FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jessica Neuman
IDEA HALL
(714) 436-0855 ext. 31
jessica@ideahall.com
Buchanan Street Partners Arranges $66.38 Million for Chase Merritt to Acquire Office Buildings
- Acquisition of eight Class "A" office buildings in a growing and tightening Austin, TX office market
- Buchanan funds joint venture equity into the deal
Newport Beach, CA (November 6, 2006) - Buchanan Street Partners, a national real estate investment
bank, announced today that it has arranged a $66.38 million financing for Chase Merritt to acquire eight
Class "A" office buildings in a growing and tightening Austin, TX office market. RBS Greenwich Capital
provided over $50 million of senior debt and preferred equity tranches in the capital stack whole.
Buchanan Fund III invested $16.13 million of joint venture equity into the deal.
The cooperative efforts between Buchanan Street Partners, Chase Merritt and Greenwich allowed a very
quick transaction. "This was a very complex capitalization that required a creative structure due to
in-place financing that was problematic for a number of other buyers. Buchanan and Greenwich were able
to provide Chase Merritt with a capital solution that maximized yield and did it in less than 35 days
start to finish," said Chris Dornin, vice president of Buchanan's Debt & Structured Finance, who advised
Chase Merritt on the financings.
"Buchanan's fund invested in the project because of Chase Merritt's clear business plan," said Stephen
Blue, Buchanan Street Partners' senior vice president of the Investment Management team. "We saw an
opportunity to capitalize from the strong credit tenancy (including Cisco and URS) and Austin's strong
growth market." According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, the Austin-Round Rock metro
business-cycle index has recommenced growth since the end of 2003. The Dallas Fed attributes Austin's
recent economic expansion to corporate relocations and expansions in the metro as well as to strong
population growth. This growing trend will be favorable for the eight office buildings that total 491
thousand square feet and are visible from main highways.
About Buchanan Street Partners…
Buchanan Street Partners is a real estate investment bank that provides
real estate capital for owners and developers. The firm makes principal equity investments for real
estate in a discretionary capacity, arranges debt and structured finance, is an investment manager to
institutional and private investors, offers investment sale brokerage services, and has a specialty in
self-storage finance. Offices are located in
Newport Beach, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta and greater Washington D.C.
About Chase Merritt…
Chase Merritt invests in real estate and business opportunities
throughout the United States. The company's expertise includes resorts, hospitality, development and
finance. Chase Merritt specializes in identifying value add opportunities and acquiring them in 21
days or less. Chase Merritt's offices are located in Newport Beach, California. For more information,
visit www.chasemerritt.com.
