Lee & Associates Arizona Research Division

SCOTTSDALE, AZ - November 8, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Lincoln Village Shops retail shopping center has sold to a privately owned real estate investment company for $38,712,500. Bethesda, Maryland-based Global Retail Investors purchased the 71,142 SF specialty retail center located at 6202 N. Scottsdale Road south of Lincoln Drive, from Scottsdale Road Partners, an affi liate of Redwood Real Estate Partners.

PHOENIX, AZ - October 22, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Two prominent national companies have negotiated leases in the Phoenix area. New Jersey-based home builder K Hovnanian Homes renewed their lease for 19,892 SF for 96-months at Desert Ridge Corporate Center II at 20860 N. Tatum Blvd. in Phoenix.

PHOENIX, AZ - October 15, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Phoenix industrial market continues its convincing march toward recovery by reaching several important milestones. As a more resilient sector during the recession, the industrial market was not plagued with as much bad debt and CMBS loan defaults as others sectors. Industry experts concluded that the industrial sector would recover faster as favorable economic conditions such as durable goods orders and manufacturing output favored the industrial market early.

PHOENIX, AZ - September 17, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Spectrum Labs, a pet allergy solutions company, has signed for 25,569 SF of lab offi ce space within Southbank Business Park, 2801 S. 35th St. in Phoenix.

PHOENIX, AZ - September 12, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona Principals have promoted Chad Ackerley to Associate Broker for the Industrial Division.

Tucson, AZ - August 23, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Tucson Spectrum Shopping Center sold to a publicly-traded investment trust for $125,375,000. DDR Corp. purchased the 709,811 SF and seven developable fi nished retail pads of the Phase II portion of the regional retail center located at Irvington Road and Interstate 19. Price per square foot for this transaction was calculated at $177.00.

CHANDLER, AZ - June 14, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- A state-of-the-art data center has broken ground recently after the purchase of 8 acres of land at 2600 W. Germann Rd. in Chandler for $1.6 million or $200,000 per acre.

Phoenix, AZ - January 27, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona Principals Mike McQuaid, Mike Garlick and Chris Krewson have come together to form the largest office brokerage team in the Lee & Associates Arizona’s office. Totaling more than 50 years of service in the Phoenix office market, the three Lee & Associates principals will draw upon a deep pool of experience to meet the needs of their clients.

Phoenix, AZ - December 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona is pleased to announce a pair of commercial property sales and a five-year lease in the East Valley. In the first deal, the Freeway Executive Center II office development located at 10439 South 51st Street in Phoenix was sold for $3,750,000, or $78 per square foot. Lee & Associates Principals Chris McClurg and Adam Tolson represented the buyer, Child & Family Support Services. Bryan Taute, Senior Vice President at CBRE, and Eric Wichterman, Executive Vice President at Cassidy Turley BRE, represented the seller, FEC 2, LLC.

Phoenix, AZ - November 30, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona Principals Mike McQuaid and Mike Garlick, in collaboration with Dibble Engineering, are pleased to announce the charitable donation of $3,500 to Sunshine Acres Children’s Home. Earlier this year, Mike McQuaid and Mike Garlick represented Dibble Engineering during their lease renewal at the Plaza at Squaw Peak. As part of their business plans and charitable efforts, Mike and Mike donate a portion of their brokerage fees to a non-profit of their client’s choosing. Dibble Engineering selected Sunshine Acres Children’s Home as the recipient.

Phoenix, AZ - November 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Although Phoenix office market fundamentals remain soft, improvements in other industries and property types will continue to seep into white-collar sectors and stimulate leasing. So far this year, metrowide employment levels have risen by 26,700 jobs through the end of the third quarter. Hiring within the blue-collar and education and health services sectors accounted for 14,700 positions. Layoffs in the professional and business services industries, however, drove overall office-using losses of 4,300 positions during that stretch. Despite the net loss of jobs, white-collar employers added workers during the second quarter and Phoenix’s business-friendly climate will further encourage relocations similar to Wal-Mart’s regional consolidation and AT Security Service’s complete move from California.

Phoenix, AZ - October 26, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Many retail market indicators continue to improve, despite erratic employment trends and sovereign debt worries. These economic headwinds have strongly impacted consumer sentiment, dropping third quarter expectations to the lowest point since early 2009, when layoffs peaked. Still, retail sales reached an annualized average of $380 billion in September, up 7.6% year over year. Total nonfarm payrolls have expanded by nearly 1.1 million positions so far in 2011, with the wholesale and retail trade sectors alone adding 205,000 workers combined. Rising retail payrolls and sales, in turn, have supported investor interest. An estimated $21.5 billion in retail assets have sold over the past six months, more than double the transactions recorded during the same stretch in 2010. Steady employment gains are predicted to keep inves tor confidence and deal flow near current levels through year end. In 2011, a total of 1.4 million jobs will be added, a 1.1% increase, while the key wholesale and retail trades will expand by 256,000 positions, or 1.3%.

