Sandra Andersen Inks 65,000 SF Deal At 200 East Broward

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Greenspoon Marder has leased four floors at 200 East Broward Blvd., one of downtown Fort Lauderdale’s tallest office buildings. The firm will move all attorneys downtown, keeping portions of its Cypress Creek area office for support staff.

The new 64,964-square-foot lease expands what was formerly Ruden McClosky’s space in the tower. Greenspoon acquired Ruden’s book of business and many attorneys out of bankruptcy in November 2011.

Greenspoon has more than 160 attorneys in 10 Florida offices.

“We wanted to align our space needs with our business goals by bringing our lawyers closer to many of our corporate and banking business clients in downtown Fort Lauderdale,” co-founding partner Gerry Greenspoon said in a news release.

Sandra Andersen, senior VP for Jones Lang LaSalle, completed the lease on behalf of the building’s ownership, VV USA City, LP., an entity represented by Invesco Real Estate.

Greenspoon Marder was represented by Studley corporate managing director Thomas Capocefalo  and executive VP Gregory Katz.

According to Jones Lang LaSalle, the occupancy rate at the 21-story class A office building rises to 87 percent, with other tenants including PNC Bank and law firms Shutts & Bowen and Weiss Serota Helfman Pastoriza Cole & Boniske.

“This transaction is a testament to the strengthening of the office market in the CBD, particularly along Broward Boulevard, as law firms like Greenspoon Marder look to solidify their presence in the Central Business District,” Andersen said in the news release.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

 

Source: SFBJ

 

Fink, Sagar & Wilson Tapped To Lease North Lauderdale Office Campus

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CBRE has been selected by property owner NTS Realty Holdings as the exclusive leasing agent for Lakeshore Business Center, a four-building, 239,540-square-foot Class B office/flex campus located within the Fort Lauderdale Commerce Center in Fort Lauderdale.

The property is currently 73% occupied. Tenants include ECI Telecommunications, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Evolis, Inc., John Kirlin, Inc., and Reynolds, Smith & Hills.

According to CBRE Research, modest leasing momentum continues to push the office market in Broward County toward recovery mode; demand for office space has been consistently positive for multiple consecutive quarters.

“Lakeshore Business Center is well positioned to capitalize on the increased leasing activity we are seeing in Broward County,” said CBRE Vice President Deborah Fink. “In addition to being conveniently located on Commercial Boulevard, interior site renovations are completed and the property is primed to attract more image-conscious tenants.”

The buildings are located at 3201 & 3125 W. Commercial Boulevard and 5100 & 5200 N.W. 33rd Ave.

CBRE Vice President Owen Sagar, Vice President Deborah Fink and Senior Vice President Michael Wilson are the leasing agents.

 

 

Beacon Square Sells In Largest Sale Transaction In Palm Beach County For 2013

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Avison Young’s South Florida operations announced the largest office building sale transaction in Palm Beach County to date in 2013, overseeing the sale of Beacon Square, a 160,000-square-foot building located at 8051 Congress Avenue in Boca Raton.

Avison Young Principals Keith O’Donnell and Greg Martin, and Associate Jonathan Senn, represented the seller during the transaction. The buyer, SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure across North, Central and South America. The company plans to use the building as their corporate headquarters.

“The Beacon Square building was originally designed for IBM’s exclusive use, however, we carefully planned the building to be flexible and accommodate other users down the road,” said Mr. O’Donnell. “The movement we are seeing from both large and small businesses transitioning from leasing to owning their space is a trend we expect to continue as tax laws change, enhancing the benefits of ownership, and the supply of new space remains limited.”

According to recent market trend reports, office properties in Palm Beach County witnessed a decrease in total vacancy as a result of growth in housing, employment and the economy in 2013. Along with the West Palm Beach submarket, Boca Raton was a contributing factor to the majority of the positive activity in the market this year.

Beacon Square is a four-story, class A office building which features an open layout, highly upgraded finishes, hurricane-resistant windows and a dining facility. Following the sale, SBA will temporarily remain in their current building, as renovation will occur to repurpose the property for SBA’s use and future expansion.

Gregory Katz, Executive Vice President with Studley, represented SBA Communications Corporation.

 

Cypress Creek Business Park Trades For $38M

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The Pinnacle Corporate Park in Fort Lauderdale has changed hands for $38.1 million.

Milwaukee-based Northwestern Mutual Real Estate Investments sold the 500-550 Northwest 62nd Street business park last week for about $140 per square foot, according to Broward County records. The real estate arm of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance originally developed the 270,000-square-foot complex 27 years ago. It paid $9.47 million for the 14.3-acre site in 1985.

A company managed by New York-based DRA Advisors is the buyer. The DRA-managed company obtained a $27 million loan from Wells Fargo Bank for the acquisition. DRA is a registered investment advisor that specializes in real estate investment and management services for institutional and private investors. The company has $11 billion in assets under management.

An active investor in South Florida real estate, DRA’s regional portfolio includes the Broward Financial Centre in Fort Lauderdale, the 1900-2000 Offices in Boca Raton and Plantation Marketplace in Plantation.

Pinnacle, located within Fort Lauderdale’s dense Cypress Creek office market, is DRA’s most significant South Florida acquisition in more than a year. In October 2012, the company paid $28.5 million for the Polo Club Shoppes in Boca Raton.

