opened a 480,000-square-foot solar-cell manufacturing facility in Hillsboro, outside Portland. Moreover, the North American headquarters of Spain-based Iberdrola Renovables, already located in about 57,000 square feet of leased space in Portland's Pearl District, is looking for additional room to grow, a spokeswoman says.

By the NumbersThird quarterPortland, Ore., Metro20082007Office vacancy14.5%14.7%Avg. annual rent/s.f.$20.10$19.36Retail econ. vacancy9.1%6.5%Avg. annual rent/s.f.$18.43$18.37Hotel occupancy 77%78%Avg. daily room rate$104.78$98.80Median single-family home price$278,600$299,700

Source: Property & Portfolio Research Inc., Smith Travel Research, National Association of Realtors

But the demand from green businesses comes amid signs in the Portland region of the broader economic malaise wracking the country.

Home to about 2.2 million people, the area counts Nike Inc. and Intel Corp., based in Santa Clara, Calif., among its larger employers. Median home prices that had held up longer than in many western U.S. markets have weakened over the past year, and the metro area's unemployment rate rose to 6.4% in October, just above the national rate of 6.1% and well above the 4.6% level in the year-earlier month, according to the U.S. Labor Department.

That slowdown has begun to damp demand for commercial real estate. The region's retail, office, warehouse and apartment vacancies, though still below national averages, are edging up and rents are either declining or are forecast to begin falling, according to Boston-based Property & Portfolio Research.

The region's office-leasing market, among the region's strongest commercial sectors, also is slowing. The amount of sublease space available in Portland's commercial business district jumped to 146,000 square feet in the third quarter from about 45,000 square feet in the year-earlier period, as some companies trimmed space needs, according to Crispin Argento, a research analyst for Colliers International in Portland.

The amount available for sublease was still less than 1% of the inventory, he says. And a surge of new office buildings, some speculative, also are on tap to deliver space in the next two years. Vestas also could add to that available space if it builds anew rather than leasing space in one of the projects underway.

Against this backdrop some cautiously optimistic developers are pushing ahead. Todd Sklar, senior vice president and head of development for San Francisco-based Shorenstein Properties, says construction is now up to the 10th floor on an environmentally friendly office building in Portland called First & Main.

Set to open in 2010, it is to include retail space and about 346,000 square feet of office space that isn't yet leased, as well as a place for cycling commuters to park bikes and shower, and paneling in the lobby made from old stadium seats.

Mr. Sklar notes that in some cities numerous companies are cutting space as they face takeovers or restructurings. Compared with that, having a company like Vestas put space on the market so it can expand doesn't seem so bad, he says. "In the context of other cities, we're in good shape," Mr. Sklar said.

Write to Maura Webber Sadovi at maura.sadovi@wsj.com

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Businesses Bring the Green to Portland

2008-12-11T00:23:00.007-08:00

By MAURA WEBBER SADOVI | SPECIAL TO THE WSJ

Oregon's bid to cash in on its green appeal has given Portland's weakening commercial-real-estate market an early holiday gift.

View Full Image

SolarWorld

SolarWorld recently opened a large solar-cell manufacturing facility outside Portland, Ore.

Vestas, despite the credit-starved times, hopes to start construction next year.

Source: Property & Portfolio Research Inc., Smith Travel Research, National Association of Realtors

But the demand from green businesses comes amid signs in the Portland region of the broader economic malaise wracking the country.

Write to Maura Webber Sadovi at maura.sadovi@wsj.com

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