Congratulations to our IT provider CompuCraft!
May 15th
CompuCraft Named a Preferred Partner by Kerio Technologies
By Marketwire .
SAN JOSE, CA — (Marketwire) — 05/15/12 –
Kerio Technologies, Inc. today announced that CompuCraft, an IT solutions provider that serves the Western Michigan area, has attained Kerio Preferred Partner status. As a value-added reseller of Kerio’s IT infrastructure portfolio for more than five years, the company has demonstrated continuous sales growth and advancement within Kerio’s Business Partner Program.
CompuCraft specializes in serving Mac business environments and excels at building long-term relationships with its more than 250 clients by helping them align their IT infrastructure with their business goals. As a certified Apple Specialist with a strong commitment to the Mac platform, the VAR focuses extensively on Apple solutions and combines technical expertise with a commitment to customer service before, during, and after a sale. A provider of Kerio’s portfolio of solutions for clients that prefer a simple approach to IT, CompuCraft provides comprehensive email, collaboration and security offerings that are easy to administer and provide tremendous value to customers.
“CompuCraft has served Western Michigan small businesses for 25 years and we have worked with many technology vendors,” said Bill Smith, owner, CompuCraft. “Kerio’s solutions are an IT Manager’s dream, they are feature rich and extremely secure, but still painless to deploy and manage.”
Recently, CompuCraft deployed Kerio Connect at NAI Wisinski of West Michigan, a member of the NAI Global network that provides commercial, industrial, retail, and property management real estate services. The organization deployed Kerio Connect for more than 50 employees when it merged two commercial realtor offices. NAI had previously been using the Microsoft Exchange server, and with the help of CompuCraft, found that Kerio Connect was a more flexible solution for mobile device support, and much easier to administer.
“We believe that our Partners’ success translates into our success, and this mutually beneficial culture drives our partnership program,” said Mirek Kren, vice president, worldwide sales, Kerio Technologies. “CompuCraft is a welcome addition, as they are dedicated to providing customized implementations of Kerio’s products to customers for simple, stable and secure business solutions.”
News & Views: May 7, 2012
May 7th
By: Jim Decker
Our ten person industrial team held its weekly meeting the other day. We are all sensing a gradual and steady rise in demand and price for this sector of our market place. In fact we are experiencing some difficulties in finding buildings for some of our clients. In particular there is a short supply of nice, clean, modern (high ceilings, loading docks, drive-in doors, good condition), 15,000 SF and above buildings. We are encouraged by the gradual increase in pricing. Dave Smies closed transactions for his clients this week on two buildings that fall into the aforementioned category, one on Walkent NW, and the other on Oak Industrial Drive. Current pricing on comparable buildings is in the $28 to $32 per square foot range.
After a really stagnant three year period we are also starting to sell some vacant industrial zoned land. Several of our clients are in process of constructing new facilities. It’s nice to have our optimism based on reality!
National Association of Realtors: Lending Standards Hindering Commercial Real Estate Recovery
May 4th
WASHINGTON (May 3, 2012) – Although commercial real estate markets showed signs of recovery in 2011, commercial lending standards have tightened in the past year for small businesses and scuttled a major portion of contracted transactions for smaller properties, according to the National Association of Realtors® annual Commercial Real Estate 2012 Lending Survey.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said there is a significant split in commercial lending depending on value. “This is very much a tale of two markets. There have been notable improvements in capital for large commercial transactions valued at $2.5 million or higher, but there remain significant challenges for small business,” he said.
“Our Realtor® members typically are involved in helping commercial clients with purchases under $2 million, where a lack of capital has caused two out of three respondents to report deals have fallen through. Given that most jobs are created through small business, the lack of capital is hurting small businesses and the overall economic recovery.”
According to Real Capital Analytics, more than 13,000 major properties valued at $2.5 million or higher traded hands in 2011. Sales volume increased 51 percent over 2010 to $205.8 billion, with the lion’s share of lending funds coming from big banks. Other funding sources include insurance companies and institutional investors.
By contrast, the NAR survey shows that small business transactions rely heavily on smaller regional and local banks, and small private investors, for lending capital.
