Commissioner Judy Lowe of the Arizona Department of Real Estate has reappointed Andy Jaffe, SIOR, Sr. Vice President at Commercial Properties Incorporated, as the only commercial broker on the Education Advisory Committee. The Education Advisory Committee was established to assist the Arizona Department of Real Estate and endeavors to protect the public by raising the standards for education and continuing education in the Arizona Real Estate industry.

CPI is a CORFAC International affiliate, full-service Brokerage and Property Management firm for all product types. Headquartered in Tempe, the company has over 50 brokers and occupies two offices locally. Currently, CPI’s listings include more than 55.5 million square feet for sale/lease, and over 125 projects under property management, totaling approximately 4.5 million square feet.

“Not many people have an opportunity to contribute to the efforts of the Education Advisory Committee, I’m honored to be selected,” remarks Jaffe. The Education Advisory Committee is made up of 14 volunteer members from various backgrounds including, attorneys, escrow, lending, real estate instructors, real estate school administrators/owners, residential and commercial real estate licensees, and partners. “As a committee, we are working to bring change in continuing education for professionals in the Arizona Real Estate industry. Ms. Lowe is very proactive and experienced in supporting legislation for increasing the diversification of continuous real estate education courses. One of the goals of the committee is to help ensure that Arizona Real Estate courses will be more tailored toward the specialties of the individual,” says Jaffe.

To visit the Education Advisory Committee website click here to learn more about the Committee, or contact Carla Randolph, Education Manager at (602) 771-7799 or [email protected] .

News reported to us on the final day of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) Western Division Conference in San Diego, is that two new Big Box retail stores are coming to Tucson.

Conn’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:CONN), a specialty retailer of home appliances, furniture, mattresses, consumer electronics and provider of consumer credit leased 40,000-square-feet at the Marana Marketplace, located at the southeast corner of Thornydale and River off I-10 in Marana. This will be its second location in Tucson, the first opened in December 2012 at 5530 E Broadway Blvd. in approximately 33,000-square-feet.

Conn’s is on a growing spurt this year, and announced plans last July to open 10-12 new locations this year. In Arizona, Conn’s already has stores in Mesa, Tempe, Phoenix and Tucson. An opening date for this store was undetermined.

Nancy McClure with CBRE of Tucson represented Conn’s in both Tucson leases. Andy Seleznov with Larsen Baker, the developer and landlord of Marana Marketplace, represented the landlord in this transaction.

Reliable sources tell us that Floor and Décor also leased 59,000-square-feet for their first Tucson location at 7125 E Broadway Blvd, at the northeast corner of Broadway and Kolb. Floor and Décor is an Atlanta-based company and a leading specialty retailer of hard surface flooring and accessories. Founded in 2000, Floor and Décor offers a broad selection of ceramic, stone, wood and laminate flooring to both individual consumers as well as contractors. Floor and Décor currently operates 25 stores in 15 U.S. markets as well as its online store at www.flooranddecor.com .

Public records indicate that Floor and Décor will handle the build out of converting the store façade from two entries into one and allow for better loading dock access in rear. Floor and Décor may be open as early as the end of this year.

Nancy McClure represented the tenant in this transaction while Bill Houghey, with ABC Broadway /Kolb Center, the landlord, handled the transaction for the landlord.

Check back for information as it becomes available.

Nancy McClure is a First Vice President at CBRE in Tucson, specializing in retail properties, with a business focus in representing shopping center owners and key retail businesses in Southern Arizona. She can be reached at (520) 323-5117. Andy Seleznov is Director of Leasing at Larsen Baker and should be reached at (520) 296-0200. Bill Houghey can be contacted at (520) 882-4200.

Login for additional information.

[mepr-show rules=”58038″] Landlord reported lease rate on Floor & Decor to be $10.50/SF/NNN[/mepr-show]

Bella Verde Apartments at 3030 N 35th Avenue in Phoenix closed at a sale price of $4.4 million ($24,309 per unit).

The 181-unit apartment complex is approximately 71,760-square-feet and was built in 1978. Bella Verde is a garden style-rental community situated on approximately 4 acres. This multifamily asset is ideally located neat Gran Avenue, I-17 and I-10 Freeways, providing convenient access to many other Phoenix metropolitan cities and amenities.

“This sale of Bella Verde Apartments marks the third successful closing for us on this property since April 2010,” says Neil Sherman. “The buyer was a perfect fit for the asset, having recently sold a similar property in Central Phoenix.”

Neil Sherman and Danny Lee, Principals with Sperry Van Ness of Phoenix represented the seller, Sans Souci Apartments, LLLP. The buyer was represented by Pete TeKampe, Vice-President of Investments at Marcus & Millichap of Phoenix.

Sherman and Lee should be contacted at (480) 425-5500. TeKampe can be reached at (602) 687-6767.