South Florida Office Brokers Association

Tag: elliott management

  • Class A Office Building In Boca Fetches $99.5 Million

    Class A Office Building In Boca Fetches $99.5 Million

    KBS assisted in the acquisition of One Town Center, a 191,294 square-foot Class A office building in Boca Raton.

    The property was acquired from a joint venture between prominent commercial real estate firm CP Group, formerly Crocker Partners, and Siguler Guff & Co. for $99.5 million by Prime US REIT (PRIME), which trades on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limits ticker as: OXMU. KBS serves as the U.S.-based asset manager for the portfolio, which included identifying and sourcing this asset on PRIME’s behalf.

    One Town Center is a Class A property consisting of a 10-story office building and an adjacent parking deck. CP Group has been retained as on-site property management.

    “This is one of three acquisition for the portfolio since listing on the Singapore Exchange in 2019,” says Marc DeLuca, Eastern regional president for KBS. “Acquiring One Town Center marks another strategic investment into a prime location and a premier asset. At 95% occupancy, One Town Center is one of the most desirable office properties in the Boca Raton market with strong in-place cash flow and a diverse base of creditworthy tenants.”

    Boca Raton is increasingly drawing in residents due to its proximity to Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, appealing climate and lifestyle, lower taxes and relative affordability, added DeLuca.

    “Palm Beach County has seen a higher-than-normal influx of new residents as a result of the pandemic, and Boca Raton has become one of the nation’s most attractive markets for wealthy decision makers,” said DeLuca. “Companies such as Elliott Management, Citadel and Moelis have been encouraged to open satellite offices in Florida or allow their employees to be based there, and office tenants are drawn to the Boca Raton West submarket for its high connectivity, surrounding residential areas and access to great talent.”

    According to Newmark, leasing activity was up 29% from deals seen a year ago and South Florida’s unemployment rate fell to 6.3% during the first quarter of 2021, with Palm Beach County, where Boca Raton is located, remaining the lowest unemployment rate in the region at 4.5%.

    Boca Raton’s office market also features significant barriers to entry with prohibitive construction costs and no buildings currently under construction.

    As one of the premier office properties in Boca Raton, One Town Center is a 10-story building with an adjacent 435-space parking garage and 274 surface parking spaces, resulting in a parking ratio of 3.7 per 1,000 square feet. The property is well positioned in the Midtown Boca Raton corridor, close to upscale executive housing and 1.2 miles from I-95. The asset also features close proximity to Florida’s Turnpike, the Boca Raton Airport, executive country clubs and housing communities, hotels and retail and dining options.

    “KBS worked with PRIME to acquire a top-quality, well-located asset in a growing submarket of one of the strongest regions in the country,” says Allen Aldridge, asset manager for One Town Center and senior vice president of KBS. “This acquisition, which is within a five-minute stroll of 2.1 million square feet of dining and retail options, is in the best location in Midtown Boca Raton. It gives us another opportunity to apply our hands-on management strategy to deliver best-in-class, well-amenitized office space and services that exceed tenants’ expectations.”

    Built in 1991 by Thomas Crocker, One Town Center features one of the two tallest buildings in the market. The property offers a plethora of on-site amenities including a high-end café, a restaurant, a fitness center and upgraded landscaping. The building is also within walking distance of numerous dining, shopping, fitness, salon and hotel amenities, with additional amenities accessible within a short drive. One of the most notable walkable amenities is the Town Center at Boca Raton, South Florida’s third-largest mall.

    KBS is planning to implement several upgrades to the property, including a lobby refresh, restroom renovations, front-entry enhancements, building out a management office, updating the fitness center and locker rooms, and bringing vacant suites up to spec suite condition.

    Chris Lee, vice chairman and Jose Lobón, executive vice president of CBRE brokered the sales transaction.

    “KBS once again leveraged its deep understanding of the market and relevant fundamentals to purchase one of the most sought-after high-quality office towers in the South Florida market,” says Lee.

    Attorneys Bruce Fischer, Tatyana Litovsky, Chrisdo Fan and Howard Chu, and paralegal Amanda Kennedy,  of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP’s Orange County office, attorney  Jody Saltzman in Greenberg Traurig’s New Jersey office, and attorney Steven Landy in Greenberg Traurig’s Miami office,  represented PRIME as legal counsel in the acquisition.

    “We were very pleased to represent KBS in this significant strategic transaction on behalf of PRIME,” says Fischer, Greenberg Traurig’s Chair of the West Coast Real Estate Practice and Co-Managing Shareholder of the Orange County office, who led the Greenberg Traurig team and represented KBS.

    One Town Center is located at One Town Center Road in Boca Raton.

     

  • $41 Billion Investment Firm Relocating To South Florida

    $41 Billion Investment Firm Relocating To South Florida

    A prominent New York investment firm that manages approximately $41 billion in assets has plans to move its headquarters to South Florida.

    Elliott Management is relocating from midtown Manhattan to West Palm Beach, according to the Palm Beach County Business Development Board — making it the latest in a growing line of financial firms to move their headquarters from the Northeast or add offices to the South Florida region.

    The firm is overseen by billionaire Paul E. Singer, one of the wealthiest people in the United States. According to the New York Times, he recently disclosed the headquarters move to Florida — a decision apparently triggered by the coronavirus pandemic and the volatility of the commercial real estate market in Manhattan.

    “They made a commitment to have a corporate headquarters in West Palm Beach,” Kelly Smallridge, the board’s president and CEO, said by telephone Friday. “They’ve been very tight-lipped on their selection of real estate.”

    Smallridge said she has no information on how many jobs the firm might bring to the area.

    The anticipated move was first reported by Bloomberg News.

    Founded in 1977, Elliott Management Corp. manages billions in assets and employs a staff of 466 people, according to its website. The roster includes 161 investment professionals in its New York headquarters and elsewhere in the U.S., London, Hong Kong and Tokyo.

    On behalf of clients, the firm invests in various companies, and buys and sells distressed and real estate-related securities, as well as commodities and debt.

    Singer isn’t expected to move to Florida and will keep some employees and offices in New York, the New York Times reported.

    The migration of some financial firms is largely the byproduct of higher taxes in Northeast states and the federal tax reform law that limited residents’ ability to deduct state and local taxes from their federal returns.

    Smallridge said that within the last 18 months, between 15 and 18 financial firms sought information about locations in the county, and ended up leasing office space from Boca Raton to Jupiter.

    She said the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic has influenced many upper-income executives to take up second homes in Florida and work remotely, as Griffin’s operation did.

    “Many of the executives decided not to go back home to the Northeast or they left the Northeast to come to Palm Beach County because they believed it was a safe place for their families,” she said.

     

    Source:  SunSentinel