Metal fabrication and manufacturing company, Unified Legacy, is expanding its existing footprint in Macon. The company will invest $125 million in a new manufacturing facility in Macon, creating 500 new jobs over the next several years in Bibb County. Unified Legacy’s new manufacturing facility will be located at Barnes Ferry Road in Macon, with construction expected to begin in 2026. Parrish Construction is the general contractor.

Unified Legacy manufactures complex products and components for the defense, aerospace, data center, and industrial markets. Through advanced machining, welding, and fabrication capabilities, the company delivers custom solutions including ground support equipment, welded assemblies, generator enclosures, fuel storage tanks, and precision-machined components. Unified Defense, their existing manufacturing facility, has been operating in Byron, Georgia, since 2022.

BGO and its parent, Sun Life, made commercial real estate headlines last month with the announcement that multifamily owner/operator Bell Partners and BGO would combine businesses. Sizable as that transaction is, it’s far from the whole story BGO has to tell. In advance of his participation in Connect Los Angeles 2026 on May 28, for which he will be a member of the Industry Leaders panel, BGO managing partner, head of U.S. Jonathan Epstein discussed the investment thesis the firm is pursuing both domestically and globally.

Q: Has BGO’s investment outlook changed since the beginning of 2026, whether internationally or domestically? 

A: Our core thesis has not changed, but the path has been bumpier than we expected. Coming into the year, we held the view – against consensus – that a U.S. recession was not inevitable, that inflation was largely under control, and that capital markets were thawing. We still believe all of that. What’s shifted is the timeline. Mercurial trade policy, followed by geopolitical volatility, has delayed the recovery we were expecting rather than derailed it. 

Domestically, we remain constructive. We think the Fed has more room to cut, the 10-year is mostly anchored around 4% plus or minus 25 basis points, and U.S. growth is better than the headlines suggest—supported by outsized manufacturing capex, AI investment, productivity gains, and a policy backdrop that continues to incentivize onshoring. The numbers on that last point are striking: over a trillion dollars in announced U.S. manufacturing capital spending – roughly $270 billion in pharmaceuticals over the next 5-10 years, $200-300 billion in semiconductors, and $20-30 billion annually in defense and industrial. That’s a structural reindustrialization of the U.S. economy, and it creates durable real estate demand—for power, logistics, industrial, and the housing that supports those workforces. 

Internationally, the picture has actually improved. Europe is set up for what may be its strongest decade in two generations, with defense and capex spending, easing rates, and selective dislocation across the GP universe creating attractive entry points—particularly in Spain, Italy, the Nordics, Germany, and a re-priced UK. Asia Pacific is steadier, with Japan remaining a standout for office. 

At the firm level, we’ve also been building the platform with intention. In March, Sun Life—BGO’s parent — entered into an agreement to acquire Bell Partners, a leading U.S. multifamily investment and operating platform with approximately $10 billion of assets under management. Once closed, the transaction will bring BGO’s AUM above $100 billion and, combined with our existing exposure, take the platform to more than 40,000 owned units and over 70,000 total units under management. It reflects our strong conviction in U.S. multifamily – a sector where demand fundamentals remain durable, the country is structurally under-housed, and many global investors remain under-allocated. 

Q: How has BGO’s global cold-chain involvement evolved, and where are the regional supply dislocations? 

A: Cold storage has moved through distinct phases — from an overlooked niche a decade ago, to an institutional boom during COVID, to the recalibration we’ve been in since 2023. We think the next chapter is stabilization, and the setup is probably the most attractive it’s been since we entered the space. Supply has reset dramatically — deliveries are down roughly 65% from the 2023 peak — and permanent debt markets for stabilized core are back, which tells us institutional capital is committing again. In that environment, scale and discipline matter a lot more than they did during the boom. 

Our own footprint in the sector has deepened materially over the past five years. We started with a single real estate transaction in 2018, then participated in Lineage Logistics’ pre-IPO growth round—Lineage is now publicly traded. We’ve since launched a dedicated development vehicle for modern Class A facilities across the U.S., added smaller infill acquisitions, and engaged our lending and credit team in financing opportunities. That breadth — equity development, infill acquisitions, and credit — gives us multiple ways to deploy capital across the cycle. 

