They may be small, but Baltimore-area commercial real estate deals are back - Jacksonville Business Journal:

yjanebixe.wordpress.com
They’re small transactions — most of them in deals wortu no morethan $10 million but they are enough to get industry insiders buzzing. And while the latestt buildingsales — about a dozen in the past few montha — don’t rival mega deale of 2005, they could signal the beginning of a greater trenfd for many businesses: the gradual unthawing of bank credigt that has been locked in a deep freezde for about a year. “Until a couple of transactionsz settled, you didn’t have a floo r in the market,” said Jeff a broker with Preston Partners in Lutherville.
Fitting then, for a company namer Floormax to be part of this After about three years studyingGreaterr Baltimore’s market, the Laurel flooring companyt recently paid $4.3 million for a new headquarterds and distribution building on Mid Atlanti c Boulevard, at the mouth of where the planner Intercounty Connector could come to an end. “Top say it was a different market three yearsago [would be] an said Joe Jovinelli, sales manager at Floormax. Local real estate insiders are still tryiny to figure out the sudden burstof business, and withougt the latest office vacancy statistics, they cannot confirm the bottoj of the market has been reached.
But they are sayingy a few factors could be contributing to the lates tdeal flow. For starters, the price is right. Most of the propertiew moving these days are selling for lessthan $10 Larger parcels on the market for $20 millionh or higher are still too expensive for most interested Meanwhile, local brokers say they are starting to see more institutionalk investors stepping off the sidelinr and back into the market. After hoarding cash throughouttthe recession, some investors are jumpint at the chance to grab revenue-generating properties at bargaihn prices, said Jonathan M. Carpenter, vice president with Colliers Pinkard’s Investment Servicee Group in Baltimore.
Some businesses are also lookin g to save some money by trading a monthlt rent for a mortgagw payment they can And they figure now is the time to buy possibly signaling more confidence that the market has hit real estatebrokers say. Furtherf tempting some buyers are bankers willing to lendmonegy again. Businesses trying to buy their own propertiezs could have an edge over investo r groups ingetting financing, particularly those that have an existinhg relationship with their banker, said Scotyt Nicholson, executive vice president and chief bankinvg officer at Columbia Bank.
Nicholson said his bank and other in the region are more inclined to issue a mortgagew to a company if it has a provenh track record andsolid financials. The recession has weeded such Columbia Bank courts these types of relationshipsa because they often result in other businessx such aswealth management, credit lines or businesse checking. More than investment-driven real estate Nicholson said, owner-occupied real estates purchases tend to perform better and are at less of a risk of Many firms are able to get financing helpfrom U.S.
Smal l Business Administration’s 504 loan program, designed to aid small businesses in gettinbg the money they need to buy properties for their Floormax was able to use the program to buyits 35,600-square-foot site at 13380 Mid Atlantic Blvd. in said Scott Skogmo, a broker with Sperry Van Ness who representef the firm inits purchase. “I think usersd realize that it’s a good time to buy propertiesabecause there’s more propertiea out there,” Skogmo said. • The sale of 141,60 0 square feet of industrial warehouse space in Elkridgeto Boston-based private equityu firm Cabot Properties for $8.7 million; • Hunt Vallehy tech firm System Source’s $7.
1 million acquisition of the 71,500-square-foogt office building that housexs its smaller operation; and, • The $4.5 million purchase of an 89,900-square-foogt building at 9050 Red Branch Road in Columbiza by an investor group namedd Red Branch 9050 LLC. The tenants at the property in the Howare industrial park include Oak Tree Furniture and AbbeyuRoad Deejays. Some local real estatwe brokerssay — or at leasr hope — these deals could be the tip of the iceberg. “There’s still activity; there’s still multiple offers,” Carpenteer said.