Friday, March 12, 2010
Best Buy founder looks at Portland properties
Portland Business Journal - by Sam Black Contributing writer
Richard Schulze, the founder and chairman of Best Buy Co. Inc., has launched a real estate investment partnership with Gerald Rauenhorst, the founder and former CEO of Opus Corp.
Their new company, called Founders Properties, will be led by Andrew Deckas, who has been president of Opus’ investment business, called Opus Properties LLC, since 1997.
Founders Properties will consider buying mostly office and industrial real estate in major markets, including Portland.
Founders Properties will be co-owned evenly by Schulze and Opus Properties, which is owned by the Rauenhorst family.
The new company plans to invest several hundred million dollars over the next few years and already is soliciting deals.
In the next nine months, Deckas said he expects the 16-employee company will close a half-dozen deals that total $100 million.
Last fall, Forbes magazine ranked Schulze as the 97th richest American with a net worth of about $3 billion, which placed him between George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. Schulze has invested in Opus Properties’ investment funds for more than a decade.
The new company comes at a time of severe challenges for Opus Corp., once a $1 billion development company.
Over the past 18 months, Opus Corp. has stopped developing properties in many areas of the country as three of its regional subsidiaries, Opus South, Opus West and Opus East filed for bankruptcy.
Opus Corp. is in the process of ceasing operations, as well.
Last month, Opus Northwest, one of Portland’s best known development firms, was put up for sale. Opus Northwest developed several high-profile projects around Portland, including Bridgeport Village.
Deckas said he thinks the real estate market has hit bottom and is starting to recover.
“We’re getting back on offense with a new name and a new story,” Deckas said. “The one difference is that we’ll be looking to acquire non-Opus-built property.”
In addition to tapping the Schulze and Rauenhorst families, the new company will offer some syndicated deals to the families who participated with Opus Investments.
Other markets the new firm is targeting include Minneapolis; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta; Chicago; Dallas; Denver; Seattle; Phoenix; and markets in California. Deckas said the investors also will look at retail and rental housing.
Founders Properties will keep its offices at Opus’ corporate headquarters in Minnetonka.
It will have its own Web site, foundersproperties.com, and company letterhead, but operate similar to Opus Properties.
Sam Black is a staff writer with affiliated publication Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal.
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http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2010/03/15/story5.html?t=printable