“New” development north of Broad on Staples Mill

Posted: December 19, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Henrico County, Multi-family Housing, New Development, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Retail | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment »

About once a month I get a question about the large, vacant property that borders Staples Mill Road that is just north of West Broad Street, right over the Henrico Count line. My answer is always that it was an old, rundown neighborhood that was purchased and cleared with the intention of rebuilding, and that the developer is the same group that is doing the project at Monument Avenue and Willow Lawn Drive – Gumenick Properties. As to why it hasn’t been started, well just look around at new building all around the country. The developer was obviously waiting until the economy turns around.

But, I always have to give that answer with the caveat that the last official word I had heard about it was a few years ago. I couldn’t even be sure that the same plans were in place. Thankfully I can point to this article on Richmond.com that gives us the lowdown on the current situation — which is pretty much as described as above. It sounds as though things are just on hold, but the same big plans are still on the books. In fact, this project is expected to take 10 years even once they finally get underway.

You need to go read the article to see all of the reported details, but I thought I would share a couple of details of the plans here:

What: Staples Mill Centre, proposed to include 1,096 apartments, 571 condominiums, 391 townhouses, 32 single-family homes, 60,000 square feet of offices, and 100,000 square feet of stores.

Where: About 80 acres between Staples Mill Road, Libbie Avenue and Bethlehem Road, near Interstate 64.


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Small rental property owners breathe a sigh of relief

Posted: April 13, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Government Institutions, Investing, Multi-family Housing, National News, Office Buildings, Residential, Retail | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

There is always a lot of new legislation passed every year that sounds like a good idea at the time and generally goes unnoticed, and every once in a while the consequences of that legislation become horrifyingly apparent afterwards.

This past year, the legislation that was causing so much heartburn for small property owners was a new IRS requirement that anyone with rental property file a 1099 for any repairs that add up to $600+ over the course of the year. (see my post about it here, from December 2010)

Good news — the provision was repealed before it could take effect!! (here is the actual legislation that was passed to repeal the IRS provision, in case you would like to read it)

Hats off to the Realtor community for standing against this for the good of the mom-and-pop investors, who are the ones would be most affected by those proposed requirements — and for Realtor Magazine’s blog for bringing the repeal to my attention. From their description of how everything unfolded, it seems as though everyone understood that this was good to do:

When the provision was included in the small business bill, REALTORS® were among the first and firmest opponents of it, helping to ensure that Congress understood the provision was an example of over-reach that was never intended to burden mom and pop property owners. Members of Congress and President Obama got the message and, in a rare example of agreement between not only Republicans, Democrats, and independents, but also between House and Senate chambers and between the legislative and executive branches, lawmakers agreed the provision needed to come out.

Nice to know that we don’t have this provision coming up to haunt us over the next few years, isn’t it?

 

Important! New IRS requirements for all landlords

Posted: December 6, 2010 | Author: | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Government Institutions, Investing, Multi-family Housing, National News, Office Buildings, Retail, Shopping Centers | Tags: , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

PaperworkAnyone receiving rental payments from either residential or commercial properties will need to review the newly-enacted small business legislation called HR5297 with their accountant and how it expands 1099 reporting requirements.

Currently, only real estate professionals that engage in property management services have to use 1099 forms to report any service provider that they pay more than $600 in a given tax year.

The changes will be enacted over the next two years as follows (details from the NAR Issue Brief released recently — can be found online here or hosted on my site here):

2011 Rule: ALL persons who receive rental payments must provide Form 1099. This affects ALL owners (both individuals and businesses) of rental properties, both residential and commercial. Thus, “mom and pop” investors and those who invest in real estate for their personal portfolios are subject to the new reporting requirement. Only aggregate annual payments of $600 or more for services (but not goods) must be reported.
2012 Rule: All businesses, including real estate businesses, self-employed individuals and independent contractors will be required to make a 1099 report of any aggregate annual payment of $600 or more to any person from whom they acquired goods and services.

Please keep in mind that I am not an accountant, so before you act on any of this information (or panic. or dismiss.) please consult with your accounting/tax professional.  But when I saw this come across my desk, I thought it was important that you are aware of these new rules!

