Challenge

A local investor/developer had an option to purchase a parcel of land that was zoned for office. Although the market was healthy in terms of occupancy levels, rental rates did not justify the cost of development of a multi-story suburban office building

Solutions

Based upon our market knowledge, our team recommended to the Ownership a less expensive (in terms of construction cost) option of a 92,000± square foot campus-style office complex contained in five buildings. Our Leasing Team believed that a suburban, walk-up project with fiber, heavy parking and individual control of HVAC was exactly the product type for this location, and our team was closely involved in the concept during the development phase.

Results

From the time the project broke with the initial building and construction to when the final tenant occupied the fifth building was two years. The final lease brought the project to a 100% occupancy level as the lease-up kept pace with the construction schedule. The initial spaces were leased at rates that exceeded the initial proforma rates.

The ownership then elected to divest itself of this asset. Our team sold the property at a sales price higher than any other office property in Albuquerque in the past four years.