Commercial Briefs

MBA (6/2/2008 ) Murray, Michael
Boston Properties Inc. acquired the General Motors Building and a portfolio of other assets in New York City from affiliated entities of Macklowe Properties, consisting of 540 Madison Ave., 125 West 55th St. and Two Grand Central Tower for a combined purchase price of nearly $4 billion.

The purchase price consists of nearly $1.4655 billion of cash, the issuance to one of the selling entities of $10 million of common units of limited partnership interest in Boston Properties LP and the assumption of nearly $2.4735 billion of fixed rate debt.

Boston Properties expects to assume:
• a combined principal of $1.9 billion of secured and mezzanine loans for the General Motors building, which carries a weighted average interest rate of 5.97 percent per year and matures in September 2017. Boston Properties also intends to acquire the lenders' interest in a portion of the mezzanine loans with a combined principal of $294 million.

• for 540 Madison Ave, two secured loans combined at $120 million with a weighted average interest rate of 5.28 percent. Each loan matures in July 2013.

• a total of $263.5 million of secured and mezzanine loans for 125 West 55th Street. The loans carry a 6.31 percent interest rate and all loans mature in March 2010.

• the Two Grand Central Tower loans at $190 million and secured at 5.10 percent with maturity in July of 2010.

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GE Real Estate Europe joined BNP Paribas Assurance as a founding limited partner of Capital France Hotel, managed by Algonquin Asset Management France, as they plan to grow Capital France Hotel's assets under management to $1.59 billion through investments by the end of 2010.
GE Real Estate will act as a fund investor with its initial stake and as an operational partner, contributing to the fund’s acquisition strategy—across the Euro zone countries, Scandinavia and Central and Eastern Europe—through origination teams on its seven European platforms.

Valued at nearly $428.7 million, the Capital France Hotel portfolio will consist of 12 assets in France—2,140 rooms—operated under multiple brands that include:

• Two hotels in Paris operated by Accor under the Mercure brand;
• One hotel in Cap d’Ail operated under the Marriott brand;
• Nine hotels in regional French cities operated by Rezidor under the Radisson and Park Inn brands, including the Radisson Nice, the Radisson Lyon and the Park Inn Nancy.

Capital France Hotel owns and manages nine three- and four-star hotels in its portfolio, all in urban locations. GE Real Estate brought the three Accor and Marriot brand-operated French assets into the fund in exchange for shares and cash from Capital France Hotel. Algonquin Asset Management France's experience is in owning and independently managing hotel properties in France.