Real Estate Wire/Green Trends News Wire

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - LandSouth Construction, a Jacksonville, Fla. based general contractor specializing in multifamily and senior housing, has announced that Dana Webb has been named winner of the 2014 Diamond Award. “The Diamond Award is voted on by the employees based on which team member best represented the company’s core values during the calendar year,” noted LandSouth President and CEO James Pyle. As financial controller Webb manages the day to day operations of the accounting department, is responsible for payroll, daily cash management, budgeting, and financial report preparations. She brought over 10 years of financial and construction industry experience to the firm. Webb earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Georgia Southern University as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and Management from Coastal Carolina University. LandSouth Construction is currently building projects throughout the Southeast including apartments in Ja

CHARLOTTE, N.C (December 23, 2014) – The Addison at South Tryon is multi-faceted by design to make every aspect of a resident’s life better. ContraVest called on Jacksonville, Fla. based Rita Williams’ Merchandising Plus to reflect that lifestyle in the developer’s new apartment community in Charlotte, N.C. “It was very exciting to again work with the Contravest Construction and Development Team on these beautiful apartments. It was great to see their whole professional management, marketing and construction teams working to create this new, unique multifamily community,” Williams said. Designed by architects Charlan Brock & Associates, the Addison is nestled on twenty five beautiful acres with direct access to South Tryon Street in the Queen City.  Two and three story buildings consist of spectacular studio, one, two, and three bedroom apartment homes. The perfect canvas for Rita Williams’ team to create their award-winning “wow” factor in a resort style clubhouse and tw

REAL ESTATE WIRE -- JACKSONVILLE, Fla., (December 15, 2014)  –  Mayor Alvin Brown was joined today by U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and Council Member Dr. Johnny Gaffney to announce the latest Renew Jax enhancement, C.B. Dailey Villas. The investment in East Jacksonville is intended to provide quality housing options, with preference for veterans to continue empowering neighborhoods.  “With Renew Jax, we’re empowering our neighborhoods,” said Mayor Brown.  “The C.B. Dailey Villas are a great example of what we can achieve with the power of public-private partnerships. Along with other Renew Jax projects, this housing development for veterans will improve quality of life and expand economic opportunities in our neighborhoods.” The launch of Renew Jax follows recent actions by Mayor Brown to activate investment in distressed areas of Jacksonville. The mayor has reactivated the Northwest Jacksonville Economic Development Fund, and its board will begin leveraging new job opportunities

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has applauded Congress for authorizing the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard (NGBS) for all military residential construction, which represents 16 percent of the federal real estate portfolio. Passed today by the Senate, and last week by the House, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) will provide affordable choices in meeting military energy and water reduction goals.   “We commend the commitment of Congress to offer options in residential construction to maximize resources and cost effectiveness in military housing,” said NAHB Chairman Kevin Kelly, a home builder and developer from Wilmington, Del. “The NGBS is a cost-effective green building rating system, and the only residential standard approved by the American National Standards Institute.  Its inclusion in the NDAA reinforces the NGBS as a market leader.” Previously, the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program was the only green rating system specifica

The National Apartment Association (NAA) has  announced the winners of the 2014 Affiliate Membership Challenge—a competition created to energize NAA affiliates and their leaderships to actively recruit non-member properties and companies in their local areas to help affiliates and the NAA Network grow. The winner of the Large Affiliate category is the Apartment and Office Building Association (AOBA) of Metropolitan Washington, which increased its membership base by over 45,000 units in 2014 (as of October 2014). The Apartment Owners and Managers Association of Wisconsin increased its membership by over 13,000 units, winning the Mid-Sized/Small Affiliate category.  With over 222 percent growth—an increase from 2,000 units to over 6,000 units—the Greater Toledo Apartment Association won the Largest Percentage Growth category. Winning affiliates each received $2,000, a five-day/four-night cruise and two complimentary, full conference registrations to the 2015 NAA Education

By MIKE BONTS REAL ESTATE WIRE Mall pioneer Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. died in 1994, but yet more people are about to enjoy the fruits of his success, and that of his descendants.  The ICSC Foundation announced the launch of the Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. Scholarship, seeded by a $500,000 donation from the DeBartolo families, the DeBartolo Corp., and DeBartolo Holdings. The scholarship will go to a graduate student of real estate, retail or a related field. The announcement was made Monday at ICSC’s New York National Deal Making, at the Javits Center in New York City.. DeBartolo founded his company after World War II, building his first shopping center in Boardman, a suburb of Youngstown, Ohio, where the company had its headquarters. He built the firm up to become one of the largest in the U.S. at the time of his death, with 63 malls, 18 community centers and several office buildings in 23 states, amounting to about 95 million square feet of commercial real estate.  DeBartolo was le

