Fuller notes that the lender required no additional structure, with the existing 100% tenant vacating in the first 12 months of the loan. There is a new long-term lease in place that will commence when the existing tenant vacates, he explains.

Parkcenter Office Building

In Santa Ana, Alison VP Shaun Moothart arranged a $2 million loan in the mid-5% range for a private investor who recently bought a 32,365-square-foot office property called Parkcenter that was built in 1979 and consists of 15 units leased to 12 tenants. Buyer 801 RCA Venture LLC bought the property for all cash from 801 Parkcenter LP for $3.7 million and subsequently placed the financing on the property. The loan is fixed for 17 years and is fully amortized to coincide with the borrower's long-term investment strategy for the asset, Moothart says. In the acquisition, the buyer was represented by Denny Pender of Gillett Commercial. The seller was represented by Professional Real Estate Services Inc.

Moothart has also arranged a $2.2 million fixed refinancing for 10 years that is cross-collateralized by two retail buildings totaling 17,694 square feet. The buildings are separately located with one on Alvarado Street and the other located on North San Fernando Road in Los Angeles. The new loan was procured through a life company correspondent and paid off two bank loans. This "significantly improved the borrower’s interest rate and provided working capital to be reinvested back into property improvements," Moothart says. He adds, "In an effort to accommodate the borrower’s ability to sell either property in the future, the deal was structured with favorable release provisions. The Alison Co. will service both of the loans that Moothart arranged.

In a $2.95 million financing, the Alison Co.'s James Deal arranged a loan for a recently completed 14,820-square-foot Walgreens at 11801 S. Avenue O in Chicago. The borrower was a San Francisco-based investor who completed a 1031 exchange after selling another Walgreens. Loan proceeds went to partially fund the acquisition and to satisfy the requirements of the 1031 exchange. The 5.7% fixed-rate loan is with Symetra Life Insurance Co. for a 10-year initial term with an extension of up to 25 years and a 30-year amortization schedule. Deal notes that the loan was structured to provide the borrower with a longer-term commitment with flexibility for sale or refinancing during the term, and for longer amortization to maximize the cash flow.

In another financing that Deal arranged through Symetra, this one for $2.9 million, a Chicago-based retired private investor refinanced a maturing CMBS loan on an 18,841-square-foot Walgreens at 690 Second St. in Southampton, PA. The 6% fixed loan is for 9.5 years initially, with an extension of up to 20 years and 20-year amortization.

Deal points out that the loan provides the borrower with flexibility for sale or refinancing. Since there were only nine years remainign on the initial lease term for the property, he adds, "There were few lenders interested in providing a longer amortization." However, he says, "Based on the strong location and store sales information, Symetra was able to provide an ideal solution for the retired investor both for cash flow and estate planning." For both this loan and the loan on the Walgreens in Chicago, Deal says, "Symetra is one of the few lenders willing to consider this structure, and still has the capacity for Walgrens credit exposure. It is a great alternative to the more common CTL execution or short-term bank debt."