Dealmaker: NorthMarq Capital Secures $88M in California

NorthMarq Capital’s Los Angeles and San Diego offices arranged $88 million for three office and industrial properties in California.

Blake Melstrom, Vice President of NorthMarq’s Los Angeles office, arranged $48 million to refinance Olympic Plaza, a 244,000-square-foot office property on West Olympic Boulevard in Los Angeles. The 10-year loan included a 25-year amortization schedule.

“The transaction included an option for the borrower to lock in a low, long-term interest rate several months in advance of their approaching commercial mortgage-backed securities loan maturity,” Melstrom said. “Through our list of correspondent life insurance company lenders, [we] identified several lenders offering forward commitments in order for the borrower to avoid paying a large defeasance penalty.”

In Ontario, Calif., NorthMarq Senior Vice President and Managing director Robert Hervey and Vice President Joe Giordani arranged $29 million to refinance Airport Center, a 600,000-square-foot industrial property that borders LA/Ontario International Airport. The transaction, which featured a six-month forward rate lock, was structured with a 10-year term and 25-year amortization schedule.

“The borrower had the foresight to go to market early looking for a loan and lock rate well in advance of their existing loan maturity,” Hervey said, noting that NorthMarq’s correspondent lender offered a free six-month forward rate lock.

Working from the firm’s San Diego office, NorthMarq Senior Vice President Steve Hollister and Vice President Aaron Beck arranged an $11 million bridge loan for a suburban San Diego office project. They structured the transaction with a three-year interest-only term.

“The non-recourse loan includes a future funding provision that provides the borrower with the necessary dollars to complete renovations to the property and increase occupancy to a stabilized level, at which point additional loan dollars will be funded,” Hollister said.