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Dallas Tower on the Market Again after Foreclosure

DFW: An 18-story tower in downtown Dallas is back on the market. Last year, the 185,000-square-foot tower on North Ervay Street was taken by Thistle Creek Capital, the lender, in a foreclosure auction. The real estate investment company based in Lehi, Utah, took over the property for $8 million at the foreclosure auction after Wolfe Investments of Plano had defaulted on loans totaling more than $14 million. The building, first constructed in the late 1950s, is back on the market and is valued at $12 million by the Dallas Central Appraisal District. The site is zoned for office, residential and hotel. The Dallas area office market, especially in downtown Dallas, has been trying to rebound from massive vacancies during COVID and the flight north, including to Uptown and the northern suburbs. Cushman & Wakefield says that the North Texas office vacancy rate was just under 25% in the Q3 and says it could be a very good year for the office industry. 

DFW: And in North Dallas, the 10-story Preston Plaza also has new owners. Arthur Zeckendorf and the AZ Family Partners placed the winning bid at auction for the tower in Far North Dallas. The 6-acre site that includes the glass structure is listed on the Collin County tax rolls for $35 million.  Although the 1980s-era building could qualify for redevelopment into residential, the New York-based owners plan to keep it as office space, noting the strong office market in the Dallas area. They will spend upwards of $14 million to redevelop the 260,000-square-foot space and will add amenities, including a health club and restaurant space. 

DFW: Centurion American is known for its sprawling master-planned communities across many parts of North Texas. It is now heading into the hotel business. The company has bought and is reconverting the Crowne Plaza in Addison to the Hotel Dax in a two-phase redevelopment and rebranding. The first phase will include renovating meeting spaces, updating four dining spaces, reconverting the pool into one with resort-style features, and adding high-tech golf simulators under the Topgolf brand. The hotel will then reopen sometime next year under the Marriott banner. The second phase of renovation will follow in 2027 with the renovation and updates of the nearly 430 guest rooms. Centurion American, based in Farmers Branch, is one of the region’s most-prolific developers, with more than 200,000 lots delivered in numerous projects across Dallas-Fort Worth over the past three decades. 

DFW: A Plano real estate investment firm has bought nearly 240 acres in Grayson County. Serenity Equity LLC bought the property off Batey Road in Collinsville, located about 60 miles north of Dallas. The parcel is now being used to grow sod but because of its flat topography, it could serve well as a community of single-family homes or other development. The value of the land is estimated to be about $5 million. Numerous developers have been on a buyer spree in the past several years in north Collin County and Grayson County, much of it because of the construction of high-tech plants by Texas Instruments and GlobalWafers Co. around Sherman that are supposed to bring several thousand permanent and seasonal jobs to the area.

NASHVILLE: Finance expert Dave Ramsey tells his legion of fans to never go in debt, other than maybe buying a house. But it’s OK to rent, especially if it’s from him. And he’ll give you a “bargain.” The radio and podcast host who has made a fortune telling people how to manage their finances and investments has put up his expansive house in a Nashville suburb for rent. It has nearly 4,000 square feet, including four bedrooms, four baths, hardwoods and granite countertops, and even heated tile flooring in the main bathroom. (Wait. Wouldn’t Ramsey question the need for that luxury?). And of course, the successful renter would have to pass a rigorous credit check and pets and smoking are banned. As for how to pay the $5,250 monthly rental. Probably some kind of secured funds or bank transfer as he is famous for his stance against credit cards. 

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