Northwind Group Provides a $62.5 Million First-Mortgage Acquisition Loan Secured by a 30-Story Office Building in Chicago's East Loop

NEW YORK, Jan. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Northwind Group, a Manhattan-based real estate private equity firm and debt fund manager announced today that it provided a $62.5 million first mortgage, senior secured acquisition and lease-up loan collateralized by 303 East Wacker Drive, a 30-story Class A office property totaling over 1 million square feet including a 282-space parking garage. The loan was structured such that $32.5 million was advanced for the acquisition with the remaining $30 million held back as good news facility for accretive future leasing costs. The property is located on the Chicago River in the East Loop submarket and is currently ~75% occupied with ~5 years of remaining lease term and has signed ~300,000 square feet of new leases since the pandemic, making it one of Chicago's best performing office buildings by leasing volume.

The property was acquired by a JV between 601W Companies and David Werner Real Estate Investments, both are repeat borrowers of Northwind. The financing facilitated the acquisition from the existing lender via a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure from prior ownership Beacon Capital Partners. Given the borrower's strong reputation in the marketplace, they were able to acquire the property at a significantly low basis reflecting over a 65% discount to the previous purchase price. The building has recently been renovated and modernized with over $32 million of building upgrades and tenant-focused improvements by the prior ownership, including a brand-new amenity center encompassing the entire 30^th floor overlooking Lake Michigan. The recent capital investment coupled with the intrinsic advantages including 360-degree views and efficient rectilinear floor plates positions the property well to continue its strong leasing performance.

David Werner said "It was a pleasure to have worked once again with Ran Eliasaf, Michael Ainbinder, and the Northwind team in the acquisition of this asset for the JV between DWREI and 601W Companies. Northwind was able to not only execute in less than thirty-days during the holiday season, but closed on the deal as promised. We are excited about 303 East Wacker and couldn't have done it without Northwind by our side. We look forward to transacting with Northwind on many more deals to come."

Given the borrower's need for certainty of execution prior to year end, Northwind was able to move quickly and provide a financing solution to capitalize the acquisition. The loan reinforces Northwind's strategy of partnering with repeat institutional grade borrowers, financing centrally located, high-quality properties and caps off a year that saw the firm execute over $1.1 billion in debt transactions. These loans have included a $120 million condo inventory collateralized by the unsold units at the Mandarin Oriental Residences on Fifth Avenue, a $63 million construction loan for the development of a residential condominium property in Gramercy, a $77 million condo inventory loan to a completed residential condominium property in Austin, Texas, and most recently a $50 million bridge loan for a 20-story office property in Manhattan's Financial District. The transaction also represents Northwind's sixth loan to 601W Companies and David Werner.

"We are excited to continue and expand our relationship with 601W Companies and David Werner. This transaction reflects Northwind's focus on financing strategically located properties backed by experienced sponsorship. Despite challenges in today's Chicago office market, we believe the property's in-place occupancy, strong positive cash flow reflecting high double-digit debt yield backed by strong WALT, consistent leasing momentum, and recent capital improvements, position the property to align well with our credit investment strategy. The extremely low loan basis and the sponsors' established track record in the Chicago market further reinforce our confidence in this deal," said Ran Eliasaf, Founder and Managing Partner of Northwind Group.

Northwind was represented by John Vavas of Polsinelli Law Firm.

About Northwind Group
Northwind Group, founded in 2008 by Ran Eliasaf, is a Manhattan-based real estate private equity firm that has executed over $5.5 billion in real estate transactions covering a portfolio of 300+ properties. Northwind invests primarily in credit instruments through its discretionary closed-ended debt funds. For further information, go to www.northwind-group.com.

About 601W Companies
The principals of 601W Companies oversee one of America's leading private real estate acquisitions, ownership, development, and management portfolios in the country. Over the past twenty-five years, 601W has acquired many substantial and well-known commercial properties throughout the country, aggregating more than forty-five million square feet with a collective value in excess of $12 billion.

About David Werner Real Estate
David Werner is a NYC-based real estate investor who has been actively involved in commercial real estate for more than 40-years. He has extensive experience investing in both office and residential properties in NYC and Chicago.

CONTACT: Jessica DeCanto, [email protected]

SOURCE Northwind Group