Industrial

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners arranged $20,675,000 in post-closing financing collateralized by an 185K square foot infill flex/R&D industrial asset located in Los Angeles, CA. The recapitalization repatriated equity and provided future funding for the renovation of the Property.

The asset provides optionality for multiple upside scenarios such as sound stage and creative office use. The business plan is to renovate the Property and cater to growing demand from the many media, entertainment and technology tenants in the Los Angeles market.

Amidst a time of market volatility and economic uncertainty, George Smith Partners was able to identify a capital source that understood both the value of the asset and the ability of the Sponsor to execute on the intended business plan.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners successfully arranged $44,000,000 in non-recourse, non-participating bridge financing at 95% of cost for the lease-up and repositioning of a 5-property, 650,000 SF, industrial complex located on the West Coast. The Sponsor purchased the complex vacant and the seller carried the first mortgage for 4 months. From the open of escrow with the Seller, to the closing of this loan, there was over 82% of the available space leased making up 77% of rent with letters of intent for the remainder of the space. Although this was during the COVID-19 pandemic, and there was considerable deferred maintenance and capital expenditure required to get the properties rent ready, the space leased quickly due to the Sponsor expertise and relationships and a strong submarket.

The loan provides funds for the deferred maintenance, the capital expenditures, the tenant improvements, leasing commission and carry until the tenants are in and paying rent. Additionally, there is an earn-out of $2,000,000 after the 18th month as the asset has other potential value-add attributes.

Transaction Description:
George Smith Partners placed a $4,700,000 refinance loan with cash-out for a single-tenant industrial property in El Cajon, San Diego County. This highly specialized facility is one of only two locations in the US that is approved to manufacture key components and assemblies for military and commercial aircraft currently in service.

The Sponsor acquired the Property in 2018 with a bridge acquisition loan. In March 2020, GSP was engaged to refinance the maturing bridge loan with permanent financing including cash-out proceeds. However, the California “stay-at-home” order was issued soon thereafter resulting in a challenging lending market for the Property.

GSP helped the lenders become comfortable by focusing on the low leverage, the strength of the Sponsor and the Tenant, and the fact that the Property continued to operate at full capacity without interruption due to be a critical Department of Defense supplier. In addition, the Tenant recently exercised its third extension option to the existing lease with an increased cash flow closer to market rents, thereby continuing its long-term commitment to the Facility.

While holdback reserves are increasingly common in the current environment, GSP negotiated to have reserve payments deferred until the fourth year of the loan and on a monthly schedule instead of the typical lump sum holdback at closing.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners, on behalf of Stos Partners , arranged $19,775,000 in bridge financing for the acquisition of a specialty flex industrial asset located in Temecula, CA. The Sponsor was able to negotiate a long-term lease renewal for the primary credit tenant, whose term was nearly expired, creating significant value in the process.

The recently purchased industrial building maintains a mix of specialized uses, as well as an additional near-term vacancy for a smaller flex space, posing both an opportunity and a challenge within the markets. The specialized and varied uses of the building, including laboratory rooms, light manufacturing areas and office/distribution space, required costly buildouts with tenant improvement dollars as the primary tenant expanded into additional space, requiring additional structure. Despite strong market fundamentals, the disruption with the COVID-19 pandemic changed the economy overnight. However, the financials and credit profile of this project only grew stronger and more viable with time.

George Smith Partners was able to identify a capital source that understood both the quality of the asset and the ability of the Sponsor to execute on the intended business plan. Amidst a time of great market volatility and economic uncertainty, the Capital Provider held their original pre-COVID structure and terms.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners arranged $61,392,000 in first mortgage debt for the refinance of a mixed-use office, industrial and lab campus in the Tri-State area (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut). The corporate user developed the campus in phases between 1906 and 2008, and the improvements consist of over two million square feet of laboratory, pharmaceutical manufacturing, office and support buildings including a central utility plant. The user still owns some buildings, and leases others on the campus. The Sponsor purchased the asset in 2015 with a long-term redevelopment goal to create a life sciences destination that will build on the existing laboratory, manufacturing, and office uses. The Property will ultimately feature shopping, dining, meeting and educational experiences as part of a cohesive “work/live/play” community.