Respondents indicate nearly 30 percent of smaller commercial properties are purchased with cash, reflecting the tight credit environment, and some are seller financed. “When credit is tight, cash is king,” Yun added.
The most common types of property transactions referenced in the survey were multifamily, land, warehouse, suburban office and retail strip centers. Other property types include industrial flex space, central business district office, freestanding retail, and restaurants.
Realtors® report the system is clogged with property that must be sold or refinanced, which is significantly impacting the recovery. Long-time investors who never had a problem getting a loan in the past are now being declined.
Commercial Real Estate Lending Survey
More than half of respondents say lending is just as stringent as a year ago, while 23 percent say it is more stringent; 20 percent say it is less stringent but not near historical averages. Members also complained about banks being over-regulated, and refinancing being denied due to stringent internal lender underwriting requirements or low appraisal valuations.
Thirty-six percent of Realtors® said clients used the Small Business Administration commercial refinance program, but of those who didn’t, 45 percent said it was due to burdensome application and reporting requirements.
The Commercial Real Estate 2012 Lending Survey is published by the NAR Research Division for the commercial community. In April 2012, a random sample of 32,459 Realtors® with an interest in commercial real estate was invited to complete an online survey. A total of 474 responses were received, for an overall response rate of 1.46 percent.
NAR’s Commercial Division, formed in 1990, provides targeted products and services to meet the needs of the commercial market and constituency within NAR. The NAR commercial components include commercial members; commercial committees, subcommittees and forums; commercial real estate boards and structures; and the NAR commercial affiliate organizations – CCIM Institute, Institute of Real Estate Management, Realtors® Land Institute, Society of Industrial and Office Realtors®, and Counselors of Real Estate.
Approximately 78,000 NAR and institute affiliate members specialize in commercial brokerage and related services, and an additional 232,000 members offer commercial real estate services as a secondary business.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
The commercial real estate forecast and quarterly market report will be released on May 24 at 10 a.m. EDT.
NAI Wisinski Blood Drive
May 1st
On May 31st, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, NAI Wisinski of West Michigan will be hosting another blood drive. The goal that Michigan Blood has set for us is 15 pints. Come out and help us exceed our goal! Please contact Vicki Tolan at 616-776-0100 or victoriat@naiwwm.com to register!
CARWM: First Quarter Sold Report
Apr 17th
FIRST QUARTER SOLD REPORT RELEASED
Commercial real estate in West Michigan is continuing to show increased activity and growth, according to recently released first quarter closed sales statistics reported to the Commercial Alliance of REALTORS®.
The number of commercial sale transactions reported for the first quarter of 2012 has increased 23.8% compared to the first quarter of 2011. Retail and office transactions reveal a large increase in activity, with increases of 45.8% and 40% compared to 2011. The industrial sector, which showed huge growth in 2011, reported two fewer transactions in the first quarter of 2012, than in 2011.
Overall commercial real estate sales volume correlates directly with the slow down in the industrial sector. While office sales soared with a 109% increase over 2011, and retail showed steady growth at 7.2%, sales volume for industrial properties declined by 63.9%.
The slow down in the industrial sector is not necessarily indicative of a lack of demand for industrial property. “The industrial sector is experiencing something that hasn’t been seen for several years – the need for new construction of manufacturing and warehouse space. The current inventory of larger footprint industrial space is extremely limited, ” stated 2012 CAR President Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely, of NAI Wisinski West Michigan. “The office and retail sectors increases in both the number of transactions and volume demonstrates the strength and viability of doing business in West Michigan.”
