Major Miami, Orlando Office Towers on Sale Block

Sept 26, 2007
By: Amanda Marsh, Associate Editor

Nipping on the heels of Stiles Capital Partners and Macquarie Office Trust's $117 million acquisition of SunTrust Financial Center in Tampa last week, Stiles is putting the 420,000-square-foot SunTrust International Center in Miami on the block--a deal that market sources say could fetch between $350 to $375 per foot, for a total upwards of $160 million.

Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. managing directors Jeffrey Morris and Jubeen Vaghefi, who represented Stiles and Macquarie in the Tampa deal, have been retained to market the 31-story Miami trophy office tower, located on the corner of Flagler Street and SE Third Avenue. Key tenants include Bank of America, Miami Business Review, Salomon Smith Barney and SunTrust Bank.

The building, which features a variety of on-site amenities and is convenient to local retail and transportation, was fully renovated in 2002. Stiles, in a joint venture with Guggenheim Real Estate, purchased the property in December 2003 from Walton Street Capital for $70 million, according to Real Capital Analytics.

Neither Stiles nor Jones Lang LaSalle were available for comment on the sale.Commercial loans

Additionally, Florida Office Property Co. tapped Jones Lang LaSalle managing director Thomas Beneville and vice president Jay Miele to market the 17-story, 228,000-square-foot Gateway Center in Orlando, which could sell for as much as $60 million. Commercial loans

The building (pictured) is currently 20 percent vacant with rental rates below market average, and tenants include R.W. Beck, Carter & Burgess Inc., Shuffield Lowman and the General Services Administration. Besides Gateway Center's upside potential, the building's surface lot has the space to accommodate another 240,000 square feet in prospective development.

"It's a core-plus property, is a nice size and (has good visibility) in the Orlando market," Beneville told CPN, noting that the building might attract an institutional investor or pension fund. He added that Orlando is attractive as an investment destination because of its good economics and job growth.

Commercial loans