Liberty Property Trust begins construction of new building at Shopton Ridge

Liberty Property Trust has started work on a new, 170,100-square-foot warehouse in the Shopton Ridge industrial park in southwest Charlotte. The building is expected to deliver in mid-November, allowing the company to keep up with anticipated demand, executives say. Liberty purchased three buildings at Shopton Ridge in 2012 for $16 million. And last year, the company bought a fourth building for $6.8 million, plus 68 acres of undeveloped land for $2 million. Liberty’s buildings at Shopton Ridge…

Connecticut firm snaps up local apartment property

Hamilton Point Investments has closed on its $13.4 million purchase of Cushendall Commons, a 168-unit apartment property in Rock Hill, a spokeswoman for the Connecticut-based firm says. The complex, built in 2002, is off Interstate 77 near Dave Lyle Boulevard, about 24 miles south of uptown Charlotte. At the time of the sale, the complex was 98.1 percent occupied, according to a news release. Hamilton Point, a real estate private-equity firm, says “modest” interior and exterior upgrades are…

Childress Klein starts work on apartment tower after $18.1 million purchase

Childress Klein started work this month on a new 42-story apartment tower over the Mint Museum, after purchasing the air rights for the project for $18.1 million from Wells Fargo & Co. As we first told you last year, the 393-unit tower will rise 31 stories above the museum, adding a long-planned residential component to the Levine Center for the Arts cultural campus. Wachovia originally planned to build a condo tower above the Mint, and in addition to the air rights, Childress Klein’s purchase…

Beacon Partners secures $58 million loan for industrial portfolio from TIAA-CREF

Beacon Partners has secured $58 million in debt financing from TIAA-CREF for eight industrial properties in the Carolinas totaling 1.6 million square feet. Jon Morris, a partner with Beacon, says the firm wanted to take advantage of low interest rates and secure long-term financing for the buildings, which are 100% leased. TIAA-CREF provided a 15-year, fixed-rate loan for the portfolio. Beacon’s industrial portfolio totals 6.5 million square feet, and the firm may pursue additional rounds of…

MetLife taking more space at Woodward building in Ballantyne

MetLife Inc. is taking another floor at the Woodward building in Ballantyne Corporate Park. The insurance giant (NYSE:MET) has exercised its option to lease the building's sixth floor, which totals 28,371 square feet. When it moves into the space, MetLife will occupy 16 floors at the twin 10-story Gragg and Woodward buildings. A MetLife spokesman could not be reached for comment. The top four floors at Woodward remain available for lease, according to The Bissell Cos., which declined to comment.…

Grandfather Homes to debut new concept in Charlotte (PHOTOS)

Local custom homebuilder Grandfather Homes is bringing a touch of West Coast style to the Charlotte housing market. The company has recently launched construction of its first duet in the city’s Dilworth neighborhood — a concept that is new for Grandfather Homes as well as the local market, the company says, though it is common in California. Duets feature two individually owned homes in a single structure — similar to both a duplex and a townhome but with its own distinctions: “A duplex…

Northwood Ravin makes upset bid for uptown land; plans apartments, office, retail

The city of Charlotte has received another upset bid for an uptown parcel it owns at the intersection of Caldwell and Stonewall streets. Charlotte apartment firm Northwood Ravin has agreed to pay $14.15 million for the 3.76-acre tract, according to Tony Korolos, director of the city’s real estate division. The firm is planning a project up to eight stories tall featuring 400 apartment units and 50,000 square feet of office and retail space, he says. Prior to the Northwood Ravin bid, apartment…

Rail company opening Charlotte office, moving executives here

Vossloh North America, a rail infrastructure and technology company, is opening a regional office in Charlotte and relocating its executive team here. The company has signed a lease for 9,570 square feet at the Coliseum Centre office park off Tyvola Road and plans to have 27 employees at the location by the end of next year, says Jason Klotzer, director of human resources. The company decided to centralize its leadership team in Charlotte so that it can better manage its facilities across North…

Bubble or rebound? Prominent home price index compares gains in Charlotte, nation

Home prices in Charlotte were up 5.8 percent in March from a year earlier, according to a widely watched monthly index released Tuesday. That continues the market’s hot start in 2015, with the annual growth rate exceeding the rates posted for the local area in both January and February. The March figure also puts the city ahead of national trends, the latest Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller Home Price Index shows. Charlotte’s month-to-month increase in home prices remained steady, with a 0.9…

SilverCap redeveloping southwest Charlotte office property

Charlotte real estate investment firm SilverCap Partners recently purchased a former Deere & Co. facility in southwest Charlotte and is marketing a 76,899-square-foot office building at the site to back-office or call-center users. SilverCap bought the 19-acre property at 14401 Carowinds Blvd. from Deere last month for $4.1 million. The Charlotte firm plans to demolish a former research and development building at the site and add more parking spaces, bringing the parking ratio up to nine spaces…