COMPARATIVE ACTIVITY REPORT – CLOSED SALES |
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| First Quarter 2011/ First Quarter 2012 | |||||
| NOTE: This report reflects closed sales reported to Commercial Alliance of REALTORS from the West Michigan area, particularly Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, Allegan and Kalamazoo Counties. This report does not include leasing activity. |
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| Property Type | Number of Transactions 2011 | Number of Transactions 2012 | % Change | ||
| Industrial | 24 | 22 | -8.3% | ||
| Retail | 24 | 35 | 45.8% | ||
| Office | 15 | 21 | 40.0% | ||
| TOTAL | 63 | 78 | 23.8% | ||
| Property Type | Real Estate Sold 2011 | Real Estate Sold 2012 | % Change | ||
| Industrial | $16,508,901.00 | $5,952,744.00 | -63.9% | ||
| Retail | $7,396,680.00 | $7,930,550.00 | 7.2% | ||
| Office | $3,910,650.00 | $8,172,500.00 | 109.0% | ||
| TOTAL | $27,816,231.00 | $22,055,794.00 | -20.7% | ||
Forbes has Named Grand Rapids #1 City to Raise a Family
Apr 5th
The Best Cities For Raising A Family
Tom Van Riper, Forbes Staff
Grand Rapids, Michigan doesn’t boast a lot of affluence. The metro area population of 774,000 carries a median household of $47,040, good for just 65th place among America’s 100 largest MSAs. The city’s major claims to fame come from being a national leader in office furniture production, and for being the hometown of a U.S. president, Gerald Ford.
What Grand Rapids does have: the distinction of being the best metro area in the country to raise a family in. Income may be relatively low, but the cost of living is even lower. The local school system ranks in the top third in the country. Commuting to work is a breeze. The housing foreclosure mess didn’t leave Grand Rapids unscathed, chopping about 12% off area home values over the past few years. But that’s still quite modest compared to many other places. Almost 90% of Grand Rapids’ housing stock is affordable to a family at the median income level, the seventh-highest rate in the country. And the local crime rate falls well below the national average.
Continue Reading…
Grand Rapids: Medical Mile serves as a catalyst
Apr 5th
Photo Courtesy of John Eisenschenk
It was a little less than two decades ago that local business leaders could see what was unfolding in West Michigan. The industrial sector was steadily declining, and companies were either going out of business or moving away. It was evident that something had to be done.
That’s when two hometown heroes, Amway founders Richard DeVos and Jay Van Andel, proposed their vision to turn Grand Rapids into one of the top medical services cities in the world. Their leadership and philanthropic efforts spurred a series of events, forever changing the landscape, mentality and image of Grand Rapids.
One of the city’s first streets, Michigan Street, running parallel to I-196, was the initial site of their vision. In 1996, Jay and Betty Van Andel founded the Van Andel Institute. They broke ground in 1998, and the Van Andel Institute opened its doors in 2000. The institute is now home to scientific research that is focused primarily on cancer and Parkinson’s disease and has received more than $1 billion in research funding.
The original development was a $60 million facility. In 2010, the institute opened a second phase with an additional 242,000 square feet at a cost of $175 million.
Butterworth Hospital, now part of Spectrum Health, sits atop the hill on Michigan Street. In 1993, the Helen DeVos Women and Children’s Center moved to the site working as part of Spectrum Health.
In 2011, the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital opened its doors to a 440,000-square-foot facility at a cost of $286 million, largely funded by the DeVos family. Spectrum Health combined with other local generous donors to found the Meijer Heart Center and the Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion, costing about $137 million and $78 million, respectively.
The Medical Mile is host to Michigan State University’s (MSU) College of Human Medicine, Grand Valley State University’s (GVSU) Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences, Grand Rapids Community College’s Calkins Science Center, and Ferris State University’s pharmacy program.
MSU’s building is 180,000 square feet, and GVSU’s is 217,000 square feet, costing $90 million and $57 million respectively. In total, more than $1.2 billion has been invested in the Medical Mile and the surrounding area on world-class medical facilities.
The problem isn’t a lack of interest in the Medical Mile, but rather a lack of space. The corridor has barriers on all sides: the freeway to the north; the Grand River to the west; Heritage Hill, a historic part of Grand Rapids with 1,300 homes dating back as far as 1848 to the east and south; and the rest of downtown to the southwest.
The developers of Midtowne Village, a six-building complex that houses the 100,000-square-foot Women’s Health Center, had to get the zoning of their site changed as well as purchase and demolish 46 homes.
Other organizations are beginning to look for vacated buildings that can be occupied for their use. GVSU plans to cross the expressway to the north and develop another site for medical use, and MSU is in the process of acquiring the old Grand Rapids Press building that remains vacant with the presses still inside.
Continue reading…
Recent Transactions
Mar 23rd
Office
Jason Makowski and Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely teamed up to bring Jeffrey Behm of Real Hair, LLC to a 2,000 SF vacant suite at 330 E. Beltline. The landlord is Rich Craig of 330 East Beltline, LLC. They agreed to a 10 year lease with options at $18.00/SF plus electric.
