ATG Insures Largest Multi-residential Sale in Champaign County, Ill.
March 24, 2022
Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund Inc., as agent of First American Title Insurance Company, recently closed on a $115 million transaction, the largest multi-residential sale in Champaign County, Ill.
The transaction involved multiple residential buildings on or around Green Street, the heart of Champaign's "Campustown." The properties were amassed over a 60-year period by the late Leon Bankier in his long career as a real estate investor. The portfolio was held in the Leon Bankier Family Limited Partnership and was acquired by R2 Companies and Concord Capital Partners.
The transaction included 35 properties, 580 residential units, more than 80,000 square feet of retail, and four assemblage sites for future development. The academically oriented student communities represent 1,323 beds for University of Illinois students and are loaded with security-based and student-lifestyle amenities.
The sellers were represented by Champaign attorneys Mike McCormick and Rick Aeilts of Erwin, Martinkus, and Cole, longtime ATG agents who made it a priority to work with a local title insurance company and selected ATG. ATG attorneys Donna Kogut, vice president of commercial title and escrow, and Deborah Feinen, vice president of downstate operations, were closely involved in the project from the title and conveyancing side. Molly Vaulman of ATG's commercial department worked closely with Donna Kogut on all aspects of the multi-layered transaction.
"This was a very challenging transaction,” said Kogut, a 35-year veteran of commercial real estate. “ATG searched and examined 35 different properties, cleared the title, reviewed the 21 different LLCs that took title to the properties, complied with requirements of two different lenders, prepared the Settlement Statements, and assembled the various documents needed to close and disburse."
Feinen added, "We couldn't be more proud to be the title insurance agent on this transaction in ATG's hometown. There are a lot of exciting things happening at the University of Illinois and its Campustown hotspot, Green Street. The new developments and old-school charm have combined to create a new energy there. It's a boost for the community and we're proud to play a part in it. It was a great experience to work with colleagues at Erwin Martinkus, and Cole—a law firm with ties to ATG that date back to the mid-1960s, just after our founding."
Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or communications@alta.org.