Phoenix, AZ - October 26, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Resurgent economic headwinds have rattled the nation’s employment and industrial markets, as both hiring and industrial property sales volume eased in the third quarter. Nevertheless, the economic turbulence is not expected to lead to a double-dip recession. So far in 2011, national blue-collar employment levels have expanded by an estimated 361,000 positions, or 1.3%, and roughly $17 billion in industrial transactions have closed. During the same stretch last year, fewer than 3,000 manual-trade positions were added and industrial sales volume reached just $11.7 billion. Furthermore, several key hiring and industrial market indicators, including the Institute of Supply Management’s PMI index, showed improvement late in the third quarter, strengthening fourth quarter expectations. Total nonfarm employment is an ticipated to expand by 1.4 million new jobs in 2011, or 1.1%, after 940,000 workers were added last year. Manual industries will generate 451,000 positions, representing growth of 1.6%.

Phoenix, AZ - September 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona is pleased to announce the closing of two REO industrial property sales in the East Valley. The vacant 30,552-square foot warehouse building at 150 South Dobson Road in Mesa sold for $735,000, or $24 per square foot. Lee & Associates Principals Matt Hobaica, Chris McClurg and TJ Swearengin represented the seller, National Bank of Arizona. Pat Mahoney of Arizona Commercial Real Estate Services represented the buyer, Units, Inc. The warehouse was built in 1977 and has both grade-level and truck-well loading access.

Phoenix, AZ - September 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates Arizona is pleased to announce that Arizona Community Foundation (ACF) executed a 10-year, 17,219-square foot lease renewal of their Class A space at Anchor Centre West located at 2201 East Camelback Road. Lee & Associates Principals Craig Coppola, Andrew Cheney and Chris Krewson represented the non-profit tenant. Mike Beall of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, DW Capital Partners.

Improvements in blue-collar industries account for a significant share of Phoenix economic growth in 2011, despite choppy early year hiring. Total metro employment grew by 0.9%, or 14,900 positions. Manual-trade payrolls, in contrast, expanded by a healthy-1.1% year to date with the addition of 3,800 workers. The Valley’s manufacturing sector notched the most hires, adding 2,500 employees and offsetting the combined loss of 700 construction and transportation and utilities personnel through the second quarter. Moreover, major expansions by companies such as Federal Express, First Solar and Easy Energy Systems Inc. will boost the economy and leasing in the near term. Through the extended outlook, sales tax legislation may push more companies like Amazon to relocate from California to Arizona, further supporting industrial space demand. Although international and domestic concerns could dampen growth in the second half, the economic recovery is expected to gain momentum. Metr owide staffing levels will increase by a projected 39,000 positions, or 2.3%, in 2011, while blue-collar industries will add 12,500 workers, a 3.7% increase. National payrolls will rise by 1.65 million positions, or 1.3%

Phoenix, AX - July 29, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Although office net absorption in Phoenix remains negative year to date, the local economic recovery gained traction in the second quarter. Businesses added 14,900 positions locally, a 0.9% staffing boost, in the past six months, compared to a nationwide increase of 757,000 jobs, or 0.6%. Improvements have been greatest in the Valley’s healthcare and leisure and hospitality sectors, with white-collar industries dampening overall growth through the first quarter of 2011. Nevertheless, Phoenix white-collar employers rebounded in the most recent quarter. Local office-using employment sectors augmented payrolls by an estimated 2,800 workers, a 0.7% quarterly gain, mirroring the healthy white-collar improvements that have been recorded nationally. Recent hiring announcements from companies including Safelite, Humana, Yelp and Easy Energy Systems Inc. support projections for a sturdy, albeit late, white-collar recovery through year end, helping to stabilize space demand. U.S. emp loyment will increase by a projected 1.65 million jobs in 2011, including to 39,000 positions in Phoenix, a 2.3% marketwide gain. Local white-collar sectors are anticipated to hire 5,600 workers, growth of 1.3%.

Phoenix, AZ - May 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In step with national economic growth, the outlook for the Phoenix industrial market continues to improve. Nationwide blue-collar sectors expanded by 1% over the past two quarters, the greatest six-month gain since mid-2006. Moreover, both manufacturing production and new factory orders increased for more than 21 consecutive months through March.