NEWS & NOTABLES

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL—A newly launched South Florida tech start-up is proposing to take the hassle out of leasing and managing rental properties. Rentlit.com is a digital solution for finding and screening tenant applications, managing leases, collecting rent and arranging maintenance. It transforms being a landlord of even just one unit into a high-tech business, rather than the high-touch cottage industry it traditionally has been.

POMPANO BEACH, FL—ACES Risk Management hired Ben Mahan as chief technology officer (CTO). Mahan was hired to support ARMCO as it moves into its next phase of growth. He has over two decades of executive-level technology experience that includes growing technology divisions for organizations in the e-learning, supply chain, healthcare, and compliance industries. Prior to joining ARMCO, Mahan was CTO for Sentry Data Systems, a leading SaaS provider in the healthcare analytics and 340B space, where he developed and oversaw Sentry's technology operations throughout several high growth and expansion cycles. In his previous positions, Mahan oversaw complex operations that include technology migrations, product development, strategy development, talent sourcing, and systems design and development.

DEAL TRACKER

LADY LAKE, FL—Berkadia brokered the sale of Carmendy Square, a multifamily property located in Lady Lake. Managing director Cole Whitaker and director Mary Beale of the Orlando office worked on behalf of the buyer and the seller to complete the $16.45 million sale. The buyer was Maxus Properties, based in Kansas City. The seller was Houston-based ApexOne Investment Partners.

TAMPA, FL—Marcus & Millichap brokered sale of a two-property, 1,470-unit, 155,057-net-rentable-square-foot self-storage portfolio in Brevard County. The sales price is $20.25 million. “Florida is squarely in the sights of many buyers as a hotspot for self-storage acquisition and development,” says Michael Mele, senior managing director investments in Marcus & Millichap's Tampa office. “Our 15-year advisory relationship with the seller and dominant market knowledge contributed greatly to the client's success.” Mele and Luke Elliott represented the seller, a private investor, and procured the buyer, a West Coast-based investor.

DAYTONA BEACH, FL—HFF closed the sale of the Hampton Inn Daytona Beach/Beachfront, a 90-room, select-service beachfront hotel in Daytona Beach. HFF marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Humphrey Realty Corp. Driftwood Acquisitions & Development, an affiliate of the hotel management company Driftwood Hospitality Management, purchased the asset free and clear of debt and unencumbered of management. Formerly known as the Ocean Sands Hotel, the eight-story Hampton Inn Daytona Beach/Beachfront underwent a complete renovation and brand conversion to a Hampton Inn in 2013.

FORT MYERS, FL—Marcus & Millichap brokered the sale of Thomas Street Apartments, a 32-unit apartment property located in Fort Myers. The asset sold for $1.225 million. Casey Babb and Luis Baez, investment specialists in the firm's Tampa office, represented the seller, a limited liability company. The buyer, a private investor, was secured and represented by Adam Podbelski, Nicholas Meoli and Michael Donaldson, investment specialists in Marcus & Millichap's Tampa office. “Thomas Street offered a strong value-add opportunity for the buyer, who intends to reposition the asset through furthered strategic renovations. It was this upside that enabled us to close within approximately 99% of the list price,” says Podbelski.

WESTON, FL— Avison Young's Florida Capital Markets Group was awarded the exclusive sale listing for a portfolio of two multi-tenant office buildings totaling approximately 63,000 square feet located at 1040 Weston Road and 1625 North Commerce Parkway in the high barrier to entry city of Weston. Principals David Duckworth, John K. Crotty, and Michael T. Fay were chosen to market the assets on the heels of several similar transactions completed by the team, including the $14.1 million sale of the nearby Change Healthcare regional headquarters facility and the $16.1 million sale of the Ultimate Software headquarters facility, both located in Weston. “Weston is a unique and special submarket that consistently outperforms other western Broward County submarkets,” says Duckworth. “Thoughtful planning from inception has created a utopian suburban neighborhood that has earned Weston great distinction as one of the best cities in which to live and work in the United States.”

