- Freddie Mac Selling $1 Billion of Loans in Largest Deal “Freddie Mac is selling more than $1 billion of soured U.S. home loans in its largest sale of the debt. Potential buyers are bidding on three pools of nonperforming loans, with unpaid principal balances of about $660 million, $249 million and $125 million, according to debt broker Mission Capital Advisors.” (Bloomberg)
- Starbucks to Open 3,500 Stores Across Americas; Unveiling New Express Format “Starbucks Corp. remains highly bullish on expansion. In remarks at the company’s annual shareholders meeting, the coffee giant revealed that over the next five years it plans to open 3,500 locations in its Americas region and 8,000 new stores in foreign markets.” (Chain Store Age)
- Biggest Wealth Fund Ready to Buy ‘A Lot’ of Asian Properties “Norway’s wealth fund is making final preparations for its first Asian real estate investment as it builds a portfolio of properties in the world’s biggest cities. After scouring Asia for investment opportunities, the $870 billion fund, built from Norway’s oil revenue, has narrowed its search to Singapore and Tokyo, said Karsten Kallevig, head of real estate investments at the Oslo-based fund.” (Bloomberg)
- Why General Growth is Playing Footsie with its Biggest Rival “General Growth Properties CEO Sandeep Mathrani has shown a dealmaker's touch, sculpting a shopping mall portfolio for a bifurcating U.S. economy. Since leading the country's second-largest mall owner out of bankruptcy in 2011, he has built a fleet of high-end shopping centers catering to affluent consumers whose fortunes have soared since the recession.” (Crain’s Chicago Business)
- COPT Picks Up Premium Property in Baltimore “Corporate Office Properties Trust has acquired 250 West Pratt St., a 368,200-square-foot Class A office building in Maryland’s Pratt Street Corridor near Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, for $63.5 million from Tier REIT.” (Commercial Property Executive)
- Top U.S. Commercial, Multifamily Mortgage Firms of 2014 Revealed “This week the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its annual ranking of top commercial and multifamily mortgage firms by loan originations, with Wells Fargo leading the way in 2014 in total loan volume.” (World Property Journal)
- Whistleblower Files Claim against JC Penney “Fortune has learned that a former employee, Robert Blatchford, has filed a claim against the company under Florida’s Private Whistleblower Act. The case—which could lead to deposition testimony by former CEO Ron Johnson—brings back to life a dark period in JC Penney’s history.” (Fortune)
- Inland Empire: Poised to Be a ‘Big Dog’ in California Economy? “The Inland Empire was among the regions hardest hit by the recession in California, but it has since added back jobs at a pace exceeded only by the flourishing tech hubs in San Francisco and Santa Clara, said John Husing, chief economist for the Inland Empire Economic Partnership.” (Los Angeles Times)
- Report Says “False Equity on the Rise” in Housing Market “Home prices in some U.S. markets are rising much faster than rental incomes or what it would cost to build new houses in those markets, according to a new study by a real estate valuation firm. The growing gap between sales prices, on one hand, and rents and so-called ‘replacement cost’ on the other is evidence of markets that are over-heating, said the report by Jacksonville, Fla.-based Smithfield & Wainwright.” (The Wall Street Journal)
- Goldman Sachs Joins Hines, Pearlmark JV “Goldman Sachs has joined Hines and Pearlmark Real Estate Partners as an investor in the development of a 305,000-square-foot Class A office complex in the San Francisco Bay area. JP Morgan is providing the construction loan for the speculative buildings at 400 and 405 Concar Drive in San Mateo, Calif.” (Commercial Property Executive)
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