National market report

The Boston skyline

Boston
After 13 years of negotiations, New England Development last month finalized a deal to take over well-known eatery Anthony’s Pier 4 and launch a three-building project across the South Boston waterfront pier. With development partner Hanover Co. of Houston, the firm will spend around $150 million to build a 21-story luxury apartment tower on Seaport Boulevard, the Boston Herald reported. The 369-unit apartment tower is set to open in the fall of 2014, followed by a hotel and condo complex. Anthony’s Pier 4 will eventually move into the base of the hotel. The iconic restaurant, operated by the Athanas family, opened in 1963, but business suffered during the recession. The restaurant’s current spot at the far end of the pier will become a park — an open-space trade-off for the building density the developers requested for the rest of the site. According to Trulia, the median sale price for a home in South Boston is $375,000, down 3.1 percent from this time last year.

Las Vegas
The owners of the Sahara, a Las Vegas hotel and casino, last month received $300 million in financing from JPMorgan Securities to redevelop the property, according to reports. The casino, which has been shuttered since last year, is owned by Stockbridge Capital Group and the development company SBE. In 2014, the Sahara will reopen as SLS Las Vegas, with 1,600 guest rooms, along with restaurants, bars and clubs. The Las Vegas gaming market saw a 15.8 percent year-over-year revenue increase in February. At the same time, hotel occupancy in the city grew to 85.7 percent from 83.3 percent during the same period of last year, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Weekend occupancy grew 1.3 percent to 90.8 percent in the same 12-month period, while midweek occupancy increased 1.2 percent to 77.6 percent.

Atlanta
Following the approval of North American Properties’ $600 million Avalon project, the Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta will soon be home to the southeast’s first so-called “experience center,” with retail, restaurant, residential, office, hotel and public spaces all at the same site, Commercial Property Executive magazine reported. The development will span 87 acres and include a 14-story office tower, 559,000 square feet of retail, two hotels, 250 rental apartments and 132 homes for sale. Ten percent of the site will also be used for public space, including a park. The project is slated for completion in October 2013.

Chicago
John Hancock Real Estate paid $102 million for 150 North Michigan Avenue, also known as the Crain Communications Building, REBusinessOnline reported. The 41-story, 661,482-square-foot building was previously owned by SEB Investment GmbH, a German real estate investment manager, which purchased the property for roughly $113.2 million in 1999. The building was recently named for Crain Communications when the publishing company moved in, leasing about 66,000 square feet. Known for its diamond-shape roof and proximity to Millennium Park, the building is the most recent addition to John Hancock’s $4.3 billion real estate portfolio, which includes 19.3 million square feet of office space across the country. John Hancock is the American unit of Manulife Real Estate, the real estate arm of Canadian insurer Manulife Financial. Metro Chicago’s office market expanded in the first quarter of this year, with vacancy rates dropping to 14.5 percent from 15.1 percent in the same period of 2011, according to market data from Transwestern. The direct vacancy rate in the East Loop neighborhood, where the Crain building is located, was 12.6 percent for the first quarter, up from 11.6 percent in 2011.

Meg Ryan’s houseLos Angeles
Actress Meg Ryan, best known for her roles in “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail,” has listed her Bel Air home for $11.4 million, Realtor.com reported. The 6,877-square-foot, six-bedroom house had previously been on the market for $19.5 million. The house, previously rented by actress Diane Keaton, is set on a promontory yielding city and ocean views, and comes with a pool, guest house and a screening room.

Billy JoelMiami Beach
Singer-songwriter Billy Joel listed his 8,800-square-foot, Mediterranean-style mansion for $14.8 million last month, Curbed.com reported. Joel and then-wife Katie Lee purchased the bay-front home, located on the island of La Gorce, for $13.5 million in 2006. The home has seven bedrooms, an outdoor kitchen and a pool.

Malibu
Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell last month put their Malibu beach house on the market.
Goldie Hawn’s house The asking price is $11.2 million, down $3.5 million from the last time it was listed, according to the Los Angeles Times. The four-bedroom home measures 4,300 square feet and has a gym.