MK Asset Investment acquires two properties and sells another in Chicago area

MK Asset Investment, a boutique, Chicago-based commercial real estate investment, management and brokerage firm, has announced industrial property acquisitions in Franklin Park and Waukegan, Illinois, and the disposition of a retail center in Round Lake Beach, Illinois. The aggregated value of the transactions exceeded $10 million.

In the first of the acquisitions, an affiliate of MK Asset Investment acquired 11608 Copenhagen Drive in Franklin Park, in the heart of the O’Hare Industrial market. The 87,500-square-foot industrial property, with 1,500 square feet of office space and an 86,000-square-foot warehouse is situated on 5.95 acres.

As part of its investment strategy, the firm is undertaking an aggressive value enhancement program. MK Asset will add new docks and implement additional warehouse upgrades including enhancing the lighting and repainting the warehouse to effectively reposition the property. The O’Hare submarket is one of the key markets across the country. It has a vacancy rate of 3.4 percent with an inventory of 140 million square feet.

In the second acquisition, an affiliate of MK Asset Investment has acquired 1850 S. Lakeside in Waukegan. The 35,500-square-foot industrial building, with approximately 12,000 square feet of office space, is located within the Amhurst Industrial Park in the northern Lake County industrial submarket. The property contains specialized lab space, providing product for unique users that require full air conditioning and more than 8,000 amps of power.

“We are excited to add these new assets to our existing portfolio,” said Jared Margolis. “These properties embrace the typical profile of MK Asset Investment acquisition—properties that require capital investment to bring them to competitive market position followed by an aggressive marketing and leasing program which will allow us to create additional value.”

MK Asset Brokerage facilitated the sale of the 61,685-square-foot Eagle Creek Shopping Center at 308-400 Rollins Road in Round Lake Beach to a private investor. An affiliate of MK Asset Investment acquired the shopping center in December 2013, and embarked on a comprehensive capital improvement program including installing a new roof, completing deferred maintenance on the building and parking, updating the look of the center and pursuing and receiving a No Further Remediation letter from the EPA for a historical on-site cleaner. The MK Asset improvements enabled their leasing team to extend and renew leases, including that of its anchor tenant, Big Lots, to further stabilize the asset.