NY Partnership to Acquire Morgan, Lewis and Bockius' DC HQ

REAL ESTATE FINANCE AND INVESTMENT- April 11, 2004

Joseph Chetrit, Lloyd Goldman and Jeffrey Feil are the winning bidders for a coveted office at 1111 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., near the White House, for $160 million. The office is occupied entirely by law firm Morgan, Lewis and Bockius, which has a 15-year lease in place. Fresh off of their plan to buy the Sears Tower for about $835 million from MetLife (REFI, 3/15), the partnership is said to be looking to pay about $450 per square foot for the downtown trophy 356,000-square-foot office, which translates into a low 5.5% capitalization rate.

The building is being marketing by representatives of philanthropist Dr. Lazlo Tauber (REFI, 1/26). It is unclear if all three private investors are involved in the deal or if any other investors are participating. Several calls to Goldman, Feil and Chetrit were not returned. Officials at Eastdil Realty, which is representing Tauber's estate, also did not return a call.

Observers originally believed that the building, known as the Presidential Building, would sell for about $140 million. Its location and the belief that it was a one-of-a-kind property subsequently boosted bidding, said one REIT official German investor KanAm was also in the running for the office, observers said. Officials there did not return a call. Sphere: Related Content