Värde files a foreclosure petition against the owner of the Coral Gables office

Värde Partners has taken control of the owner of the Coral Gables office complex over alleged failure to repay a $68.9 million mortgage loan. As of August, the debt has ballooned to $77.4 million, including accrued interest and late fees, according to a foreclosure complaint filed this week in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court.

The allegedly unpaid loan is secured against Columbus Center, a 2.5-acre parcel of land with two buildings at 1 Alhambra Plaza. It is owned by a subsidiary of San Antonio, Texas-based Affinius Capital, headed by CEO Len O ‘Donnell.

Anne Marie Gamez, Värde’s lawyer, declined to comment. Affinius and his lawyer Conor Shary did not respond to voicemails and emails seeking comment.

Värde, a Minneapolis-based global investment firm headed by co-CEOs Ilfryn Carstairs and Brad Bauer, alleges that Affinius failed to honor its tender offer obligations in March because it failed to obtain a “maximum interest rate agreement,” the lawsuit states . Such agreements protect borrowers from unexpected payment increases resulting from rising variable interest rates, which would negatively impact the property’s net operating income.

The lawsuit says Värde acted tough by rejecting Affinius’ request to restructure the loan and accelerated the repayment deadline to March 15. The complaint alleges that Affinius was unable to pay $2.4 million plus $2.5 million that was to be placed in a reserve account to cover new accrued interest. In August, Affinius allegedly stopped making monthly payments.

The loan dates back to the late 20th century. In 1989, records show, Affinius obtained a $10.6 million loan that financed the purchase of Columbus Center, which was completed that year. The complex consists of a 14-story medium-rise building and an eight-story low-rise building.

Over the next three decades, loan amounts quadrupled. The data shows the most recent increase occurred in 2020, when mortgage lending rose to $71.5 million. A year later, the Värde subsidiary acquired the loan.

Värde and its subsidiary, Atlanta-based lender Trimont, have been involved in several significant foreclosure actions this year.

In August, a Trimont subsidiary sued the owner of One Financial Plaza, a 28-story office tower in Fort Lauderdale, for allegedly failing to repay a $59.2 million mortgage loan. The foreclosure complaint, filed in Broward County Circuit Court, alleged that the Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania-based Alliance HP affiliate failed to repay the loan at its July 29 maturity after granting the borrower two extensions.

Records show that Trimont purchased a mortgage loan from a subsidiary of Värde in 2021.

In April, Trimont acquired the Kayak Miami Beach Hotel in South Beach for $13.6 million through a deed in lieu of foreclosure sale. Trimont paid about $260,000 less than the unpaid mortgage the seller owed to Värde, which filed a foreclosure lawsuit last year.

In May, Trimont sold the 51-key hotel for $12.8 million to New York-based Blue Suede Hospitality.