Bridge Loans: Everything You Wanted To KnowWritten by Marc Sylvester
As name implies, bridge loans fulfill a vital need for active developers by giving life to a new project in months before lenders feel confident enough to make available a construction loan, or a repositioning loan in case of an existing project. But real estate bridge loans have other uses, both tactical and strategic, that make them indispensable in today's New York marketplace.For new development projects, bridge loans provide financing for property assemblages, site acquisition, and development expenses. Not only do such loans provide developer with funds to acquire a site, they also supply breathing room that developer needs to create architectural designs and analyses for new construction projects. Just as important, bridge loans offer an opportunity to refine developer's property repositioning or acquisition plan in case of an existing project. During development--or repositioning--planning stage, developer's financial advisor has time to arrange senior construction and mezzanine loan financing. For example, in recent months our firm has arranged highly competitive financing for projects under 80/20 Bond Financing Program, and other projects under recent Liberty Bond Program for downtown Manhattan. Still others have been condominium or office projects in which fiercely competitive New York marketplace requires developers to move extremely rapidly to acquire control of desirable locations. Bridge loans have other strategic uses for developers. By enabling construction to commence before a formal construction loan is in place, a developer may time construction to avoid a heavy winter schedule with attendant extra costs, or plan completion of construction to coincide with primary rental and sales months beginning in spring and continuing into summer season.
| | Credit cardsWritten by Marc Sylvester
If gold medals were awarded for marketing consistency, credit card industry would be Sarah Hughes of business world. Major players Visa and MasterCard, who have maintained their steady rates of spending and commitment to their positioning platforms for years, will stick to their established routines this year. Freshening their programs will be updated creative and occasional push behind new products and promotions.Discover and American Express will mix it up by introducing new taglines, but they will keep to their traditional big ad spends to bring their messages to consumers. MasterCard, which last year spent $197 million, per CMR, will continue its successful "Priceless" campaign through 2002. In addition to general brand-building spots, MasterCard will use advertising to support several key promotions. One summer spot, for example, will tout its Major League Baseball sponsorship and a program called "Memorable Moments." The promotion asks fans to vote for their top baseball moments, with winners slated for recognition in Baseball Hall of Fame. Another ad highlights "Priceless Edge" internship program, a youth-focused initiative offering participants chance to take entertainment business classes and work on MTV's Music in High Places. MasterCard also will feature its sponsorship of FIFA World Cup, particularly in reaching out to Hispanic audiences. Holiday will be an important period for brand. Debra Coughlin, svp-global North American brandbuilding for MasterCard, said last year's promotional-driven advertising, which focused on "priceless" gifts that could be won through using card, worked particularly well. Visa, not surprisingly, also plans to spend in fourth quarter. "That's when there is an inordinate amount of retail spending, so it's an important time frame for a usage message," said Liz Silver, Visa svp-advertising and brand management. Back-to-school is another key period. Visa will keep longtime "It's everywhere you want to be" positioning this year. With lots of dollars allocated to its 2002 Olympics sponsorship, much of Visa's other advertising will focus on its key partnerships with National Football League, NASCAR, Triple Crown and Broadway.
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