Chicago Commercial Real Estate – In the News

Tom’s Recommended Reading for the Week

Check out the top news in Chicago commercial real estate before heading into the weekend!

  1. KBS Closes $850 Sale of 300 N LaSalle – Officials from KBS Real Estate Investment Trust II said yesterday that they had closed on the sale, first announced in May, of the 300 N. LaSalle building to the Newport Beach, CA-based Irvine Company for $850 million, the most ever paid for a Chicago office building. The deal was also the third-largest office building transaction in the US this year, according to CoStar. KBS paid $655 million for the 60-story, 1.3-million-square-foot tower on the Chicago River back in 2010… Globe St.
  2. LaSalle Investment Management to buy 101 N Wacker – LaSalle Investment Management has agreed to pay $210 million for a 24-story office tower on Wacker Drive, another sign of the frothy downtown office sales market.The deal for 101 N. Wacker Drive continues the flow of foreign money into downtown office properties, including recent acquisitions by Japanese and Chinese ventures. LaSalle is buying the building from Hines Interests L.P. on behalf of German investors, according to people familiar with the transaction… Crain’s Chicago
  3. More New York Companies Experiment With Innovative Office Space – Alexander Saint-Amand admits he used his old desk to store his stuff: extra neckties, books and water bottles. As of last week, that became impossible because Mr. Saint-Amand no longer has a permanent desk at Gerson Lehrman Group Inc., the company he leads as chief executive. Like everyone else in the 250-person office, Mr. Saint-Amand is now assigned only a laptop, a headset and a locker. GLG’s new office design offers an array of workspaces—from comfortable couches to high stools at a barista-staffed coffee bar to single-occupancy glass booths… Wall Street Journal
  4. Office Lags Outside Energy, Tech Markets – For office markets with strong concentrations of energy or tech tenants, the recovery in demand has been equally strong. Outside of those markets, however, it’s considerably less robust, Albert Lindeman, SVP with Sperry Van Ness, tells GlobeSt.com. “The coasts are doing very well,” says Lindeman, citing New York City and San Francisco. “When you get into the energy sector, Denver and the Texas markets are growing dramatically.” In secondary markets such as Charlotte as well as Lindeman’s home base of Chicago, the expansion of tech tenants is contributing to growth… Globe St.
  5. Sterling Bay Companies and IPDNA Companies to revamp Chicago’s historic old Main Post Office – The rumors have been put to rest about Chicago’s old Main Post Office building. Officials from Sterling Bay Companies came forth recently announcing a partnership with Chair of International Property Developers North America (IPDNA), owner Bill Davies, to redevelop the property. Andy Gloor, managing principal of Sterling, told Illinois Real Estate Journal, that IPDNA has done an enormous amount of due diligence on the property in the last five years… RE Journals