Opportunity

Part of a portfolio purchase from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), this 96,000 sf industrial building was fraught with structural challenges, deferred maintenance and significant vacancy. The property had an additional 7 acres of undeveloped land and the potential to increase the storm water detention in the existing footprint of the pond to accommodate future development. The local sub market was very active with prospective tenants.

Result

Purchased for less than $2.7M, a comprehensive redevelopment plan was executed. The entire property was repaired, refurbished and repositioned in the market. The property was 100% leased within 24 months. Prior to offering the property for sale, ownership subdivided the property to isolate the vacant land for future development. The building sold to a 1031 exchange buyer for $10.5M and the vacant parcel was later sold for $600,000. Return on outside equity was 29% IRR.

Opportunity

Part of a portfolio purchase from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), this 70,000 sf single story flex-office building had a cost basis of less than $29/sf. The property was 50% leased to a single credit tenant, ACS (NYSE:ACS), a fortune 500 company.

Result

Implemented a capital improvement plan and retooled a market blitz for the property. Secured additional tenants and brought the occupancy rate to 70%. Sold the building for $3.375M. Return on outside equity was 29% IRR.

Opportunity

Offered for sale following the acquisition of Scientific Atlantic, Cisco Systems consolidated operations with their west coast facility, and vacated the building. The single tenant 44,000 sf building was situated on 5 acres, leaving 3 adjoining vacant acres available for future development or expansion.

Result

Purchased the property for less than $25/sf. Repositioned the property to a multi-tenant configuration and built a paved parking lot on the vacant acreage to accommodate outdoor yard storage for a major roadwork company. Secured a second tenant for the remaining space, and sold the property to a 1031 exchange buyer for $3.5M. Return on equity was 71% over the hold period.

Opportunity

This vacant 100,000 sf building situated on 10 acres was formally occupied by a moving company. The property was prominently positioned on a major retail thoroughfare. The property had been under contract with a self-storage developer, who abruptly walked away from the deal as the economy sputtered. The developer sunk a considerable amount of money and time into the entitlement process prior to his exit. With very little effort, the property could be rezoned for Self-storage use.

Result

The building was purchased for $4.3M and the special use entitlements were secured for self-storage use. The building was converted to 80,000 net rentable sf of indoor climate controlled self-storage. An additional 30,000 sf of ambient, outdoor storage was built on the excess land, rendering more than 110,000 sf of self-storage product to the market. The facility was 80% leased within the first 24 months, and the project was sold for $11.5M. Return on outside capital was north of 26% IRR.

Opportunity

Formerly the operations of Jewel Corporate Headquarters, the property was visibly located on North Avenue and offered 550 lineal feet of frontage with a 57,800 car daily traffic count. The 3-story building totaled 164,113 square feet and was positioned on approximately 5.2 acres on the front side of the massive Jewel processing facility. The property needed to be rezoned, subdivided and all utilities separated. A major brand self-storage operator had toured the property in prior months, and our analysis proved the market demand for self-storage was under served.

Result

Purchasing the property for $2.5M and overcoming the entitlement challenges, we scaled a very daunting development task, converting the mammoth building to self-storage use. Further, the property received a 7B tax status within Cook County. The project delivered nearly 1000 units of climate controlled space to the market. Prior to receipt of our certificate of occupancy (COO), the property was sold to a major operator for $12.5M. Return on outside capital was a staggering 60% IRR.

Opportunity

Though this property’s location and visibility are exceptional, deferred maintenance and absentee ownership hindered leasing efforts. Purchased for less than $90/sf, occupancy was less than 80%.

Result

Initiated a comprehensive capital improvement program and brought the building’s common areas up to a corporate standard. The building achieved 100% occupancy within the first 24 months of operations. An effort was put forth to entitle the south parking lot to allow for the development of 9000 sf of retail. Though never developed, the entitlement allowed the property to fetch a premium upon sale. Return on capital was 17% over the investment period.

Opportunity

We purchased the 48,000 sf well-maintained multi-tenant office property from an overseas family trust. The acquisition price was $4.0M. The property was saddled with an assumable high interest rate loan and historical vacancy levels hovering around 40%.

Result

During the 26 month hold period, occupancy was brought to 100%, with two of the largest existing tenants extending their leases an additional 10 years. The property was sold for $7.0M, structuring the timing of sale to coincide with the expiration of the defeasance penalty of the current loan payoff. Return on investor equity exceeded 39% on an annualized basis.

Opportunity

Partnering with an end user, we purchased the 58,000 sf industrial building for less than $40/sf. A cell tower on the property had a favorable “pro landlord” lease in place, structured in a way that isolated the tower from the building asset.

Result

Within a year, our partner expanded, stabilizing the asset on long term basis delivering a consistent 20% plus annual return on invested capital. We sold the cell tower income stream for $140,000 and later sold the property to our partner for $2.4M. The project yield was 20% annualized over the 10 year hold period.