What stands out today is how uneven the supply picture looks across markets. Markets like Texas, parts of Florida, and Chicagoland have absorbed meaningful new supply above the long-term average, creating near-term disruption but eventual opportunity. In contrast, high-barrier markets like the Northeast and West Coast have seen limited new supply and remain more stable. We’re focused on markets where demand drivers — port volumes, food distribution networks, demographic growth — are strong but recent deliveries have been limited, and on tenant-driven development where underwriting is anchored to actual demand rather than speculation. Our pipeline today is weighted toward the Central and Western U.S., with meaningful allocations to the Southeast and Canada, and demand is almost entirely coming from food distribution, grocery, and pharma. 

On the demand side, we continue to see food manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies seeking supply chain control and bespoke facilities through new development. At the same time, we’re identifying value-add acquisition opportunities — potentially with tenants already in place —in markets experiencing near-term disruption, which we think could serve as attractive entry points. 

Q: Within the core plus universe, what sectors look especially attractive as we go through 2026? 

We organize our core plus strategy around three themes: Power & Logistics, Healthcare, and Housing. All three are being driven by durable demographic demand on one side and capital-markets dislocation on the other—which is what creates mid-risk, mid-return entry points. 

Power & Logistics is one of our largest allocations today and continues to deliver meaningful rent growth. The through-line is access to power—whether that’s modern logistics, advanced manufacturing, or industrial adjacent uses like cold storage and IOS. The constraint on new supply is real and getting tighter. 

Healthcare is where we have strong conviction on a forward basis. High-acuity medical office and pharma related cGMP have very durable demographic tailwinds, and portfolio aggregation dynamics in the sector are creating attractive entry points. Expect that allocation to grow meaningfully over the course of 2026. 

Housing rounds out the themes, and it may be where we have the deepest structural conviction of all. Delayed first-time homebuyer formation, a housing shortage of more than 4-5 million units, and a rent-versus-own affordability gap near a 25-year high are all durable demand drivers for institutional-quality multifamily – and values have yet to reconnect with prior cyclical highs, giving us the opportunity to acquire well-located assets at meaningful discounts to replacement cost. 

Across all three themes, we’re consistently underwriting to pricing below replacement cost and below intrinsic value, which we think is the most important discipline in this environment. 

Q: Where do you see the opportunities for BGO’s new U.S. value-add industrial strategy? 

A: We are one of the largest logistics investor/owners (Top 5) and a longstanding investor in the space in the US. We have been consistent investors in the space, up and down the risk spectrum and both equity and credit and currently we think this is one of the more favorable entry points for industrial we’ve seen in roughly two decades, and our various investment vehicle strategies are built to capture three distinct but reinforcing opportunities. 

The first is strategic acquisitions of high-quality logistics assets where temporary oversupply has pushed vacancy higher and created what we’d call “high-quality vacancy on sale.” We’re investing in top-quartile markets, at meaningful discounts to replacement cost, and creating value through mark-to-market leasing and lease-up. 

The second is selective development. New supply is down more than 50% from peak, and the development pipeline is approaching decade lows. That sets up a compelling window to build best-in-class product in markets we’ve identified through our data-science research models – but only where we have sufficient power. Grid bottlenecks have become the real gating factor for new development across most of the country, and that’s created a scarcity premium for sites that can actually be built. 

The third bucket is industrial-adjacent: powered land that can serve data center demand, infill IOS sites in constrained submarkets, and advanced-manufacturing assets benefiting from onshoring. These are adjacencies where our industrial platform gives us an edge on sourcing and underwriting, and they add diversification without diluting our core logistics thesis. 

Put simply, the macro tailwinds for industrial—above-trend growth, easing rates, automation, supply chain resilience, policy-driven reinvestment in U.S. manufacturing—are converging with a supply/demand imbalance squarely in our favor and normalizing capital markets. That combination doesn’t come along often.

