TIAA-CREF Entity Secures $37M Loan for Stone Crest Asset

SAN DIEGO, CA-A wholly owned entity of TIAA-CREF, known as ND Properties Inc., has secured a $37-million loan from life company lender Aegon USA Realty Advisors. The funds are being used to refinance ND Properties’ Stone Crest asset in San Diego. The borrower decided to pursue a refinancing of the property because company officials wanted to “take advantage of the loan rates and flexible terms” that are currently being offered, Donald Curtis, a senior managing director based in Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP’s Orange County office, tells GlobeSt.com. Curtis, along with senior managing director Timothy Wright of Holliday Fenoglio’s San Diego office, arranged the loan on behalf of ND Properties. The terms of the financing provide for “a three-year, fixed-rate loan with floating rate options on the backside,” Curtis says. Thus, the borrower was able to secure “low fixed rates on shorter term financing” and “lock in some very attractive extension options,” Wright adds.Located at the intersection of Granite Ridge Drive and Daley Center Drive, Stone Crest is comprised of five buildings that encompass a total of 378,536 sf of office and R&D space. The project, which Curtis says was built in phases over the past 10 years or so, is part of a 318-acre, mixed-use community that includes residential, retail and office product. ND Properties procured the asset as part of an acquisition last year, Curtis tells GlobeSt.com, adding that it is a “stable property.” Tenants here include ITT Educational Services Inc., BlueCross BlueShield, Mercury Insurance Group and the University of Phoenix. When it comes to the San Diego region, “the financing market for office and R&D has improved over the last year, as market fundamentals have improved countywide,” Wright tells GlobeSt.com. “In addition, spreads have come down over the last six months and lenders have been underwriting more aggressively and offering a wide variety of products.”