JBG, CBRE Join Mega-Forces to Invest in a Trilogy

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Trilogy NoMa

What happens when two giants join forces? Great things. Or, in this case, great acquisitions.

The two real estate giants in this story are the JBG Cos. and CBRE Global Investment Partners. Last December, they formed a joint venture targeted at buying high-quality assets in the Washington, D.C., metro area, and now they have closed on their second acquisition.

According to the Washington Business Journal, the joint venture is now the new owner of the 603-unit NoMa Trilogy apartment project at 151 Q St., NE. It purchased the asset in a transaction that closed on July 31 for $213 million, or $253,233 per unit. Mill Creek Residential Trust, the seller, placed the project on the market last year and retained Holliday Fenoglio Fowler L.P. to market it. Former HFF brokers Dave Nachison, Alan Davis, Brendan Flood, Tim Stanton and Bret Thompson represented Mill Creek in the sale. They now work for Eastdil Secured.

Trilogy NoMa opened in the fall of 2012 as the largest single-phase multifamily project to deliver in Washington, D.C., in recent history. It consists of three buildings – Cirq, Linq and Esqe – with a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units.

When they formed the venture, CBRE and JBG said they intend to invest approximately $250 million in equity to acquire $500 million worth of office, retail and multifamily assets. But it seems they might go well beyond that initial investment estimate. The joint venture’s first acquisition was The Foundry, a 232,000-square-foot office building in the Georgetown submarket. That property traded for $79.5 million.

Photo credit: Mill Creek Residential Trust