TrendWatch November 2005

Atlanta

Infor Global Solutions inked a long-term lease with Orix Real Estate Capital Inc. to take 111,479 SF of office space at the former Alltel headquarters in Alpharetta, Ga. Asking rates in the 530,000-SF building average $18 PSF. Crossley, Jernigan & Ellison represented the owner.

No major sales were reported.

Koll Development Co. and Prudential Real Estate Services broke ground on a 150,000-SF speculative office building at Huntercrest in Gwinnett County. The building has been approved to receive a LEED certification. CB Richard Ellis Inc. will market the building.

Boston

Wellington Management Co. signed a lease for 215,000 SF in the Bank of America Building at 100 Federal St., in the city's Financial District. Trammell Crow Co. represented both Wellington Management and Bank of America Corp. in the transaction. According to figures from Spaulding & Slye Colliers, Boston high-rise asking rents range from $40 to $56 PSF.

In a $53M deal, Equity Office Properties Trust has sold a two-building package to JER Partners, the private equity investment unit of J.E. Roberts Cos. Located in the city's Financial District, the buildings consist of the 220,000-SF Two Oliver St. and the 50,000-SF building located at
147 Milk St.

No major developments were reported.

Chicago

Jenner & Block and Mesirow Financial Holdings Inc. will co-anchor a new office tower going up at 351 N. Clark St. The two companies will fill about 70 percent?or 350,000 SF each?of the 1.1-MSF building, which is being developed by Mesirow Financial Holdings' real estate unit.

The John Buck Co. has closed on the $410M sale of 111 S. Wacker Drive to German company DIFA Deutsche Immobilien Fonds AG. The 1-MSF building sold for approximately $390 PSF.

Mesirow Financial Holdings Inc.'s real estate unit will build a $30M, 40-story office tower at 351 N. Clark St., which the company will co-anchor with law firm Jenner & Block. The proposed tower is scheduled to open in 2009.

Dallas/Fort Worth

Drive Financial Services renewed its lease for approximately 85,000 SF of office space and added approximately 4,000 SF more in Dallas. Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. represented the landlord, Jamison Properties, while The Staubach Co. represented the tenant. Rental rates in the submarket average approximately $15 PSF.

Preston Forest Village in Dallas, a 166,638-SF shopping center, was purchased by Crow Holdings for $45M. The seller was a joint venture of Kimco Realty Corp. and Dunhill Partners. The broker was Holliday Fenoglio Fowler L.P.

No major developments were reported.

Houston

Marathon Oil renewed and restructured its lease at the Marathon Oil Tower in the Galleria area of Houston for approximately 600,000 SF. CB Richard Ellis Inc. and Bettencourt & Associates represented the building owner, Tower Associates, while Cushman & Wakefield Inc. represented Marathon Oil. Terms of the lease were not disclosed, but Class A office space in the area currently rents for approximately $20 to $23 PSF.

Investment Properties of America West Oaks L.P. bought the West Oaks Shopping Mall in Houston for $10M. West Oaks is a 498,829-SF enclosed regional shopping center. The seller was Somera Investment. The broker was Eastdil.

No major developments were reported.

Los Angeles

St. George Distribution Inc. signed a 454,826 SF industrial lease at Golden Springs Business Park in Santa Fe Springs. Lease rates in the area average $6 PSF per month, with the total value of the lease approximately $30M.

Prudential Real Estate Investors bought Pacific Gateway Center, an 18-building, 1.2 MSF industrial property in Torrance, Calif., for $216M. The seller was Prentiss Properties. Lazard Freres was the broker.

No major developments were reported.

Miami

No major leases were reported.

A joint venture between Stoltz Management and GE Commercial Finance Real Estate sold the 450-unit Coral Harbor at Broken Sound in Boca Raton, Fla., to RREEF for $105M. Built in 1988, the 47-building complex will be converted to condos. Apartment Realty Advisors brokered the transaction.
No major developments were reported.

New York City

Citibank N.A. signed a 300,000-SF, 11-year lease at 485 Lexington Ave. Located near Grand Central Station in midtown Manhattan, the 31-story, 926,122-SF building is owned by SL Green Realty Corp. Cushman & Wakefield Inc. reports Class A rents in the Grand Central submarket at $50.74 PSF.

In a $93M transaction, Sterling Equities sold a 10-building residential and retail portfolio in Manhattan's East Village to a group of private investors. The 224,000-SF package includes 224 residential buildings and 21 retail stores. Eastern Consolidated Inc. represented both Sterling and the buyers, who were led by Martin Newman, Nathan Halegua, Yair Levy and Serge Hoyda.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. will develop East River Science Park, a $700M, 870,000-SF commercial bioscience center on the Bellevue Hospital campus in Manhattan. Scheduled for a 2006 construction start, the complex will include three buildings providing laboratory, office, conference and retail space. Initial occupancy is scheduled for 2008 and completion is slated for the following year.

Washington D.C.

Bingham McCutchen L.L.P. inked a 68,107-SF, 10-year lease at 2020 K St., N.W. Lease rates average $39.32 PSF in the central business district submarket. Cushman & Wakefield Inc. represented both the tenant and the landlord,
2020 K Street Corp.

Morgan Stanley real estate's prime property fund acquired a four-office portfolio for $644M from The JBG Cos. The 1.5 MSF portfolio also includes two offices currently under construction in Arlington, Va., and on L Street in Washington, D.C. Secured Capital Corp. brokered the transaction.

No major developments were reported.