Cypress Creek has been a recent target for major office investors based outside of South Florida. In September, San Francisco-based Stockbridge Capital Group paid $33 million for Cypress Park West I and II at 6700 and 6750 North Andrews Avenue. Last Thursday, Stockbridge obtained a $25 million loan from JPMorgan Chase Bank for the acquisition of the two buildings totaling nearly 425,000 square feet.

The broader Cypress Creek office market faces occupancy challenges as 2013 winds down.

Cypress Creek vacancies totaled 25.5 percent at the end of the third quarter, according to Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services. Its vacancy rate is highest in Broward County by more than five percentage points. Nearly 200,000 square feet at the BankAtlantic Corporate Center was vacated during the first quarter of 2013 as part of BB&T’s acquisition of BankAtlantic.

 

Source:  The Real Deal

 

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank Releases Q313 Reports For South Florida Market

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According to Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s (“NGKF”) latest reports for South Florida, market fundamentals in the industrial sector have fully recovered when measured by third quarter vacancy rates, while the office sector continues to make modest, but encouraging, improvement.

Broward County and Palm Beach County ended the quarter with industrial vacancy around or below the 8.0% mark, while Miami’s industrial vacancy rate is still hovering near 6.0% despite the recent addition of over one million square feet of new inventory delivered since the beginning of 2012.

“The improved demand we are seeing for industrial properties, in part, stems from a recovering residential real estate market, most notably in the multi-family sector,” said Adam Greenberg, executive managing director in NGKF’s Miami office. “As homeowners look to remodel existing properties and homebuilders deliver new projects, the need for manufacturing, warehouse and distribution space grows and in turn boosts demand for retail space.”

In response to robust demand, an additional 750,000 square feet of speculative industrial projects is underway in Broward County with the anticipation that tenants will begin to move north in search available quality spaces.

The office sector, to a lesser extent, also experienced modest growth during the third quarter, with the vacancy rate falling slightly across the three counties. Broward County ended the quarter with the lowest level in the region at 15.8%. Miami followed closely behind at 17.0% but experienced the strongest year-to-date absorption numbers with over 400,000 square feet of absorbed office space. According to the NGKF report, this is a positive sign and is consistent with earlier projections of moderate growth and slowly improved conditions.

“Across South Florida, over 1.7 million square feet of office leasing activity was tracked in the third quarter,” said Jon Bourbeau, vice chairman in NGKF’s Miami office. “The majority of deals continued to come from tenants already in the market in the form of expansions, renewals and relocations. The flight-to-quality trend persists as companies take advantage of market conditions to upgrade to higher-end, significantly more efficient buildings.”

Download the complete reports below:

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Fort Lauderdale Office Market Report

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Fort Lauderdale Industrial Market Report

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Palm Beach Office Market Report

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Palm Beach Industrial Market Report

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Miami Office Market Report

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s 3Q13 Miami Industrial Market Report

 

About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) is one of the world’s leading commercial real estate advisory firms. Together with its affiliates and London-based partner Knight Frank, NGKF employs more than 12,000 professionals, operating from more than 320 offices in established and emerging property markets on five continents.

With roots dating back to 1929, NGKF’s strong foundation makes it one of the most trusted names in commercial real estate. Its integrated services platform includes leasing advisory, global corporate services, investment sales and capital markets, consulting, program and project management, property and facilities management, and valuation services. A major force in the real estate marketplace, NGKF serves the local and global property requirements of tenants, landlords, investors and developers worldwide. For further information, visit www.ngkf.com.

NGKF is a part of BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial and real estate markets. For further information, visit www.bgcpartners.com.

 

Leasing Associate Joins Pointe Group Advisors

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Miami-based Pointe Group Advisors announced that Grace “Gracie” Gallick Diaz has joined as a leasing associate for the firm, which specializes in brokerage, property management, acquisitions and development.

Diaz brings more than 10 years of experience in banking, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, commercialization and wealth management to the firm. In her new role, she will provide tenant representation services to current clients in the Miami market, while prospecting for future tenants.

Diaz holds Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Series 7 and Series 66 certifications, which allow her to act as an investment advisor or securities broker. Prior to joining Pointe Group Advisors, she worked as an investment manager with Deutsche Bank AG and as a securitization banking analyst with Lehman Brothers’ mortgage- and asset-backed structuring team.

“We are delighted to welcome Gracie to our growing brokerage team at Pointe Group Advisors as our firm continues to expand,” said William Holly, president of Pointe Group Advisors. “Her experience in various aspects of finance makes her an asset to the firm and to our clients.”

A native of Westchester County, New York, Diaz has lived in South Florida for three years. She is active in the South Florida Chapter of Team in Training, an endurance sports charity training program benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Diaz graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics & statistics.

Pointe Group Advisors has offices in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, Sarasota and Tampa, with three million square feet of commercial space under management and leasing. The firm won the 2013 International ‘Outstanding Building of the Year’ (TOBY) Award in the category of office buildings under 100,000 square feet by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International. The building award was the first in Fort Lauderdale and the Palm Beaches to win at the international level since the inception of the TOBY awards in 1985.