High Point's C&D Building sold for $9.26 million

Heath E. Combs -- Furniture Today, March 8, 2013

HIGH POINT — The Commerce & Design building here was sold in December to Sabal Financial, a bank credit advisory specialist and buyer of distressed real estate loans.

The building was sold for $9.26 million, according to records filed with the Guilford County Register of Deeds.

It was formerly owned by Commerce & Design Associates, which included Greensboro, N.C.-based HVM Management and Art DeFehr, CEO of Winnipeg, Manitoba-based Palliser Furniture, who held a minority stake. They purchased the building in 2001 for about $15 million.

The nine-story C&D Building, which opened in 1987, has more than 250,000 square feet of exhibit space. Furniture/Today reported in 2001 that HVM Management had managed the C&D Building since 1991.

Officials with HVM Management were unavailable for comment. It was unclear if the company will continue to manage the property.

Palliser Furniture owns of the 220 Elm showroom building here, the C&D Building's next-door neighbor.
A privately held company, Sabal Financial Group is headquartered in Newport Beach, Calif. According to a story in Commercial Real Estate Direct, Sabal is at least 50% owned by Oaktree Capital Management.

International Market Centers is majority owned by funds managed by Bain Capital Partners and a subsidiary of funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management. Oaktree declined to comment for this story.

An IMC official said this week that Sabal is an investment vehicle separate from the funds that are owners of IMC, and there is no interaction between the two.