Lowe is a

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

investment firm based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Since its founding, the company has acquired, constructed, or managed more than $21 billion in real estate assets. Its subsidiary, Destination Hotels & Resorts, was the third largest hospitality management company in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 2013.

Corporate history

Lowe was founded in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in 1972 by Robert J. Lowe, Sr. and three business partners as a diversified real estate investment, management, and development firm. Since its inception, it has developed, managed or acquired $32 billion in assets. In the early 1970s, Lowe formed Destination Hotels & Resorts to manage hotels and resorts it developed. In the 1980s, the company branched out into "distressed properties", ones whose financial backers were having trouble meeting debt and operating payments.Cohn, Meredith. "Lowe Enterprises Profits From Patience." ''Baltimore Sun.'' June 18, 2000. In 1990, the firm expanded into investment management, forming Lowe Enterprises Investment Management, an SEC registered investment advisor. By 2009, the company had expanded into managing properties for wealthy investors and corporations, and its Lowe Enterprises Investors (formerly LEIM) subsidiary had more than $4 billion in assets under management.Vincent, Roger. "Terranea Resort's Main Lender Files Default Notice." ''Los Angeles Times.'' August 28, 2009. Overall, Lowe Enterprises had about 150 employees nationwide that same year. Lowe's sons, Robert Lowe, Jr. and Michael Lowe, joined the firm and today are its co-CEOs."NAIOP SoCal, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association." ''Los Angeles Business Journal.'' April 30, 2012, p. 32. Lowe debuted its 102-acre Terranea Resort at the site of the former MarineLand theme park in

Rancho Palos Verdes Rancho Palos Verdes (Spanish for "Green Sticks Ranch") is a coastal city located in Los Angeles County, California atop the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, neighboring other cities in the Palos Verdes Hills, including Palos Verdes Estate ...

on the Southern California Coast in 2009. The failure of Corus Bank, the construction lender for the resort, left Terranea in challenging financial condition for its first year of operation. Refinancing in 2010 put the resort on firm financial footing and it has become a popular destination for weddings and conferences along with vacationing guests. In July 2010,

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America is one of the largest mutual life insurance companies in the world. Based in Manhattan, it has approximately 8,000 employees in the United States and a network of over 3,000 financial representativ ...

took a "substantial" but non-controlling interest in Lowe Enterprises Investors. The insurance company also agreed to provide Lowe Enterprises with $200 million for investment purposes. Lowe said it would seek to purchase or invest in distressed or undervalued properties in the hotel, industrial, office, and retail sectors.Murray, Barbra. "Guardian Life Gives Lowe Enterprises a $200M Shot in the Arm." ''Commercial Property Executive.'' July 8, 2010.
Accessed 2013-11-26. In 2018, Lowe sold its interest in Lowe Enterprises Investors to Guardian and LEI senior executives and LEI rebranded. Lowe continues its own investment activities with joint venture partners. In 2016, Destination Hotels merged with Commune Hotels & Resorts to form Two Roads Hospitality in partnership with GEOLO Capital, doubling the size of Lowe's hotel and resort portfolio. In late 2018, Lowe and its partner sold Two Roads Hospitality to Hyatt Hotels Corporation for more than $450 million. Lowe also sold its interest in Lowe Enterprises Investors to its partner, The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America.

Corporate structure

Lowe is active in mixed-use, multifamily, office, retail, hotel, resort and resort community projects. Lowe Enterprises generates some funds of its own for real estate investment. However, most of its financing comes from a wide range of sources, such as government entities,

real estate investment trust A real estate investment trust (REIT) is a company that owns, and in most cases operates, income-producing real estate. REITs own many types of commercial real estate, including office and apartment buildings, warehouses, hospitals, shopping cente ...

s, other real estate development companies, and institutional investors such as

hedge fund A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...

s and

pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income. Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...

s. The company prefers to rely on a wide range of financial sources to reduce risk. The company tends to invest in large projects with a view to retaining or managing the property in the long term. As a

privately held company A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...

, Lowe Enterprises does not report its revenues or profits. However, in 2000, Robert J. Lowe, Sr. told the ''

Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'' that the company had "record earnings" in 1997, 1998, and 1999. Lowe also claimed that institutional investors tended to see a return of 20 percent to 25 percent in the 1990s. In 2002, the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP) named Lowe Enterprises its Developer of the Year."Lowe Enterprises Wins Trade Group Accolade." ''Los Angeles Times.'' June 18, 2002.

Key leadership

In 2011, Robert J. Lowe, Jr and Michael H. Lowe, sons of founder Robert J. Lowe, were named co-Presidents of Lowe. The two later became co-CEOs, with Lowe, Sr continuing as Chairman.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowe Enterprises Real estate companies of the United States Companies based in Los Angeles 1972 establishments in California Real estate companies established in 1972