LAKELAND, FL—Building 200 at Lakeland Logistics Center is online and available for lease Cushman & Wakefield recently assisted ownership in bringing the newly developed warehouse and distribution campus' first building to full occupancy. The brokerage team of director Julia Silva Rettig, associate Jessica Mizrahi, executive managing director Mike Davis, associate director Jared Bonshire and senior associate David Perez have begun leasing Building 200 on behalf a joint venture of Ridge Development and an institutional real estate partner. Building 200 is a class A built-to-suit facility capable of front-load or cross-dock configurations.

SUNRISE, FL—CBRE arranged the sale of Sunrise Business Center, 5001-5035 North Hiatus Road and 5000 Northwest 108th Avenue in Sunrise. Elion Partners sold the 124,487 square-foot office and warehouse complex, which is currently 95% leased, to Cabot Properties for $13 million. CBRE's David J. Wigoda represented the seller in the transaction. “Although it attracted many potential buyers, the challenge was finding a buyer that wanted the product type mix of smaller bay office and warehouse spaces and one larger distribution space. Cabot Properties saw value in how the product types complimented each other; a beneficial transaction for all parties involved,” says Wigoda.

BUILDING BLOCKS

GAINSVILLE, FL—Cook Development Company, 908 Group, and Kayne Anderson Real Estate Advisors broke ground on The NINE @ Gainesville, a purpose-built student housing development serving the students of the University of Florida, located at 1115 13th Street. The NINE @ Gainesville is less than a quarter mile from campus along the 13th Street corridor. The wood-frame student housing project will have 627 beds and total 216,540 square feet. All units are fully furnished, with private bathrooms, in-unit washers and dryers, stainless steel appliances and private balconies.

This week in Florida saw some strategic news for both the state's multifamily market and Broward's office market. South Florida dominated the state's commercial real estate headlines.

BY THE NUMBERS

A growing percentage of US households are renting rather than buying, making investing in rental properties an increasingly promising investment. In 2016 there were more than 43.7 million rental units in the US, with that number growing daily. (Source: National Multifamily Housing Council)

Broward office market vacancy has achieved a near-historic low of 11.23% within class A and B office space across the county fueled by the strength of South Florida's economy and steady job growth. As a result, investors are eying properties as high demand for office space continues to compress vacancy rates and place upward pressure on lease rates within the Fort Lauderdale CBD and trending westward into submarkets such as Weston. (Source: Avison Young)

NEWS & NOTABLES

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL—A newly launched South Florida tech start-up is proposing to take the hassle out of leasing and managing rental properties. Rentlit.com is a digital solution for finding and screening tenant applications, managing leases, collecting rent and arranging maintenance. It transforms being a landlord of even just one unit into a high-tech business, rather than the high-touch cottage industry it traditionally has been.

POMPANO BEACH, FL—ACES Risk Management hired Ben Mahan as chief technology officer (CTO). Mahan was hired to support ARMCO as it moves into its next phase of growth. He has over two decades of executive-level technology experience that includes growing technology divisions for organizations in the e-learning, supply chain, healthcare, and compliance industries. Prior to joining ARMCO, Mahan was CTO for Sentry Data Systems, a leading SaaS provider in the healthcare analytics and 340B space, where he developed and oversaw Sentry's technology operations throughout several high growth and expansion cycles. In his previous positions, Mahan oversaw complex operations that include technology migrations, product development, strategy development, talent sourcing, and systems design and development.

DEAL TRACKER

LADY LAKE, FL—Berkadia brokered the sale of Carmendy Square, a multifamily property located in Lady Lake. Managing director Cole Whitaker and director Mary Beale of the Orlando office worked on behalf of the buyer and the seller to complete the $16.45 million sale. The buyer was Maxus Properties, based in Kansas City. The seller was Houston-based ApexOne Investment Partners.