Retail
Jason Makowski and Dick Jasinski but together a deal that brought Osaka Sushi & Steak House to the former Carlos O’Kelly’s location at 4977 28th Street SE. Devtex Properties is the owner of the 1,640 SF stand alone building. It is a 42 month lease at $12.00/SF (NNN). The tenant is also performing improvements their own expense.
Dick Jasinski also closed on a lease of the former Famous Dave’s building at 5710 Harvey Street in Muskegon.
Industrial
Kurt Kunst sold a 23,000 SF industrial building at 4438 Remembrance. He represented both sides of the transaction. Along with Rod Alderink, Kurt also sold the vacant land across from the Gun Lake Casino.
Also, Jim Badaluco sold the building at 2735 West River and Stu Kingma sold the building at 3711 Dykstra.
In total, there were 19 transactions in the past two weeks not including lease renewals. In addition, Jeremy Veenstra completed his first transaction as a member of NAI Wisinski of West Michigan. Congratulations Jeremy!
NAI Wisinski of West Michigan Brings in the Awards
Feb 14th
At the Commercial Alliance of Realtors (CAR) annual awards banquet last Tuesday night, NAI Wisinski of West Michigan was recognized four times for their recent successes. Rod Alderink, Stan Wisinski, Case Reimus, and Chris Prins all took home awards.
Chris Prins received the Largest Industrial Lease Award for his 85,595 SF lease at 5079 33rd Street to Atek Medical Device Manufacturing “This was a very smooth deal. The owner and the tenant worked well together through the entire process,” Chris said of the transaction.
Case Reimus received the Largest Retail Sale Award. The award represented the sale of 4121 28th Street in Cascade just west of I-96. Sleep Doctor, a locally owned mattress specialty store, bought the location for their 16th store throughout Michigan. This transaction took place in late November.
Stan Wisinski was recognized for his 50 years of service in commercial real estate. In Addition, Rod Alderink was named 2012 CAR Realtor of the Year. “I am honored and humbled to be named the Commercial Alliance of Realtors 2012 Realtor of the Year. It has been an honor to serve our CAR members on its Board of Directors and to represent CAR on both the State and National levels,” he said regarding the award. “The manner in which CAR members collaborate with each other to mutually serve our clients with excellence and integrity makes CAR a unique organization across the country. I am blessed to be recognized by my peers.”
Chris Prins
Case Reimus
Stan Wisinski
Rod Alderink
Downtown Office Activity on the Rise
Feb 14th
The Grand Rapids office market is showing signs of growth. Recent transactions at NAI Wisinski of West Michigan show a possible glimpse of what the rest of 2012 has in store. Last week, Stan Wisinski and Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely closed a sale at 98 E. Fulton, the former Jacobson’s Department Store. Located on the Southeast corner of Fulton and Sheldon, the 38,134 SF landmark building has been leased by various tenants since Jacobson’s vacated the site, but is now to be owner occupied on the first floor and basement. Stan Wisinski and Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely represented the seller, John Postma of Fulton Street Partners, LLC, and Midwest Realty Group represented the buyer, Acton Institute. The transaction included a long term lease of the second floor to West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology (WMCAT).
They have seen an increase in activity in some of their other downtown listings as well. Even the building they occupy at 100 Grandville SW has seen activity and is closing in on 100% occupancy. It currently sits at just under 91% occupancy, with another lease in the works. “Someone turned on the switch and office space downtown is starting to fill up,” said Stan Wisinski. “I look forward to seeing the overall effect this has on downtown.”
NAI Wisinski’s work has not gone unnoticed. They just received the lease listing for the historic Waters Building. The 282,200 SF building is conveniently located at 161 Ottawa. Tenants for this building include the Gilmore Collection’s Ottawa Tavern and Bite Bar & Restaurant. “We are very grateful to have received the listing on the Waters Building, but the work is just beginning,” said Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely. “We have handled projects on this scale before and we know what it takes to make sure we achieve our client’s goals. Our office team at NAI is ready to roll up our sleeves and get to work.”
