Commercial Real Estate

Greg Mahalick

Happy Holidays Grand Rapids!  Greg Mahalick here wishing to extend a special hello to all family, friends, and clients – without your support none of our accomplishments would shine as bright as they do!  We at Callander Commercial have sure had one high-paced productive year & we all have a lot to be thankful for!

First and foremost, a special thank you to the owner of Callander Commercial: our broker, Ellie Callander.  Without her tiresome hours, leadership, & commitment to her team – none of this would be possible.  A warm thank you to Ellie from all of us in Grand Rapids & we wish her a safe and happy holiday season with family and friends!

Next, I would like to acknowledge our team leaders in Grand Rapids – Diane Karns & Jeanne LaSargeBono.  Both of whom have extensive experience in commercial real estate and their “open door” policy allows for less experienced agents like me to obtain the guidance and direction needed to become some of the best.  Again, thank you both, without you – our Grand Rapids office would not be possible & thriving as well as it is!

The Grand Rapids Team - Except for Me (See Above!)

Batting third on this holiday list of acknowledgment is our very own social media celebrity, the go-to guy for tech, my friend and yours – Chip LaFleur.   His headway and progress on such media platforms as our blog, Twitter, Facebook, Google Wave, and just about every other social media site out there has been immeasurable.  Chip cultivates these platforms for leads and thus has found a way to reach pre-qualified end-users for his clients.  His tactics are cutting edge and he truly represents the face of brokerage in the future! Thanks again for all you hard work Chip!

Chad Razmus – come on down!  Chad’s work ethic is truly incomparable to anyone I have encountered.  The man is a machine for his clients, leaving no stone unturned; he methodically approaches each and every situation with tact.  A safe and happy holiday wish extended to Chad and his family!

This really is Brody.

Joining me in the “newbie” category is Pam Collins, but only in relation to her time here at Callander Commercial.  Pam is extremely experienced, stemming from a long tenure as a leasing agent at a one of the area’s larger development companies; she possesses all of the characteristics of a great agent!  Callander Commercial had the pleasure of welcoming her on board last January and her contribution to this team is priceless!

Last but certainly not least is our office assistant Melissa Saylor – truly the synergy of our team!  No really…her commitment and help allows us to focus on the important things in this business – our clients!  Without her our entire team philosophy as a whole would not exist.  Thanks again Melissa, and I hope Brody’s first holiday season is awesome!

That’s our team Grand Rapids!  I am truly honored to be a part of this team.  To our clients, thanks for reading, a safe and happy holiday season to you all & may 2010 be our best year yet!

-Sincerely,

Greg Mahalick

20-year debentures were sold this month.  The effective SBA 504 20-year December debenture rate is is 5.46%.  The effective 10-year November debenture rate is 4.15%.

The article below again focuses on the Recovery Act loan queue.  For the next few months it will be very important for both lenders and borrowers to understand the loan queue process.

The EDF staff would like to take this opportunity to wish you a safe and happy holiday season!  We would also like to thank our lending partners who continue to use EDF’s services on SBA 504 projects.  Remember that our entire staff is centrally located in Grand Rapids and are readily available to walk you through the application and funding process.  Perhaps even more important is the ongoing local support we offer during the entire life of the loan as changes may need to happen if the needs of the small business change.

Recovery Act Update

On November 23, 2009, SBA began the transition period from two of its Recovery Act programs.  The funds made available to the 504 program eliminated two large fees: CDC Processing Fee and the Bank Participation fee.

The purpose of this transition period is to:

• maximize the stimulative effect of the money that Congress appropriated for this purpose;
• accommodate the fact that it is likely some Recovery funding may still be available to support some loans under these two Recovery programs due to cancellation or non-disbursement of previously approved loans; and
• provide lenders/borrowers with a degree of choice between submitting a loan application as a non-Recovery Act loan or submitting the application as a Recovery Act loan.