TAMPA, FL—Marcus & Millichap brokered sale of a two-property, 1,470-unit, 155,057-net-rentable-square-foot self-storage portfolio in Brevard County. The sales price is $20.25 million. “Florida is squarely in the sights of many buyers as a hotspot for self-storage acquisition and development,” says Michael Mele, senior managing director investments in Marcus & Millichap's Tampa office. “Our 15-year advisory relationship with the seller and dominant market knowledge contributed greatly to the client's success.” Mele and Luke Elliott represented the seller, a private investor, and procured the buyer, a West Coast-based investor.

DAYTONA BEACH, FL—HFF closed the sale of the Hampton Inn Daytona Beach/Beachfront, a 90-room, select-service beachfront hotel in Daytona Beach. HFF marketed the property on behalf of the seller, Humphrey Realty Corp. Driftwood Acquisitions & Development, an affiliate of the hotel management company Driftwood Hospitality Management, purchased the asset free and clear of debt and unencumbered of management. Formerly known as the Ocean Sands Hotel, the eight-story Hampton Inn Daytona Beach/Beachfront underwent a complete renovation and brand conversion to a Hampton Inn in 2013.

FORT MYERS, FL—Marcus & Millichap brokered the sale of Thomas Street Apartments, a 32-unit apartment property located in Fort Myers. The asset sold for $1.225 million. Casey Babb and Luis Baez, investment specialists in the firm's Tampa office, represented the seller, a limited liability company. The buyer, a private investor, was secured and represented by Adam Podbelski, Nicholas Meoli and Michael Donaldson, investment specialists in Marcus & Millichap's Tampa office. “Thomas Street offered a strong value-add opportunity for the buyer, who intends to reposition the asset through furthered strategic renovations. It was this upside that enabled us to close within approximately 99% of the list price,” says Podbelski.

WESTON, FL— Avison Young's Florida Capital Markets Group was awarded the exclusive sale listing for a portfolio of two multi-tenant office buildings totaling approximately 63,000 square feet located at 1040 Weston Road and 1625 North Commerce Parkway in the high barrier to entry city of Weston. Principals David Duckworth, John K. Crotty, and Michael T. Fay were chosen to market the assets on the heels of several similar transactions completed by the team, including the $14.1 million sale of the nearby Change Healthcare regional headquarters facility and the $16.1 million sale of the Ultimate Software headquarters facility, both located in Weston. “Weston is a unique and special submarket that consistently outperforms other western Broward County submarkets,” says Duckworth. “Thoughtful planning from inception has created a utopian suburban neighborhood that has earned Weston great distinction as one of the best cities in which to live and work in the United States.”

LAKELAND, FL—Building 200 at Lakeland Logistics Center is online and available for lease Cushman & Wakefield recently assisted ownership in bringing the newly developed warehouse and distribution campus' first building to full occupancy. The brokerage team of director Julia Silva Rettig, associate Jessica Mizrahi, executive managing director Mike Davis, associate director Jared Bonshire and senior associate David Perez have begun leasing Building 200 on behalf a joint venture of Ridge Development and an institutional real estate partner. Building 200 is a class A built-to-suit facility capable of front-load or cross-dock configurations.

SUNRISE, FL—CBRE arranged the sale of Sunrise Business Center, 5001-5035 North Hiatus Road and 5000 Northwest 108th Avenue in Sunrise. Elion Partners sold the 124,487 square-foot office and warehouse complex, which is currently 95% leased, to Cabot Properties for $13 million. CBRE's David J. Wigoda represented the seller in the transaction. “Although it attracted many potential buyers, the challenge was finding a buyer that wanted the product type mix of smaller bay office and warehouse spaces and one larger distribution space. Cabot Properties saw value in how the product types complimented each other; a beneficial transaction for all parties involved,” says Wigoda.

BUILDING BLOCKS

GAINSVILLE, FL—Cook Development Company, 908 Group, and Kayne Anderson Real Estate Advisors broke ground on The NINE @ Gainesville, a purpose-built student housing development serving the students of the University of Florida, located at 1115 13th Street. The NINE @ Gainesville is less than a quarter mile from campus along the 13th Street corridor. The wood-frame student housing project will have 627 beds and total 216,540 square feet. All units are fully furnished, with private bathrooms, in-unit washers and dryers, stainless steel appliances and private balconies.