Opportunity

We acquired an underperforming 86,000 sf flex-service property in the West O’Hare market for $42/sf. We positioned the property for 100% office use and facilitated the creation of a Tax Increment Financing District (TIF). Total project cost was near $8.0M.

Result

Convincing US Cellular Corporation to relocate their data center to this building, net effective rent increased more than $8/sf. Net Operating Income soared to over $1.35M annually. The $14.0M sale of the property produced a return on outside equity of over 61% on an annualized basis.

Opportunity

Purchased a three-story, 39,000 sf office building located directly north of Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport at less than $50/sf. The O’Hare sub-market was particularly active and the office condominium market was becoming more prevalent.

Result

Converting the traditional ‘FOR LEASE” office building to a “FOR SALE” office condominium product proved to be the highest probable return on investment. Selling at an average of $145/sf. 19 condominium units were sold in less than 36 months. Return on equity was 21%.

Opportunity

This 77,000 sf building was the former Midwest regional headquarters of a national Insurance Company. The building was vacant and purchased for less than $12/sf.

Result

Held in inventory for over three years, Corinthian Colleges, Inc (NYSE:COCO) one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America signed a 10 year lease for a new North Aurora, Illinois campus.

The deal was made possible through the creation of a Tax Incremental Financing District (TIF). Over $2.5M was allocated to the tenant improvement requirements of the college. The property was sold for $7.75M , returning a 20% IRR on invested capital over that time period.

Opportunity

Purchased a 51,000 sf family owned office property in a desirable location near Yorktown Mall for less than $50 per square foot. The property had considerable deferred maintenance resulting in a consistent vacancy rate over 60% year-over-year.

Result

Capital was spent on renovating all the common elements of the building, and the property was re-introduced to the brokerage community. Rental rates were increased more than 80% and within 29 months, the property was 97% leased. The property was sold for $106 per square foot, providing a return on outside equity of 24%.

Opportunity

We acquired the 50% vacant, 29,000 sf suburban office property from a non-for-profit foundation for less than $65 per square foot. The deal was predicated on a structured sale lease back. The in-place income was sufficient to cover operating expenses and debt coverage, leaving the second floor vacancy as the upside in the property.

Result

Within 24 months, the building was renovated and 100% leased. The property was sold to a surgical group affiliated with Good Samaritan Hospital for $112 per square foot. Return on invested capital was in excess of 26%.

Opportunity

Bank owned outdoor facility containing 425 units located along I-55 on Frontage Road in Romeoville. The property was more than 50% vacant and had considerable deferred maintenance. The property was encumbered with several title issues, including a significant recording error when the adjacent industrial park was developed, rendered road access to the property legally blocked.

Result

Working with the bank for more than 2 years to unwind the legal errors on title, the property was purchased for $1.5M. A comprehensive capital improvement project was executed in short order, and a major 3rd party operator was put in place to manage the facility. The property was 90% leased within 24 months. The facility sold for $3.75M to an institutional investor. Return on equity exceeded 65% IRR.

Opportunity

Out-of-state bank owned this small, first generation outdoor storage facility containing 84 units on the edge of an industrial park in Palatine, Illinois. The facility was directly across the street from a brand new climate controlled Metro storage facility. The property was poorly managed, had significant deferred maintenance and no real security measures in place.

Result

Purchased for a mere $367,500, the property was immediately cleaned up and all deferred maintenance items were addressed. Security gates and electronic controlled access key pads were installed. The property was 90% leased within 18 months and rental rates were increased 30%. The property was sold to a national operator. Return on investment was 17%.

Opportunity

Built as Auto Insurance claim center, this 12,000sf stand-alone two-story masonry building was vacant for more than two years. Positioned on the outer loop of a major retail mall, the property had strong potential for a user buyer.

Result

Purchased at just $390,000, the property was flipped to a local church for $725,000. Return on investment was 54% over the hold period.

Opportunity

The 55,000sf single-story industrial flex building was converted to 100% office use by Tellabs. Originally designed to accommodate six separate units, each having its own loading dock, the property was unsuccessfully marketed as office space. We purchased the property for $3.1M.

Result

Undertaking a comprehensive marketing strategy, the property was positioned to take advantage of the flex office market and technology based industrial users. Landing a back room disaster recovery operation of a major bank, the tenant’s strong credit stabilized the asset and attracted investment grade buyers. The property was 90% leased when it sold for $4.75M. Return on equity was 13%.

Opportunity

Over the course of several years, purchased multiple properties from area lenders and assembled a portfolio of several hundred apartment units. The properties were all vacant and some cases were challenged with environmental issues.

Result

Strategically renovated and leased the properties and instilled vigilant property management practices. Sought permanent resolution to the outstanding environmental concerns and sold the entire portfolio over a 30 month hold period, returning over a 90% IRR on invested equity.