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Hanover Self Storage facility sold by Seattle company

Hanover Self Storage, a 32,150-square foot self-storage facility located in Hanover 30 miles south of Harrisburg, has been sold.

The sale was announced Monday by Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services of Seattle, Inc. The company specializes in investment sales, financing, research and advisory services.

Additional terms of sale were not disclosed.

Gabriel Cole, the lead agent involved in the sale, said in a release that the facility was sold as part of a 12-property portfolio to an out-of-state buyer following multiple competing offers.

“The buyer will benefit from strong existing cash flow and the opportunity to raise rents,” Cole said.

Cole, Brett R. Hatcher and Nathan Coe, investment specialists in Marcus & Millichap’s Columbus, Ohio office, had the exclusive listing to market the property on behalf of the seller, a limited liability company. Pennsylvania Broker of Record Sean Beuche assisted in closing the transaction.

Situated on approximately 2.11 acres, Hanover Self Storage features 92 climate controlled, 138 drive-up, and 38 interior self-storage units that comprise 32,150 net rentable square feet, along with 10 outdoor parking spaces.

Pixelle to be acquired by Miami-based investment firm 

Spring Grove-based Pixelle Specialty Solutions Holding LLC announced Monday that it has signed an agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a leading global alternative investment firm with $48 billion of equity capital under management. 

Pixelle’s website describes the company as “the largest and fastest growing manufacturer of specialty papers in North America.” H.I.G. Capital is headquartered in Miami. 

A portfolio business of the private investment firm Lindsay Goldberg, Pixelle was formed in 2018. It operates mills in Spring Grove; Chillicothe, Ohio; Jay, Maine; and Stevens Point, Wisconsin, producing more than a million tons of paper each year. 

Timothy Hess, Pixelle’s CEO, said in a release, “Together with Lindsay Goldberg, Pixelle has developed a broad, innovative portfolio of industry leading brands across the specialty papers and sustainable packaging markets. In under four years, we have transformed Pixelle into the leading specialty-focused paper producer in North America through three strategic acquisitions and successful implementation of a continuous improvement program. We thank Lindsay Goldberg for their partnership and look forward to our next chapter with H.I.G. Capital.” 

Credit Suisse served as lead financial adviser to Pixelle on the transaction while Swaine & Moore LLP served as legal adviser. Credit Suisse and Macquarie Capital are providing financing. 

Subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, the deal is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2022. 

Home sales drop in Lancaster County as inventory shrinks

Lancaster County home sales fell 11.2% in January from the year before, while the listings that were available tended to go under contract quickly.

Closed sales dropped from 385 to 342, according to the Lancaster County Association of Realtors, and new listings declined 16.3%, from 435 to 364.

Active listings plummeted from 420 to 242, a steep reduction of 42.4%.

Meanwhile, the $268,000 median sold price was up 11.9% from January 2020.

“I would say the biggest challenge right now is lack of homes for sale,” Carole Kirchner, an agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Homesale Realty, said in an email.

“We have approved buyers, especially ones that want to get out of paying rent, and we just don’t have inventory. I am still seeing a house go on the market, many showings the first few days and then multiple offers coming in with people paying over asking price and waiving inspections.”

Statewide in January, the number of home sales decreased 29% compared with the previous month and are down about 4% from the same time last year, according to a report prepared for the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors.

Listings fell nearly 6.6% in January compared with the previous month. And there was just 2.29-months’ supply of inventory in Pennsylvania, 34% less than a year earlier. (Six months’ supply is considered a balanced market, which doesn’t lean toward sellers or buyers.)

Here are more highlights from the Lancaster County report for January:

· Of the homes sold, 197 were on the market no more than 10 days.

· Conventional financing was used for 203 of the transactions and cash for 93.

· Average days on market for a sold house was 20, three fewer than the year before.

· The average sold to original list price ratio was 101.3%, meaning many properties were purchased for above asking price.

The data is from Bright MLS, with the caveat that it may not reflect all activity in the geographic region.

Techcelerator event offers business boot camp for area entrepreneurs, startups

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central & Northern PA is once again hosting its Techcelerator event, a 10-week long series of sessions meant to give prospective entrepreneurs the tools to start their own business.

The State College- based investment service has offered a form of the Techcelerator program for nine years throughout its 32-county footprint.

As part of the program, participants work with area entrepreneurs, talk to experts in marketing, sales and finance and develop a pitch presentation for a chance at a $10,000 award.

A number of businesses that previously participated in the boot camp have also gone on to receive investments from Ben Franklin.

“The Techcelerator is an outstanding way for Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP) to engage in our primary mission, which is to create opportunities for startups in Pennsylvania to access the human and financial capital they need,” said Andy Long, director of business development at BFTP.

Long said that the program highlights the organization’s ability to connect Pennsylvania’s technology startups with the management consulting services and critical business services they need to get off the ground.

“In some cases we’re also able to match funds from founders to help prolong their runway to being ‘bankable’ or attractive to other forms of second stage capital such as angel investment groups or venture capital funds,” he added.

The event will consist of two-hour group and one-hour individual sessions run weekly over the span of ten weeks, all held virtually.

Previous Techcelerators were held in person across BFTP’s service area. Long said the virtual nature of the fall event should allow it to reach more people in more parts of the region and allow for a different experience compared to previous events.

The event is at no cost to participants but applications close on Sept. 6 and space is limited. The event is planned to begin on Sept. 15 and last until Nov. 17.