At this time the borrowers have two options when applying for an SBA 504 loan.  Apply under ARRA-2009 or non-ARRA-2009.  If the application is sent under the ARRA-2009, the loan will be put in a queue until there is stimulus money available to waive the borrower fees.  If the borrower needs to fund and is still in the queue, they will need to withdraw the loan application from the queue and re-apply under non-ARRA which includes the fees.

The stimulus money and queue can be tracked at the following website:

http://www.sba.gov/recoveryq/504

The loan application number is the key to knowing your place in line for funding of new Recovery Act loan applications.  The results of this request will display the number and dollar amount of all new loan applications or requests for increases ahead of your in the SBA Recovery Loan Queue.

EDF Contacts

Ph.  616-459-4825
Fax 616-458-5736
TF   888-330-1776

Sandy Bloem
Executive Director

sandy@growmichigan.com

Gary Witkowski

Relationship Manager

gary@growmichigan.com

Kerri Wolverton

As an investor in real estate, you understand how important it is to preserve your wealth and your assets. If your investment property has appreciated in value or you have depreciated the property, a sale would require the payment of tax on the capital gain. However, if you were to exchange your property utilizing the benefits of IRC Section 1031, you can defer the tax gain, allowing reinvestment of all your equity. The 1031 Tax Deferred Exchange offers great flexibility to the investor. You may exchange one property for several others, consolidate ownership of several properties into one, exchange an interest in property held jointly and exchange properties anywhere within the United States.

You must acquire property that is of “like kind” to the relinquished property (i.e., real property held for productive use in a trade or business or for investment). However, the like kind requirement is very flexible and includes: raw land for a retail center, an office building for an apartment building, a single family rental for an industrial building, etc.

The 1031 Tax Deferred Exchange continues to gain popularity as one of the last tax shelters available to investors in real estate.

The following is a list of Exchange Procedures:

• Consult with your tax or legal advisor regarding your exchange.
• Include intent to exchange language in your purchase contract with the buyer
• Contact Lighthouse Title, Inc. to set up your exchange
• Begin the search for your replacement property
• Identify your like kind replacement property 45 days after the closing/transfer of the relinquished property utilizing one of the following identification rules:
  • Three Property Rule
  • 200% Rule or
  • 95% Rule

• Contact Lighthouse Title, Inc. to tell of your intended purchase. Acquire the replacement property by the earlier of:
  • 180 days after the transfer of the relinquished property or
  • The tax filing date, including extensions, for the year in which the transfer of the relinquished property took place.
  • 95% Rule

• Include intent to exchange language in your purchase contract with the seller.
  • Equal or greater in value
  • Equal or greater in equity
  • Equal or greater in debt (unless additional cash is added to offset debt relief)

Our industry professionals have more than 135 years of combined experience in title insurance sales, examination, underwriting, 1031 Exchanges and closings. We are recognized for excellence in every facet of our industry. In addition to title insurance, our affiliation with the Lighthouse Group provides our clients with access to insurance professionals who can handle all of their business insurance needs.

Kerri Woolverton, our Commercial Closing Officer has over 13 years of title knowledge. She specializes in Commercial Closings and 1031 Tax Deferred Exchanges. Prior to joining Lighthouse Title Group, she was the Lakeshore Assistant Regional Manager for a National Underwriter covering 11 offices in West Michigan. Kerri can be reached at 616-820-7293 or kwoolverton@lighthousegroup.net.

Once you have a Lighthouse experience you will see that we shine above our competitors.

If you are an attorney or know of an attorney looking for Class-A office space, conveniently located near the new Kent County 63rd District Courthouse at 1950 E. Beltline Avenue, please contact Diane Karns for a few options you should consider.  Class A professional office space between the sizes of 1,985 and 5,600 square feet can be found less than a mile from the new courthouse.  Priced right, with parking at your doorstep, please find a few photos and layouts of professional office space that may interest you for your new office location.  Please call Diane today for a personal tour at 616-459-8000.