CBRE Global Investors to sell large US office portfolio

The world’s largest real estate manager is marketing a 2 million-square-foot portfolio of six US office properties on behalf of its CBRE Strategic Partners US Value 5 fund.

CBRE Global Investors is looking for a buyer for its National Office Portfolio, which includes six trophy assets comprising nearly two million square feet in Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Washington DC and West Palm Beach, Florida.

The office buildings include 500 North Brand, a 420,000-square-foot property in the Glendale submarket of Los Angeles; Preston Commons, two eight-story buildings totaling 427,000 square feet in the Preston Center submarket of Dallas; Sterling Plaza, a 313,600-square-foot asset also located in the Preston Center submarket of Dallas; 2603 Augusta, a 243,300-square-foot building in Houston; One Washingtonian Center; a 321,000-square-foot asset in the Washington, DC metropolitan area; and Esperante, a 256,200-square-foot property in West Palm Beach, Florida.

CBRE Global Investors acquired the six properties between 2008 and 2011, beginning with Esperante in late 2008 and ending with 2603 Augusta in the summer of 2011, according to data provider Real Capital Analytics. All of the assets were acquired on behalf of CBRE Strategic Partners US Value 5. The firm, then known as Richard Ellis, raised a total of $2.1 billion in equity commitments for Strategic Partners US Value 5 and Strategic Partners US Opportunity 5 in early 2008.

The Los Angeles-based real estate investment manager has made significant capital improvements to the properties to reposition them under the Strategic Partners US strategy, including updated amenities and LEED certification. The portfolio’s tenant mix includes finance, energy, medical, legal and service firms.

In December, CBRE Global Investors held a final closing for Strategic Partners US Value 6, which collected total equity commitments of nearly $1.1 billion from 22 institutional investors in the US and Europe. The firm currently is investing that fund.