(*Warning! Sales pitch!*) And, by the way, here at Bandazian & Holden, we have dealt with these reporting requirements from when they were first enacted for real estate professionals in the property management field, and we are accustomed to handling the necessary paperwork for our clients.  If you don’t feel like dealing with it on your own, let me know and come on board with us. (*End of warning. Enjoy your day!*)

Should I wait to sign a lease, or is this as good as it gets?

Posted: July 9, 2010 | Author: | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Office Buildings, Restaurants, Retail, Shopping Centers | Tags: , , | Leave a comment »

Fear is a strong motivator, but so is hope.  They’re especially strong when they come together.  It’s a special moment when we’ve made it through an especially bad economic downturn and your business starts to tick upwards for the first time.

Commercial landlords have been through that hard time right along with every other business owner, and they are ready to see that uptick themselves.  They are ready to deal to get in good steady tenants.  At the same time, businesses are seeing new contracts come in (I know we have!) and they are ready to start taking advantage of the deals on leases — are you?

empty salon space

2217-2219 W Main Street

I’m certainly not the first to point this out, and I’m taking my cue from a recent online article on National Real Estate Investor — “Office Tenants and Landlords Battle for Upper Hand”

Landlord concession packages are not likely to get any bigger… “They’re as good as they’re going to get.” The same may be true with rents, he adds. “Rents may fall in some markets a bit further, but the ship starts to turn before a lot of people know they’re on it.”

Robert Bach, senior vice president and chief economist at Grubb & Ellis, agrees. “More tenants are active now and willing to sign a long-term lease because they are more confident in their own outlook and realize now is a good time because of the concessions available.”

They’re talking about office leases in the article, but it makes just as much sense with retail and restaurant spaces, too.

Of course you never know when the economy has hit bottom until it’s too late to take advantage of the best deals.  The great part is that as long as you’re not making decisions out of fear, you can keep your eye on your own business and use cues from your business activity help you decide when is the best time to move.

So if you’re seeing cues that things are getting better in your business, perhaps it’s time we talk about finding a good deal now…?

Comments on The Crupi Report

Posted: November 27, 2007 | Author: | Filed under: General, Government Institutions, Hanover County, Henrico County, New Development, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Restaurants, Retail | Leave a comment »

I just finished reading The Crupi Report, and there is quite a bit that I agree with…and some that I don’t.  Instead of taking this post to get into the individual points that I am for or against, I wanted to share my most immediate gut criticisms of the report:

  1. What was up with the misspellings?  I noticed a handful sprinkled throughout the report (and I wasn’t looking for them) — "lose" was mispelled a couple of times, i.e.
  2. What is the "medium of house prices"?  I assume Dr. Crupi meant "median", but I can’t be sure.  Maybe he meant average?  Who knows…
  3. There was a quote from "A black leader" that said "I drank from the back of the bus, but it doesn’t define my life."  I get the meaning and appreciate it.  But, am I missing some piece of historical reference here or is that a mixed reference — i.e., sitting at the back of the bus and having to drink at a different water fountain?  Given the other mistakes in the report, I don’t know whether that is a misquote or the actual words he/she used.  Either way, it’s  wouldn’t have used it in the report as-is.

My point is not to be nit-picky, but come on, these are pretty simple mistakes to catch and correct.  Why undermine your credibility by letting them slip through?  I certainly don’t think that my writing is perfect, but I’m not getting paid to produce reports that are going to be read by an entire region.

Getting past the simple mistakes, I enjoyed the overall theme of urging cooperation and overarching vision as necessary for the strategic growth of the entire region.

One of my favorite quotes from the report was:  "It is ironic that while people in the counties recognize that the city can influence it with negative pollitical and economic images, they under-appreciate the benefits of what would happen if those same images were positive."

I am anticipating a great future for the Richmond-metro area, and I think that this report was a great way to generate interest and involvement by the general populace.

New Downtown Master Plan released today

Posted: November 26, 2007 | Author: | Filed under: Government Institutions, New Development, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Restaurants, Retail | Leave a comment »

The new Downtown Master Plan was presented today.  See the following link for a quick RTD article about it: Richmond leaders see vision of downtown – News – inRich.com.

Here are links to the different parts of the plan:

It looks like a night of reading reports, between this new release and catching up on The Crupi Report.  I hope to have some insightful feedback for you within the next couple of days.