GSP sourced a loan from a capital provider that was able to underwrite in-place income with flexibility for an ever-evolving business plan. The three-year, interest only initial loan term is structured as an initial advance of $42,940,000 with the remaining $18,452,000 future funded for approved capital expenditures and tenant improvements/leasing commissions for to-be-leased space. No interest is due on funds until drawn. The loan is open for prepayment at any time subject to a 24-month minimum interest payment.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners placed a structured senior and collateralized line of credit revolver in a cash-out execution for a business in Los Angeles. The first loan was structured to be self-liquidating over 15 years with a fixed rate of 3.90%. The $1,000,000 second trust deed is a true revolver that can be used as a check-book and has no limitations on uses. The second loan is priced at 3.75% (Prime minus 1%). Funds may be drawn down, re-paid and re-drawn without additional bank approval. There is no non-utilization fee. As the credit line is collateralized, there is no mandatory “clean-up” for funds outstanding over 12 months.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners secured $3,300,000 in proceeds for the purchase of a 19,680 sf warehouse located in the San Fernando Valley. The loan is fixed at 3.36% for 10 years. The Sponsor owns the adjacent property and intends to expand their business into additional warehouse space. Before discussing the deal with lenders, GSP fully underwrote the underlying business and demonstrated its substantial and recurring cash flow. As a result, many lenders were interested in the transaction at 75% LTV, which was above-market leverage for a non-SBA execution. The Borrower was able to select the loan with the best rate and structure. Additionally, the Lender provided an option to pre-pay 20% of the principal balance each year with no penalty.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners secured $43,500,000 in bridge financing collateralized by a 95% vacant, 2.2MM square foot industrial building in a secondary Midwestern market. The building was constructed through the 1950s and 1960s by a major retailer and used for many years as a major distribution center. As internet retail ate into the tenant’s business, the building slowly lost its business importance to the prior owner. The Borrower, a well known owner and operator in the area bought the Property off market unoccupied approximately one year ago and has been improving the property and been in leasing talks with an array of strong tenants. The lease that occupies 5% of the building is attributed to a third party logistics subsidiary of the Borrower.

Sized to 80% of stabilized value, proceeds from the bridge loan take out the Borrower’s original acquisition loan and bought out an institutional Preferred Equity investor. The Borrower now owns the property free of all third-party equity investors. Additional loan proceeds will also be used to cover closing costs and fund future work, including CapEx and leasing costs associated with repositioning the 60-year-old building. The financing secured by GSP not only allowed the Borrower to recap out their equity partner and claim exclusive ownership rights to the asset, but also gave them the final renovation dollars required to attract new tenants and eventually bring to Property to stabilization.

Transaction Description:
George Smith Partners secured $15,000,000 of cash out refinancing of a single-tenant distribution warehouse in West Rancho Dominguez, an unincorporated portion of Los Angeles County. This was a permanent, non-recourse loan at 4.78% fixed for 5 years with 25 years amortization. The flexible prepay, which is non-typical of Life Co’s yield maintenance, was very appealing to the Borrower (locked for 12 months, 3-2-1, then open at par for the last 12 months).

Challenges:
Full cash out with $15,000,000 in proceeds for a foreign borrower who built this property in 2008 for less than $9,000,000. The existing single-tenant is a privately-owned entity that is “non-credit” with its lease rolling in less than 4 years without extensions. The in-place rent is currently 30% below market which limited other loan proposals between $9,000,000 and $11,500,000 in max proceeds.

