Real Estate

Practice Contacts

Real Estate

Taft’s real estate attorneys are at the forefront of emerging trends and issues impacting the real estate industry. From technological advancements to economic shifts, we have the understanding and informed perspective about the challenges and opportunities clients face and deliver business-focused, cutting-edge counsel to navigate the complexities of an evolving industry.

Leveraging our size, skills, breadth, and depth of knowledge, we help our clients mitigate risks and avoid obstacles while delivering results in a timely, cost-effective manner. Additionally, our attorneys in tax, securities, corporate, construction, hospitality, bankruptcy, litigation, and environmental practices bring the full resources of the firm to address the needs of our real estate clients.

We represent a wide variety of national and regional developers, property owners, institutional and private investors, buyers and sellers, landlords and tenants, banks, insurance companies, pension funds, construction contractors, and brokers.

We Provide Comprehensive Legal Advice and Support

Each real estate transaction and situation is unique and many are complex. We listen to our clients to understand their objectives and challenges to provide tailored solutions to help them achieve their goals. Taft brings a wide range of real-world practical experience coupled with an extensive network of real estate and financial industry contacts throughout the United States. Our full range of real estate-related services include:

Acquisition and development of real estate for manufacturing, industrial, warehouse, multifamily, commercial, retail, residential, hospitality, and other uses.
Sales, exchanges, and other dispositions of real estate assets.
Leases for industrial, manufacturing, warehouse, commercial, retail, and office uses.
Annexation, land use, zoning (including obtaining re-zonings, variances, and conditional use permits), entitlements, and building, fire, wetlands and other permitting matters.
State and federal land sales regulations.
Preparation of governing documents for condominium and other common interest communities for mixed use, commercial and residential projects, including strategizing with developers regarding phasing and annexation matters, formulating project mapping and control provisions responsive to the needs of mixed-use projects, and formulating and implementing plans for the revitalization, improvement, and redevelopment of projects approaching obsolescence.
Middle income and affordable housing including satisfaction of related inclusionary zoning requirements, development cost reduction, and multi-source financing.
Financing of real estate assets, including mortgage loans, sale/leasebacks, participating mortgages, leasehold financing, as well as construction and permanent financing for a wide variety of lenders and borrowers.
Public and private construction contracts, construction management agreements, design/build agreements, and architect and engineer contracts for owners, construction companies, and design professionals.
Tax counsel regarding the structure of ownership entities and transactions, and tax disputes and appeals.
Title insurance, survey, and environmental review.
Section 1031 exchange matters.
Implementing projects involving New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC), Historic Tax Credits, Tax Increment Financing (TIF), Public Improvement Fee (PIF), and Opportunity Zone Financing.
Litigation, arbitration, and mediation regarding purchase contracts, leases, mortgages, mechanics’ liens, construction contracts, and other disputes and claims relating to real estate.
Eminent domain.
Conservation easements for the preservation of land, water, and historic structures.
Siting of cellular facilities and related assets.
Joint ventures and strategic alliances.
Real estate bankruptcies, workouts, and foreclosures.
Wind and solar project leasing and financing.
Property management and operations issues.
Legal services regarding Community Development Entities (CDEs).

We Service Every Asset Class

Manufactured housing communities.
Multifamily.
Data center development projects.
Condominiums and planned communities.
Build-to-Rent Developments.
Assisted-living facilities.
High-rise office buildings
Mixed-use facilities.
Hotels, luxury resorts, golf courses, and other hospitality projects.
Retail centers.
Hospitals and medical facilities.
Industrial campuses.
Warehouse facilities.
Restaurants, theaters, and special-use facilities.
Farms, ranches, and vacant land.
Luxury estates and trophy properties.
Student housing.
Urban brownfields.
Redevelopment of former federal enclaves and military bases.
Resource exploration and mining sites.
Telecommunications sites.
Waste disposal facilities.

Related Practices

Related Industries

Awards

Ranked National Tier 1 by Best Lawyers^® “Best Law Firms” for Real Estate Law (2020 – present)
“Leading Law Firm” by Chambers USA for Real Estate Law in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, and Ohio
Ranked National Tier 1 by Best Lawyers^® “Best Law Firms” for Real Estate: Land Use & Zoning Law

(2021 – present)
Ranked #1 Top Law Firm by Midwest Real Estate News in its “Best of the Best” Issue (2019 – 2024)

Notable Matters

Represented affiliates of a cold storage developer in connection with the expansion of a $300 million construction loan with a national bank for its construction of the largest automated cold storage facility in the United States.
Advised long-time client, Wood Partners, over the course of one year in more than thirty transactions, including acquisition, development, financing, and disposition of multifamily projects across the country, exceeding $1 billion.
Represented Forsyth County in its project agreements for The Gathering at South Forsyth, a $3 billion mixed-use development to attract an NHL team. The project will include commercial, retail, hospitality, residential, and entertainment spaces, in addition to an 18,000-seat arena. This project is a significant step in bringing a professional hockey team back to Atlanta.
Represented a television broadcasting company in the ground-up development of a major television and movie studio production facility on 43 acres. The site was previously an automobile assembly plant and will expand to include residential, hotel, retail, convention, office facilities, and outdoor public event space.
Represented Virginia Tech Foundation and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in connection with the acquisition of land for the development of a new campus in Alexandria, Virginia, which will include over 1 million square feet of space, representing an investment of over $1 billion.
Represented owner/developer of the Atlantic Station mixed-use project in Atlanta, Georgia, with infrastructure, design, and construction contracts for conversion of the former steel mill into the 138-acre mixed-use facility. The development at the time of its inception was the largest mixed-use Brownfield redevelopment project in the United States.
Taft represented a multi-national restaurant company in the acquisition, leasing, disposition, and development of 70+ restaurant properties located in 7 states as part of the brands’ new store development, refranchising programs, and company’s broader financial objectives. We guided the deal structures, the negotiation of purchase and sale agreements, leases, and the legal due diligence for the foregoing transactions.
Taft represented the sponsor of a real estate investment fund in the acquisition and acquisition financing of 10 retail shopping centers located in 6 states. We guided the deal structures, the negotiation of purchase agreements and loan documentation, and the legal due diligence for the foregoing acquisitions and financings.