[edit, 5/17/10: I realize that the links for the Master Plan no longer work, but I don't seem to be able to find where they've put it. If you find it, please add a link in the comments below! -- NVH]

Something’s Moving at Cloverleaf Mall

Posted: December 28, 2006 | Author: | Filed under: Government Institutions, Multi-family Housing, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Restaurants, Retail, Shopping Centers | Leave a comment »

This bit of news slipped by me when it hit the RTD a couple of weeks ago, but thanks to the Chamber of Commerce pointing it out I’m all up to date! 

After a long period of silence about the status of Cloverleaf Mall, there is movement.  In January, Chesterfield County officials expect to have a signed purchase agreement from Crosland Inc., who will be redeveloping the site.  The buyers have been involved since May 2006, and have several versions of a proposal that calls for redeveloping the aged mall into a mixed-use development.

Several plans have been proposed since Chesterfield purchased the property in 2004, all of which include a "pedestrian-friendly community that blends residential and business components".  The county has said that it will be subsidizing the redevelopment, in order to make it work.

2006 Golden Hammer Awards

Posted: September 3, 2006 | Author: | Filed under: General, Multi-family Housing, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Restaurants, Retail, Virginia Commonwealth University | Leave a comment »

If you haven’t seen the Richmond Times-Dispatch this morning, pick it up.  There are quite a few good articles related to business and real estate today.

One in particular that I want you to note is the profile on Ed Eck.  This man and his company  have done (and continue to do) a great service for Richmond in redeveloping the area just west of VCU, specifically along the West Main St and West Cary Street corridors.  (If you are struggling to identify where I mean, think of the pastel colored buildings along West Main Street, Mulligan’s, the old El Rio Grande, Gold’s Gym, etc.)

Congratulations to Ed for winning the Andrew Asch Developer Award, from the pool of 2006 Golden Hammer Awards, from A.C.O.R.N. (Alliance to Conserve Old Richmond Neighborhoods) for "contributions to historical conservation".

Congratulations to all of this year’s winners and nominees!

College Areas Good for Investing

Posted: July 8, 2006 | Author: | Filed under: Hotels, Investing, Multi-family Housing, New Development, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Restaurants, Retail, Shopping Centers | Leave a comment »

While students are the not always the best tenants, there are lots of good reasons to buy investment properties in college areas.


College enrollments expected to rise by almost 1.6 million students, or
15 percent, over the next 10 years, according to the U.S. Department of
Education, and the number of graduate and professional students is
growing even faster, at almost 25 percent.

With the increase in students, there will of course be a rise in professors, administrative staff, space needed by the colleges, and supporting industries (research, retail, restaurants, etc.).  While the article at REALTOR� Magazine Online -Daily News- College Town Properties Are a Smart Buy focussed on small college-dominated towns, this is a very good sign for Richmond.  With Randolph Macon, VCU, UR, VUU, and the community colleges here, the areas around each of these schools will feel the impact.

Now is the time to jump in and start investing for the future growth, especially since the market has slowed down just a bit.

[Source: Dow Jones Business News, Jennifer Openshaw (07/04/2006), cited in the article mentioned above]

Commercial Notes from RTD

Posted: April 30, 2006 | Author: | Filed under: Office Buildings | Leave a comment »

COMMERCIAL NOTES


Compiled by Linda Dunham
Sunday, April 30, 2006

Sales transactions

CB Richard
Ellis reports the sale of a 29,890-square-foot office building at
5020 Sadler Place in Glen Allen for $3.88 million to ASI Partners
Sadler Place from IP LC.

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Carlton Jones and Walton Makepeace represented the buyer.

New leases

Advantis Real Estate Services Co. reports the following leases:

  • 13,500 square feet at 4263-4299 Carolina Avenue to Snyder Home Services Bathfitters.
  • 11,580 square feet at 707 E. Main St. to Performance Fibers.
  • 9,600 square feet at 5719 S. Laburnum Avenue to the Virginia Employment Commission.
  • 7,500 square feet at 140 Virginia St. to Roseline Financial Group.
  • 6,821 square feet at 5719 S. Laburnum Avenue to Fastenal.

    . . .

    CB Richard Ellis reports the lease of 12,418 square feet at 901 E.
    Byrd St., Riverfront Plaza, West Tower, to Deloitte & Touche.

    Contracts

    CB Richard Ellis has been selected by American Financial Realty
    Trust to lease One Colonial Place at 10571 Telegraph Road in Glen Allen.

    •  

    This story can be found at the RTD.