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla.  (December 8, 2014) – Cora Johnston, president of Generation Homes, announced that Jon Berthiaume has joined the custom homebuilder as a project manager with a concentration on the remodeling division. “His solid background and experience is a perfect fit for our personal commitment to timeless architectural details, stylish craftsmanship, innovative design elements and the forward-thinking integration of technology and sustainability,” Johnston said. Berthiaume has 28 years of experience as a custom builder, remodeler and woodworking craftsman. “I’m currently leading of most of the Generation Homes remodels including a whole house remodel and some small master bath renovation. I’m also helping other project managers complete various projects,” Berthiaume said. In addition to completing several custom homes, kitchen and bath renovations, and entire home remodels he has worked on many large scale hotel projects and multifamily renovations. “Si

By MIKE BONTS REAL ESTATE WIRE ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla.  – A recent national survey by the Demand Institute focuses on what new homeowner’s want in their “ideal” home. “There’s the ideal home. Then there are the homes in which we actually live,” said Donna Sadowski, vice president of sales and marketing for St. Augustine based Generation Homes. “Our No. 1 priority as a personal, custom builder is to bridge the housing satisfaction gap and create the ideal home for each owner.” The following are some of the major housing desires noted in the survey: Energy Efficiency Perhaps because the desire to save money on rising energy costs is so universal, energy efficiency has the highest satisfaction gap in the report with 71 percent of respondents saying they thought a home’s energy efficiency was important. Generation Homes energy-efficient Shades of Green® program allows homebuyers to choose the level of green built into their home.  The goal is to save homeowners money on mon

(REAL ESTATE WIRE) Construction spending increased in October amid growing public-sector demand for construction and continued modest growth in residential, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said the new spending figures underscore the need for measures to increase the supply of qualified construction workers as firms worry about growing labor shortages. "Today's data shows that construction growth remains volatile," said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. "While overall construction spending jumped by more than one percent in October, the gain followed two months of stagnation. Public construction was the fastest-growing segment for the month but the slowest-growing over the past year and for the first 10 months of 2014 combined. Conversely, private nonresidential construction inched down from September to October but has risen at double-digit rates--11 percent--for the combined Janua

LOS ANGELES --   CBRE Group, Inc.  (NYSE:CBG) announced that it received a perfect score of 100% on the 2015 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices related to LGBT workplace equality that is administered by the  Human Rights Campaign Foundation .  With its high marks,   CBRE   is recognized as a Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality.   CBRE   also received a perfect score in last year’s CEI and at that time became the first commercial real estate company to achieve such a score. “The designation as a Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality for a second consecutive year is validation that we are creating a culture of inclusion within CBRE,” said  Jennifer Ashley , Global Human Resources Director. “We are honored to serve as leaders in our industry as we strive for greater workplace equality.” The 2015 CEI rated 972 businesses in the report, which evaluates LGBT-related policies and practices such as non-discrimina

NEW YORK  --  Gramercy Property Trust Inc.  (NYSE:GPT), a real estate investment trust, announced today that it closed the acquisition of an approximately 204,000 square foot warehouse and distribution facility located in  Morrow, Georgia  (Atlanta MSA).  The property is 100% leased through  December 2019  to a global sourcing company for stainless steel and alloy material. Year 1 net operating income is approximately  $506,360  (7.2% initial cap rate; 7.6% annualized straight-line cap rate) with annual rent escalations throughout the term. The property was acquired all-cash for a purchase price of approximately  $7.0 million . About  Gramercy Property Trust Gramercy Property Trust Inc.  is a fully-integrated, self-managed commercial real estate investment company focused on acquiring and managing income-producing industrial and office properties net leased to high quality tenants in major markets throughout  the United States . The Company also operates a commercial real es

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has announced the finalists for NAHB’s 2015 Best of 50+ Housing Awards, the premier design and marketing competition for the 50+ housing industry.  A total of 91 entries were chosen as finalists and are eligible for either a gold or silver award from NAHB’s 50+ Housing Council. “The Best of 50+ Housing Awards honor builders and developers who create homes and communities that suit the specific needs of the mature buyer and renter,” said Steve Bomberger, chairman of NAHB’s 50+ Housing Council and president of Benchmark Builders Inc. in Wilmington, Del. “This year’s finalists did not disappoint—the judges saw wonderful examples of flexible floor plans, smart land use, great amenities, impressive lifelong learning programs and green and sustainable building practices. We are excited to present the award-winning projects during the International Builders’ Show in January.” Finalists were selected from entries in 36 categories repres

(REAL ESTATE WIRE) WASHINGTON — Pending home sales declined in October but remained at a healthy level of activity and are above year-over-year levels for the second straight month, according to the National Association of Realtors®. The Pending Home Sales Index,* a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, decreased 1.1 percent to 104.1 in October from an upwardly-revised 105.3 in September, but is 2.2 percent higher than October 2013 (101.9). The index is above 100—considered an average level of contract activity—for the sixth consecutive month. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says despite October's modest decline, contract signings have remained at a healthy pace now for six straight months. "In addition to low interest rates, buyers entering the market this autumn are being lured by the increase in homes for sale and less competition from investors paying in cash," he said. "Demand is holding steady but would be more robust if it weren't