Houston, TX – March 31, 2008 – GE Real Estate announced today it has provided a $71.35 million loan to Chase Merritt for the acquisition and renovation of Four Corners, a Class “B+” office property located across from the Galleria regional shopping center in Houston, TX. The deal includes an initial funding of $49 million, a CapEx holdback of $5.675 million that Chase Merritt will use for extensive building and structures rehabs as well as landscaping enhancements, an $11.15 million holdback for tenant improvements and leasing commissions to address the lease up of vacant space and tenant roll during the loan term, and an earnout of $5.525 million.
The asset consists of two high-rise office buildings with 395,473 square feet of rent space, two parking structures, and two low-rise retail buildings with a combined 28,920 square feet of space. After completing its capital improvement plan, Chase Merritt expects to lease vacant space and retain tenants at market rates.
This is the second transaction between GE Real Estate and Chase Merritt in Houston’s Galleria West Loop submarket within the last six months. The three-year, on-book loan has two one-year extensions and a large amount of roll over in year two.
Based in Newport Beach, CA, Chase Merritt targets growth markets nationwide. The firm and its principals have acquired more than $800 million of real estate in the last three years.
“GE has been a good partner to us, and understood our opportunity to add considerable value to a prime location,” said Chad Horning, principal and CEO of Chase Merritt. “We know we can count on GE to provide the funding needed to successfully execute our business plan.”
“This deal was right in our strike zone given the strong Houston office market and Chase Merritt’s proven track record executing value-add business plans with office properties in Texas,” said Kevin Tucker, senior director, GE Real Estate.
GE Real Estate’s North America Lending division offers financing for retail, industrial, self-storage, multifamily, office, student housing, regional malls and outlet centers. North America Lending is also a provider of financing solutions for niche asset classes including affordable housing, golf, hospitality, vacation ownership, manufactured home communities and RV resorts.
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About GE Real Estate
GE Real Estate (
www.gerealestate.com) is one of the world's premier commercial real estate companies with more than US$79 billion in assets and a presence in 32 countries throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia/New Zealand. Backed by GE's AAA rating, GE Real Estate offers a comprehensive range of capital and investment solutions including equity capital for acquisition or development, as well as fixed and floating rate mortgages for new acquisitions or re-capitalizations of commercial real estate. With a 28% compound annual growth rate since 1993, GE Real Estate is one of the world's fastest growing and most profitable real estate enterprises. This extraordinary record of success grows out of a reputation for collaboration and partnership; a depth of knowledge and experience and a history of building relationships, finding opportunities and opening doors for more than 5,000 owners, builders, borrowers and brokers worldwide.
GE Commercial Finance (
www.gecommercialfinance.com) offers businesses around the globe an extensive array of financial products and services. With more than US$310 billion in assets and expertise in the middle-market, GE Commercial Finance provides loans, operating leases, financing programs and innovative structured capital to help customers grow. Headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, GE Commercial Finance is a wholly owned subsidiary of GE (NYSE:GE), a diversified services, technology and manufacturing company with operations worldwide.