Hear from LA Leadership on May 28.
Gain direct insight from Los Angeles leadership, including Mayor Karen Bass and former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, as they discuss policy, growth, affordable housing and the city’s future. Don’t miss this high-level conversation—secure your spot today: www.connectLA26.com 

Global Net Lease, Inc. (GNL) and Modiv Industrial, Inc, announced on Monday a definitive merger agreement under which GNL will acquire Modiv in an all-stock transaction valued at an enterprise value of approximately $535 million. The transaction, once completed, will provide GNL with an attractive portfolio of high-quality mission-critical industrial properties across the U.S. GNL intends to fully repay all of Modiv’s existing balance sheet debt and pay off Modiv’s preferred stock using its revolving credit facility and cash on hand.

“We believe this transaction is a compelling opportunity for GNL to expedite our transition to earnings growth in 2026 following the completion of our deleveraging initiative while continuing to reduce our office exposure,” said Michael Weil, CEO of GNL. “Modiv has thoughtfully assembled a high-quality portfolio of industrial net-lease assets that provide durable and predictable cash flows that align well with our objectives of enhancing earnings and long-term portfolio quality.”

Aaron Halfacre, president and CEO of Modiv, added, “We have long believed that our portfolio’s quality was historically mispriced by the marketplace and that we would be receptive if someone sought to close the value gap sooner than we could. Over the past year, Modiv attracted substantial interest from a range of suitors, including multiple unsolicited offers, but GNL distinguished itself through the long-term opportunity this transaction creates.”

Pictured: A Modiv-owned cold storage facility in Yuma, AZ.

Hoar Construction broke ground on Icon Tallahassee, a nine-story multifamily community serving students at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Hoar is serving as the general contractor on the more than $100 million project, developed by Park7 Group and slated for completion in the fall of 2028.

Icon Tallahassee will house 804 beds across one-bedroom studios to five-bedroom apartment layouts. Amenities will include a club room, study lounges, below-grade parking, bike and scooter storage, and a fitness center with a yoga studio. Icon will feature a rooftop pool deck lounge with views of Doak S. Campbell Stadium. 

Additional project partners include Boarman Kross Vogel Group, Inc. as architect.

Hoar continues to expand its portfolio in Florida, with over $750 million in projects completed within the state over the last five years. In 2024, Hoar completed construction on Cordelia, a 12-story, 240-unit multifamily community in Sarasota.

Real estate investors hoping to lessen their tax burdens next year are putting the pedal to the metal in a race to buy gas stations.

Since 100% bonus depreciation became law in July, gas station, convenience store and car wash investment sales have surged.

National gas station and convenience store investment sale activity has spiked 27% since the law passed, compared to a 17% increase in overall retail investment sales, according to data from net lease-focused real estate firm The Boulder Group. 

The assets’ equipment-heavy requirements make them especially tax-beneficial, sending investors rushing to get deals closed by the end of the year, driving up prices and compressing cap rates.

“It’s really at a fever pitch,” said Jim Ceresnak, a vice president in Northmarq’s Charlotte office specializing in car wash sales.

Demand is coming from new investors, repeat buyers, new investment funds and REITs, he said. 

Bonus depreciation allows investors to deduct the full value of equipment improvements or purchases upfront instead of throughout the lifetime of the investment.

The tax break was originally set to be reduced by 20% annually and would have settled at 40% this year, but the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reinstated permanent 100% bonus depreciation for properties purchased and placed into service after Jan. 19, 2025.  

Unlike other retail, gas stations come with significant equipment like underground storage tanks and submersible pumps. Investors can deduct full depreciation for everything except the land from their taxable income the first year, rather than over the typical 39 years, said Navjeet Chahal of Chahal & Associates, a Northern California-based tax and accounting firm that works with hundreds of gas stations.

“Even though they know that the interest rates are still slightly higher, they do want to take advantage of the bonus depreciation to be able to offset their tax liability, especially toward the end of the year,” Chahal said. 

There has also been a renewed interest in gas stations since the likely timeline of electric vehicles dominating the market has been pushed out. Electric vehicle battery production tax credits will now end in 2028, and Biden-era transition mandates were overturned. 

