AEW Sells Seattle Tower for $370M

Germany-based Deutsche Asset and Wealth Management's Alternatives and Real Assets (ARA) has purchased a 28-story office building in Seattle's Lake Union submarket from AEW Capital Management for $370 million. The Seattle Times reports that AEW Capital Management paid $278.7 million for the building when it bought the property from Prudential and Touchstone about three years ago. The buyer financed the acquisition in part with $122.7 million in funding provided by The Prudential Insurance Company of America, according to a CoStar report.

"West 8th is located where Seattle's most sought after commercial, residential and retail properties intersect to provide a true urban live, work, play experience," said Todd Henderson, Head of Real Estate in the Americas for ARA. "This Class-A asset not only increases the quality of the portfolio, we believe it has the potential to provide investors with an attractive cash return for a high-quality office asset in a prime location."

The tower at 2001 8th Avenue, also known as West 8th, was designed by Callison and built in 2009 by Seattle-based Touchstone Corp. According to its listing on OfficeSpace.com, the 498,893-square-foot office tower has a vacancy rate of less than 2%, with online retailer Amazon.com occupying a majority of the building alongside Casey Family Programs and Seattle Children's Research Institute. West 8th features state-of-the-art office spaces, luxurious amenities and sweeping Lake Union views, and is the first multi-tenant building in the Seattle area to feature LEED Gold certification for new construction.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Partners.

Boston's Two Liberty Square Sold for $28M

Boston-based Winhall Cos., a commercial real estate and development firm led by principals Richard and Kenneth Epstein, has purchased Two Liberty Square in downtown Boston for $28.25 million, according to a Suffolk County deed. The Class B office building in the Financial District was sold by CenterSquare Investment Management, a real estate investment subsidiary of BNY Mellon, which originally acquired the property for $17.5 million in January 2013. The building was previously sold to a joint venture of AEW Capital Management and Neelon Properties for $23 million in 2007 at the peak of the market. HFF’s Ben Sayles and Coleman Benedict procured the buyer and Lauren O’Neil arranged acquisition financing from Sun Life Financial, according to a Banker & Tradesman article.

The 11-story, 64,357-square-foot office building was originally constructed in 1913, designed in the Beaux Arts style by Peabody & Stearns. Two Liberty Square went through an extensive renovation throughout the 1990s bringing its classic exterior architecture to the preserved, more modern interior. Overlooking city oasis Post Office Square Park, it’s in the center of an exciting new mix of downtown amenities, companies, restaurants, and shopping including Faneuil Hall. The building was nearly 90% leased at the time of sale with major tenants including Zipcar, insurer Humana, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Copyright Clearance Center and publishing company Brill.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Partners.

Esplanade III in Phoenix Sold for $74M

Dallas-based investment firm Crow Holdings has purchased one of the Esplanade buildings in the Biltmore area of Phoenix for $74.3 million, or $336 a square foot, in a cash deal. AEW Capital Management of New York sold the tower, which it paid $77 million for in 2006. Jim Fijan and Will Mast with CBRE's Phoenix office negotiated the sale, along with Kevin Shannon of CBRE's South Bay, CA office.

"This is the highest price per square foot for a multi-tenant, class A asset since the downturn," said Jim Filjan of CBRE. "Office fundamentals are improving and pricing is approaching pre-recession levels. Investors are taking notice and have shifted their attention to Phoenix, especially as pricing in coastal markets skyrockets.

Esplanade III is a ten-story office complex totaling 218,266 rentable square feet and is conveniently located just minutes from downtown Phoenix, Scottsdale and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Major tenants include CBRE, Alliance Residential, Regus, Helios and Major League Baseball's western headquarters.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Hersha Buys Capitol Hill Suites in DC for $47.5M

Hersha Hospitality Trust announced this month that it had signed a definitive agreement for the purchase of Capitol Hill Suites, an all-suite boutique hotel in Washington, DC, for $47.5 million, or $312 thousand per key excluding closing costs. Hersha assumed a $32.5 million loan with a 5.81% interest rate and cash on hand according to a CoStar report. CoStar also disclosed that Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide had previously sold the Capitol Hill Suites to AEW Capital Management for $38.14 million or $250, 935 per door in January 2007. Hersha's purchase price represents a forward capitalization rate of approximately 7.3% on the hotel’s projected 2011 net operating income, stabilizing at approximately 10%.

Jay H. Shah, Chief Executive Officer of Hersha, said in a statement regarding the decision to purchase, "As a large beneficiary of increased investments in federal and private sector capital outlays, the D.C. region has strong economic and employment fundamentals. The strong real estate fundamentals are equally attractive, with high barriers to entry and negligible planned construction forecasted for several years, combined with growing demand."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.