REIT Sells Two Office Assets for $42M

50 W. State St., Trenton, N.J.

Office Properties Income Trust has sold two office properties in New Jersey and Illinois for $42.1 million. The proceeds from the sale will be used for general business purposes, including repaying debt, according to the REIT.

The 267,025-square-foot New Jersey office is located at 50 W. State St. in downtown Trenton near the New Jersey State Museum and New Jersey State Library by Routes 1 and 206. The sale of the 14-story office building closed on March 11.

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Two weeks earlier, the REIT sold 475 Bond St. in Lincolnshire, Ill. The two-story 222,717-square-foot office building is located more than 30 miles away from Chicago. Both properties are also managed by The RMR Group, an alternative asset management company in Newton, Mass.

David Blackman, president & CEO of OPI, said in prepared remarks that the New Jersey sale also required a simultaneous loan closing with a commercial bank.

Office Properties Income Trust also owns three other properties in New Jersey and four other properties in Illinois. In November 2019, the REIT also sold three Maryland office properties for $61.9 million.

Recycling Capital

The REIT is known for owning, operating or leasing in markets with strong economic fundamentals but also for properties where the single tenant has a minimum lease term of seven years and the building is critical for the tenant. OPI also looks for properties with government tenants who have high security needs or require the property’s location.

And when OPI hits its leverage targets, the REIT also aims to sell between $100 million and $300 million of its portfolio each year to improve their portfolio statistics and diversify its tenants and market locations.