“No one’s thinking electrical cars aren’t a part of the future,” The Boulder Group President Randy Blankstein said. “They’re just thinking that the day that they take over isn’t 2028. It’s 2035 and later.” 

Hybrid vehicles are likely to be more common before fully electric vehicles, giving the gas station model more longevity, Blankstein said. Gas stations are also seen as recession-proof in an era of slower job growth and rising inflation.

“People understand the essentialness of gas stations day to day,” he said. “You don’t need to make economic predictions as to where we are in a cycle. It’s a pretty essential business for most people.” 

Ceresnak said the demand environment is similar to what it was in 2021 and 2022, the last time there was 100% bonus depreciation from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.

But now there is more inventory available and more operators entering the market, increasing the number of buyers and sellers. 

“It’s a healthier transaction environment,” he said. 

REITs, funds and individuals who bought car washes over the past five to seven years are now looking to exit, some by doing a 1031 exchange into another asset class, Ceresnak said.

“So you’ve seen inventory come from the operators as well as legacy holders that bought sale-leasebacks four or five years ago,” he said. 

Bonus depreciation allows buyers to get more aggressive on pricing, driving up competition for assets, compressing cap rates and making more willing sellers, Northmarq investment analyst Sage Chaffin said. 

“If we’re underwriting something for an operator, our exit cap rate for them is now more aggressive because we’re taking bonus depreciation into account, and so are buyers,” Chaffin said. “Both sides are more aggressive.” 

The frenzy of activity has led more gas station operators to explore sale-leasebacks, which they can use as a financing tool. It has also drawn private equity attention and driven further consolidation in the car wash industry. 

Blankstein said he has seen demand from high net worth investors, mostly those with other existing real estate businesses. The sector is especially appealing for investors with older portfolios that have already taken their full depreciation.

“We’re selling a bunch to a senior housing developer, some multifamily developers,” he said. “Usually you have an existing portfolio of income, and this is kind of a one-time tax benefit.”

But it isn’t a straightforward process, and the tax code can be tricky. About a quarter of gas stations use a ground-lease structure, which doesn’t qualify for bonus depreciation, Blankstein said. 

Convenience stores must derive more than 50% of revenue from petroleum sales to be classified as property that depreciates in 15 years rather than 39 under IRS code, meaning they can qualify for full depreciation in Year 1. Self-serve or tunnel-style car washes without retail on-site can also be classified as 15-year properties. 

But if a convenience store has food service, retail or other revenue that pushes its fuel sales below 50%, only a portion of the property may qualify for 100% bonus depreciation. There is also risk of inaccurate purchase price allocation between the land, building and site improvements, which could trigger an audit, according to Northmarq.

Investors should consult with advisers very familiar with gas station real estate and tax codes, Chahal said, adding he has even had to educate auditors on depreciation rules.

“Just find somebody who understands this business, because not everybody does, and then they end up doing a disservice to you,” he said. 

Gas stations and convenience stores are innovative and ever-changing, providing a long runway for this investment market into the future, said Sai Thakor, Houston-based vice president at CBRE specializing in the sector. Gas stations can adjust their business models based on fuel contract variables, tenants, management and offerings, he said. 

“It gives a blend of real estate and business value, so you get a bang for your buck,” Thakor said.

Some of the activity today is normal cyclical behavior — transactions tend to pick up in the fourth quarter. But that is especially true this year, and there are numerous transactions happening right now, Thakor said.

“A lot of people are scrambling to close before the end of the year because they have a high allocation of taxes,” he said.

Fairstead closed on a $20M investment to acquire and rehabilitate Sunflower Terrace Apartments at 5050 Sunflower St. in Houston’s southern Sunnyside neighborhood. 

Sunflower Terrace Apartments

Fairstead will work with R4 Capital, its mortgage lending affiliate R4 Capital Funding and the Houston Housing Finance Corp. The project will be reserved for low- and very low-income families.

