Finance Lending
Financing Closes for New Jersey Retail/Office Center
Sept 5, 2008

The 185,000-square-foot office and retail property at 2143 State Route 35 in Holmdel, N.J., has been financed to the tune of $17.4 million. Cronheim Mortgage Corp. orchestrated the deal, which encompassed a 10-year loan with a 6.32 percent interest rate and a 25-year amortization. The loan came in two parts; an initial $12 million based on rents in place, along with the capacity to earn out an additional $5.4 million over a two-year period. Kohl's Plaza is anchored by a nearly 88,000-square-foot Kohl's Department Store and a 36,500-square-foot SteinMart store that recently joined the tenant roster, moving into the former TJ Maxx space. The borrower will use a portion of the proceeds to upgrade the property.

 
Recent Lending Headlines
Education Realty Nabs $222M
Student housing REIT Education Realty Trust Inc. has closed a $222 million secured credit facility, courtesy of Fannie Mae DUS lender Red Mortgage Capital Inc., and is wasting precious little time making use of the proceeds.
Emeritus Closes Refi Deal, Extends $73M Debt
Assisted living and Alzheimer's care facilities provider Emeritus Corp. capped the end of the year by ensuring there would be no material maturities hanging over its head in 2009. The company wrapped up the $36.3 million refinancing of seven properties through Freddie Mac, a move that allowed it to pay down and extend an existing debt with Capmark.
3Q GDP Down, 4Q Expected to Be Worse
The quarterly report by the U.S. Department of Commerce on the national GDP is something of a lagging indicator. The fact that the U.S. economy contracted 0.5 percent in the third quarter--July to September--might be worrisome, but it only raises the further question of how much contraction will happen in the fourth quarter.
paulson A Bailout for Commercial Real Estate?
"Right now, we believe there is insufficient systemic capacity to refinance expiring, performing commercial real-estate loans," reads a letter from a dozen commercial real estate trade groups to Treasury Sec. Henry Paulson, according to the Wall Street Journal this morning. In other words, the commercial side of the business, long perceived as relatively healthy compared with the residential side, is warning of dire straits ahead unless refinancing money is available in the near future.
CMBS Delinquencies Speeding Up: Fitch
Back in January 2008, long before the capital markets took their astonishing twists, Fitch Ratings made a sobering prediction: By the end of the year, its CMBS loan delinquency index would be double or triple the 0.28 percent recorded at the end of 2007. Fitch’s crystal ball turned out to be right on the money. On Friday the ratings agency reported that CMBS delinquency reached 0.64 percent for November. At this pace, Fitch projects that CMBS delinquencies could hit 2 percent by the end of 2009.