MetLife selling $2B in property.

MetLife is selling off $2 billion worth of office buildings and hotel properties nationwide.

Included in the sale is 551 Fifth Ave., the 426,000-SF Midtown office building known as the Fred F. French building. This property--only 4%--is valued at roughly $400/SF, or $170 million according to institutional sales newsletter Real Estate Alert. This is the only New York City office property that they are selling.

MetLife bought the building in 1985, whereupon it refurbished both the lobby and the building's mechanical systems. The circa 1927 building was designated a national landmark one year after MetLife's acquisition.

Last December, MetLife chose Insignia/ESG to manage the building and handle its retail and office leasing. Other properties for sale are located in Chicago, Houston, Dallas, New Orleans, Miami, New Jersey and Orange County, California.

Cushman & Wakefield will market the properties. The firm is not ready to discuss the assignment, said a company spokesman.

Real Estate Alert reported last week that MetLife's offering sparked fierce competition between rival brokerages, with GB Richard Ellis making a last ditch effort for the business.

"We have a good relationship with Cushman & Wakefield, but we talked to other people," said Brian Fox, a MetLife spokesman.

MetLife retained the Plasencia Group to market the hotel properties, said Fox.

"This action doesn't represent any fundamental change in business strategy. We try to periodically capture unrealized gains and invest them in new real estate assets. We view this as an opportunistic play to reap the benefits of current market conditions," said Fox, who sees a lot of private and institutional capital chasing real estate investments right now.

MetLife is reportedly seeking to capture profits at a moment when prices are high in many markets. It may then transfer the proceeds back into other real estate investments.