The property consists of 160 affordable housing units under a project-based Section 8 contract. Rents will be capped at 50% of the area median income for half of the units and 60% of AMI for the remaining units.

Fairstead, a national affordable housing real estate company, will own the property with HHFC. Fairstead will also serve as developer and property manager.

The complex was originally built in 1971. Renovations will begin this summer and are slated for completion in August 2026. 

SALES

Houston-based real estate investment and development firm Griffin Partners acquired a 39K SF, two-building industrial park at 4901 Milwee St. in Northwest Houston. Colliers’ Todd Moore, Connor Duffy and Zack Martin represented the seller, Wolf Capital Partners. The park is 91% leased. 

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Colliers’ Tom Condon Jr., Greg Cizik and Edward Edson represented the seller of a 53K SF light industrial building at 9201 Winkler Drive near Hobby Airport. The buyer was a private investment group represented by Zane Carman of Partners Real Estate. Closing was coordinated by Charlotte Sanders and her team at Alamo Title Houston.

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Partners Real Estate’s Wyatt Huff and Hunter Stockard represented Harbor Hill Holdings in the sale of a 25K SF manufacturing facility on 7 acres at 1302 S. Cherry St. in Tomball. The property was acquired by a local private investor. 

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Ameritex Machine & Fabrication purchased a 145K SF property at 915 Conroe Park West Drive. Garret Geaccone with Stream Realty Partners represented the seller, TradeLane Properties. Tim ONeill with TSO Properties represented the buyer.

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Courtesy of Apricus Realty Capital

An 11-acre industrial outdoor storage site at 6003 Cunningham Road in Northwest Houston.

Apricus Realty Capital acquired an 11-acre industrial outdoor storage property with 32K SF of warehouse and office space across multiple buildings. The property in Northwest Houston, near Highway 290 and Beltway 8, is fully leased to Knight Oil Tools.

JLL Capital Markets worked on behalf of Apricus Realty Capital to secure acquisition financing, a three-year, fixed-rate, interest-only loan with one 24-month extension option.

CW Sheehan, Jack Britton, Peyton Ackerman and Nate Henderson led the JLL debt advisory team.

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Shawn Ackerman of Henry S. Miller Brokerage represented the seller of the 197K SF Woodforest Shopping Center in East Houston. Ackerman grew occupancy at the property from 37% to 96% over several years and sold it to a local buyer in a direct deal. 

LEASES

World Emblem, a Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based emblem and patch manufacturer, signed a 72K SF lease for a manufacturing facility at 6740 Signat Drive. The company is moving its regional operations from 35K SF in Northwest Houston into the larger space, which will initially produce up to 500,000 emblems and patches per week.

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Stream Realty Partners announced the following leases: 

• Marquis Distributors LLC expanded to a total of 23K SF at 525 Julie Rivers Drive in Sugar Land. Will Mason and Tyler Maner with Stream Realty Partners represented the tenant, and Boone Smith, Garret Geaccone and Natalie Gilbert, also with Stream, represented the landlord, Oxford Properties. 
• Vasa Tech North America LLC leased 35K SF at 8700 Clay Road. Jack Rathe and Brandon Preece with Stream Realty Partners represented the landlord, Entrada Partners. Jackie Chang with Forever Realty represented the tenant.

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Tri Pointe Homes renewed its 24K SF lease at Atrium at Park Ten, a 140K SF West Houston office building owned by Accesso. The homebuilder plans to upgrade its finishes and reconfigure its office layout over its new lease term.

CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT

Griffin Partners Income & Value Fund IV and Peakline Real Estate Funds are expanding the Griffin 288/West Airport industrial project in Houston to three buildings with a combined 569K SF across 41 acres, CBRE announced. 

Griffin Partners and Peakline originally acquired about 18 acres in December and announced plans for a 225K SF industrial building. They acquired 23 more acres in May and announced plans for two more buildings. They have now combined those plans into a single phase with construction slated to begin this month.

CBRE’s Faron Wiley and Billy Gold will handle leasing efforts. Delivery is expected between April and June. 

