- Carlyle’s Rubenstein Says U.S. Recession ‘Inevitable’ by 2018 “The U.S. will probably enter a recession in the next three years, Carlyle Group LP’s David Rubenstein said. ‘At some point in the next year or two or three, you can expect a recession,’ Rubenstein, the co-founder of Washington-based Carlyle, said Friday in a television interview with David Westin and Stephanie Ruhle. ‘We tend to have recessions every seven years, more or less, in the U.S. since World War II. It’s inevitable at some point.’” (Bloomberg)
- Activist Investors Disrupting REIT-Dom “Historically REITs have traded within a reasonably predictable band, mostly above their Net Asset Value (or NAV); however, more recently REITs are posting less-than-stellar results, becoming prime targets for cash rich private equity buyers like Blackstone. Another more hostile group of deal makers forcing REIT control are activist investors. Unlike private equity buyers, activists are forcing change by targeting companies that are under-valued, hoping to unlock value through disruptive activities.” (Forbes)
- GE Nears Deal to Sell Over $30 Billion of Loans to Wells Fargo “General Electric is in advanced talks to sell a specialty finance portfolio, worth more than $30 billion, to Wells Fargo, according to a person familiar with the matter, as the industrial conglomerate returns to its roots. Wells Fargo has so far outbid other parties for General Electric's vendor financing, commercial distribution finance and direct lending assets, the person with direct knowledge of the situation said on Friday.” (Reuters)
- Twitter Expected to Begin Layoffs and Stop Headquarters Expansion “Twitter plans to opt out of a previously planned 100,000-square-foot expansion of its San Francisco headquarters, according to two people familiar with the company’s plans. Twitter had planned to add office space at 1455 Market Street, the building directly across the street from Twitter’s global headquarters. That space also houses Square, the mobile payments start-up that Mr. Dorsey co-founded and leads concurrently as chief.” (New York Times)
- Credit Suisse Seeks More Interest on Legacy CMBS Deals in Europe “Credit Suisse Group AG’s asset management unit is seeking to recoup ‘significant and material sums’ of unpaid interest on its holdings of pre-crisis commercial mortgage bonds in a move that may see money taken back from other noteholders. Credit Suisse Asset Management asked a London court to determine what level of interest should be paid on its Class X holdings in four notes sold by its investment bank in 2006 and 2007, according to a statement on Friday.” (Bloomberg)
- Manager Marc Halle: Real-Estate Mutual Funds Can Rebound This Year “It's a great time to be a landlord. You just wouldn't know it by looking at how real-estate investment trusts are faring this year. Demand for apartments, storage space and other commercial real estate has grown as the economy adds jobs at a solid clip. That's pushing rents and occupancy rates higher, which translates into more profits for companies that own and operate apartment buildings and other properties.” (LowellSun.com)
- Exclusive: Columbia Property Trust CEO’s Aggressive Plan “We sat down with Columbia Property Trust CEO Nelson Mills at the St. Regis, during the big ULI meeting in San Fran this week (look to the immediate left of his head and you'll see former S.F. Mayor Willie Brown at the packed bar). Being the recent winning bidder of the historic New York Times Building—a highly marketed 500k SF asset—was helped by Columbia's great relationship with the seller, Blackstone, he tells us.” (Bisnow)
- Whole Foods Sets Restaurant Partnership “Whole Foods Market has set a partnership and investment deal with restaurant operator Mendocino Farms that will lead to the opening of restaurant outlets within some of the retailer’s units. The information was disclosed by Mendocino Farms in an exclusive interview with Nation’s Restaurant News, a sister publication to SN at parent media company Penton.” (Supermarket News)
- Behind Blackstone’s BioMed Buy “In one of the biggest REIT privatizations planned so far this year, BioMed Realty Trust Inc., has agreed to be acquired by Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII in an all-cash deal valued at $8 billion. Coming soon after Blackstone agreed to buy Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc., for about $6 billion, it’s the latest blockbuster deal for the Blackstone affiliate that has been taking advantage of the depressed values for publicly-traded REITs this year.” (Commercial Property Executive)
- Confusion at ‘Core’ at Related Brokerage Partnership “It was supposed to be a hat, horns and champagne moment last fall when brokerage chief Shaun Osher summoned nearly 100 CORE agents to the firm’s main office at 104 Fifth Avenue. This month, a year after the October 2014 acquisition, The Real Deal looked at how the deal is playing out. What we found is that much of that initial excitement has been replaced by questions and lingering confusion over the exact parameters of the deal and what it means for the new development marketing operations of both companies.” (The Real Deal)
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