Douglas M. Hodell

Douglas M. Hodell

Senior Counsel

Douglas M. Hodell focuses on commercial real estate transactions, including transaction structure, acquisitions and dispositions, commercial leasing, title and escrow work and real estate finance. He recently represented a public company in the acquisition of an $81 million Southern California commercial office high-rise project, and a private equity investment group in the acquisition from Morgan Stanley of multiple commercial office properties in California, Maryland and New Jersey. Doug has special expertise in the acquisition and disposition of complex, multi-phase land development projects and master planned communities, including Mountain House, Lincoln Crossing and Spring Lake.

He also currently represents several private and institutional lenders in connection with non-performing loans and loan enforcement and is skilled in the negotiation, documentation and processing of loan modifications, workout and forbearance agreements, deed-in-lieu transactions, loan sales and assumptions and foreclosures. He represents lenders in the negotiation and documentation of complex secured loan transactions involving multiple parties and mixed-asset collateral. He practiced at Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe until 1990, and then at Carroll, Burdick and McDonough, where he was a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He joined Boutin Jones Inc. in 1996, and served as Managing Shareholder and President of the firm from 2004-2006.

Real estate law has grown increasingly complex over the years, and the level of sophistication and complexity of deals has also significantly increased.  As a result of technology advances, deals are done much more quickly and the expectation of prompt performance without loss of quality is extremely high.  Expertise and experience matter in making that happen.

“I’m a real estate transactional lawyer. I help people structure, negotiate, document and complete complex real estate transactions.”

Experience

Acquisitions and Dispositions

  • Team leader for acquisition of a $1.2 billion non-performing loan and the subsequent acquisition of a high-end, multi-phased residential development community on Kauai, Hawaii.
  • Represented Wildlife Heritage Foundation in its acquisition of a 9,200 acre agricultural conservation easement in San Joaquin County.
  • Representation of Trimark Communities, LLC, in the acquisition, development and resale of the 5,000 acre award-winning master-planned new town project, Mountain House, in San Joaquin County, including the design and documentation of a “merchant builder” master sales program and the phased sales of land and lots for more than $1.5 billion in the aggregate to Lennar Homes, Pulte Homes, Shea Homes and other national and regional builders (1991-current).
  • Represented Molina Healthcare, Inc. in its $81 million acquisition and financing of the Arco Towers high-rise office project in Long Beach, California (2011).
  • Represented Sacred Heart Parish and the Diocese of Sacramento in a $25 million exchange-acquisition from Mercy Healthcare of a new parochial school site in mid-town Sacramento, the transfer to Mercy Healthcare of an existing school site, and the construction by the Diocese of Sacramento of the new school facilities (2008-2011).
  • Represented the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) in the acquisition of raw land for its new corporate yard, and in the negotiation, documentation and bid process for the construction of a new $100 million corporate yard facility (2009-2010).
  • Represented the California Independent System Operator (California ISO) in the negotiation, documentation and bid process for the construction of its new $110 million mission-critical headquarters project located in Folsom, California (2009-2010).
  • Represented a local real estate owner and developer in the negotiated settlement of the acquisition by the City of Sacramento Redevelopment Agency of multiple properties on the K Street Mall in downtown Sacramento (2007-2008).
  • Represented SunChase Holdings and its affiliates in the acquisition of the 25,000 acre Estrella Ranch master-planned community outside Phoenix, Arizona, and the subsequent phased sale of the project to Newland Communities – among the largest land sales in the history of Arizona (2005-2010).
  • Negotiated, documented and closed a transfer to the California State Department of Water Resources of a 3,000 acre island ranch in the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta.
  • Representation of the El Dorado Irrigation District in its acquisition of a PG&E hydroelectric project with 215 square miles of real property interests and related water rights, including environmental review, FERC and CPUC regulatory matters, pre-closing construction and restoration of the project, and a pre-closing transfer of operations and maintenance from PG&E to the acquirer.

Commercial Leasing

  • The creation of a standard form office tenant lease and related documentation for use by the owner of a six-property portfolio of commercial office properties in the Sacramento area, and the negotiation and documentation on behalf of the landlord of leases for more than 200,000 square feet of office space (1995-2005).
  • Representation of a downtown Sacramento high-rise owner in connection with tenant leases and lease negotiations.
  • Negotiation, documentation, and closing of ground lease transactions for retail centers, private and parochial schools, and commercial centers.

Real Estate Finance

  • Represented a private equity investor in commercial office properties in a management team buyout from Morgan Stanley of multiple joint-venture real estate assets and a $27 million securitized loan financing of the acquisition (2010-2011).
  • Representation of local and regional banks in the negotiation and documentation of “special loans” for OREO properties, ground lease financings and failed-project financings for condominium projects and conversion projects.
  • Representation of the borrower/developer in the negotiation, documentation and closing of $22,000,000, $28,000,000 and $140,000,000 revolving credit facilities for the financing of major, multi-phase residential real property development projects in California and Arizona (2001-2006).
  • Represented the California Integrated Waste Management Board in the creation and ongoing management of its award-winning RMDZ Loan Program, including: (i) structuring and creating program documentation for mixed collateral loans; (ii) training and advising legal staff and loan officers; (iii) originating, documenting and closing mixed collateral loans (approximately 20-25 loans per year); (iv) assisting in the creation of a secondary market resale program; (iv) assisting in the work-out and restructuring of troubled loans; and (v) negotiating and documenting the portfolio sales of performing loans (1994-2001).
  • Representation of several regional and local banks in connection with commercial loan workouts, loan restructuring and foreclosure proceedings (2008-current).

Involvement

Presentations

2012

“Recent Developments in Real Property Law,” Continuing Education of the Bar, Douglas M. Hodell, Presenter

Honors

Northern California Super Lawyer: 2006, 2011—2013, 2015 — 2016, 2019-2021

Sacramento Magazine Top Lawyer, 2016, 2018 — 2020

University of California, Davis, School of Law Honors: Order of the Coif

Stanford University Honors: Graduated With Distinction

Professional Associations and Memberships

Licensed as a California Real Estate Broker since 1978