Solutions:
George Smith Partners worked with an existing life insurance company lender relationship that was able to provide a structured permanent loan solution by underwriting to market rental rate rather than the in-place income. This made the loan metrics work for the Lender (8.6 Debt Yield & 1.26 DCR). These assumptions were in turn verified and confirmed by a national appraisal firm.
The Asset is relatively new construction and considered a class-A property. Furthermore, the Los Angeles County industrial market is supply constrained which makes this asset category one of the most appealing in CRE today.

Transaction Description:
George Smith Partners successfully placed the $1,500,000 refinance of a 22,250 SF single-tenant industrial building in Los Angeles, California. The Property is well located near USC, minutes from the LA garment district and Downtown LA.

Challenges:
The single tenant is a non-credit private label garment manufacturer and the lease is short term expiring in approximately one year. The Property was built in the 1950s, and the contract rent is below market due to functional deficiencies such as clear height and parking spaces as compared to neighboring inventory. Based on the current rent, the Property doesn’t cash flow in the Lender’s credit review.

Solution:
GSP utilized its extensive market expertise and strong lender relationships to identify a capital provider willing to provide a 10-year fixed loan without TI Holdbacks or a Leasing Commission reserve. The Lender allowed an early rate lock at application, insulating the Borrower from rising interest rates. Priced at 5.15% for the 10-year term, the fixed loan was sized to 54% of value, with a 25-year amortization.

Transaction Description

George Smith Partners secured $25,500,000 in bridge financing collateralized by a 72% occupied, multi-tenant, 55-acre industrial park in St. Louis, Missouri. Sized to 70% of as-stable value, proceeds from the interest-only bridge loan were used to refinance out two existing permanent loans, cover closing costs and fund 100% of future costs, including CapEx and leasing costs, associated with the final reposition of the 100-year-old industrial park. The borrower had previously upgraded a portion of the Property, including replacing obsolete structures with new tilt-up buildings, however wanted to also take advantage of recent lease expirations within the functionally obsolete suites. The financing secured by GSP will allow the Borrower to modernize and upgrade the structures in an effort to further improve the park and capitalize on St. Louis’s strong industrial market fundamentals, and the Borrower will benefit from the resulting higher rents and additional cash flow after debt service without having to invest additional equity.

The Property’s existing improvements vary with respect to age, functionality and uses, which made it difficult for the borrower to define a specific suite-by-suite future funding budget. In line with the flexibility required by Borrower’s business plan, the Lender allowed the future loan funds to be pooled in lieu of allocating the capital budget on a suite-by-suite basis since the re-tenanting costs will vary based on each future tenants’ specific use. The loan also provides flexibility with interest paid only on drawn funds plus a nominal 1% prepayment penalty during only the first 12 months of loan term allowing payoff at par thereafter.

Transaction Description:

George Smith Partners placed non-recourse financing to take-out an existing construction loan on a 59,375 square foot multi-tenant flex industrial building located in an Austin suburb.  In addition to paying off the recourse construction loan, the Sponsor received a notable return of equity.  Located adjacent to a residential housing PUD, the commercial real estate is subject to the Homeowners Association’s CC&Rs.  Fixed at 5.44% for ten years, prepayment steps-down from 10%.  Amortization commences after the first year of interest only and is spread over 30 years.

Challenges:

During due diligence, it was determined the CC&Rs were not securitizable without a material modification precluding the HOA from inhibiting specific tenant uses on the subject property.  Our bank ordered MAI appraisal value was below expectations.  One tenant representing 12% of the net rentable went into monetary default and vacated the premises but did not turn the space back to management.

Solutions:

GSP identified a portfolio lender who became comfortable with the use subject to receiving an estoppel from the HOA.  Although the potential remains for future changes/impediments from the HOA board, the lender obtained a high level of comfort that the current uses were grandfathered in and the HOA would not play an active role in their neighbor’s operations.  The Sponsor, Lender and GSP provided additional sale comparables to support a higher value.  The lender agreed to raise their LTV constraint by 3 percentage points to maintain proceeds.  A tenant Improvement & lease commission reserve was funded at close to be reallocated for releasing the dark space.