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Chicago-based RSK Real Estate Partners has begun developing a 156-duplex build-to-rent community near the Market at Katy Park in Harris County. The to-be-named project will front the under-construction Galileo Way, which will create access to Morton Road in Northwest Katy.

RSK’s project will include 103 three-bedroom units and 53 two-bedroom designs, averaging 1,600 SF. The developer anticipates the buildings will start to deliver in the late second quarter of 2026.

NewQuest’s Rick Ragan and Glenn Dickerson represented RSK Real Estate Partners in the acquisition of the 9-acre development site. Matthew Davis and Kristen McDade of Cushman & Wakefield represented Morton Ranch Development LLC, the seller and developer of the Market at Katy Park, a 158K SF H-E-B-anchored retail center. 

FINANCING

Courtesy of Newmark

Layne Crossing

Crow Holdings completed a recapitalization of a 6M SF industrial portfolio that included seven buildings totaling nearly 900K SF in the Houston area. Blackstone Real Estate acquired a 95% stake in the portfolio, which also includes 18 other buildings in Dallas-Fort Worth and Chicago.

The properties in Houston include Layne Crossing, with six buildings totaling 529K SF in Houston, and Victory Commerce Center, with one 349K SF building in Deer Park. 

Newmark’s Dom Espinosa, Jack Fraker, Dustin Volz and Kevin Donner advised Crow Holdings in the transaction, while the company’s Adam Spies, Marcella Fasulo and Josh King supported negotiations. Fried Frank was legal counsel for Crow Holdings.

Inland Real Estate Investment Corporation and Devon Self Storage have completed the construction of a 59,837-square-foot Class-A self-storage facility located in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Located at 2155 East Columbus Avenue near a major downtown thoroughfare and the I-91 overpass along the Connecticut River, the property previously served as a historic factory building. The redeveloped facility is comprised of three interconnected buildings encompassing 601 climate-controlled self-storage units, drive-thru unit capability and a 24-hour security system.

“Considered a top underserved market for self-storage in 2024, we are pleased to help close the market’s supply and demand gap and continue our collaboration with Devon to bring top-tier self-storage properties to markets nationwide,” said Keith Lampi, CEO and president of Inland Investments. Inland Investments’ current self-storage portfolio spans more than $1.7 billion in assets under management. Devon currently manages 188 properties with a footprint in 32 states across the country.

A pair of century-old Midtown Manhattan office buildings are trading at a steep discount as lenders look to cut their losses, Bloomberg News reported. Empire Capital Holdings agreed to buy the properties at 229 W. 36th St. and 256 W. 38th St. for less than $50 million, or at least 68% below the roughly $157 million the buildings last sold for in 2017. 

The deal was a short sale for lender Investcorp, according to Bloomberg. Short sales have become more common as office values have plummeted, often below loan amounts. Last year, Empire Capital and a partner purchased a West 44th Street office building in a short sale.

Bloomberg reported that CBRE’s Doug Middleton and Jack Stillwagon are handling the sale. The buyer is considering either keeping the sites as offices or turning them into storage properties for now, a source told Bloomberg. Both properties also sit within a rezoning district.

JLL Capital Markets arranged $22.3 million in acquisition financing for industrial outdoor storage (IOS) properties located at 115 St. Nicholas Ave. and 115 Skyline Dr. in South Plainfield, Middlesex County, NJ. Senior managing directors Jon Mikula and Jim Cadranell, associate John Cumming and analyst Christian Badalamenti worked on behalf of Oliver Street Capital to secure the acquisition loan through Byline Bank.

The site includes three buildings totaling approximately 32,000 square feet, equipped with 34 docks and seven drive-ins, catering specifically to industrial tenants’ needs. It also features 8.75 usable acres dedicated to parking and outdoor storage. The property is currently occupied by TransAmerican, a national trucking and storage company.

“The property’s strategic location in South Plainfield, coupled with its robust infrastructure, makes it an ideal asset for any industrial tenant needing proximity to the New York-New Jersey transportation network,” said Cadranell. “This financing deal underscores the strong market fundamentals and high demand for well-placed IOS properties in New Jersey.”