Crown West Realty

By Amy Wolff Sorter
May 10, 2007
GlobeSt.com

PHOENIX – After a three-year hold and repositioning, a local company has sold the 112,800-sf Lakeview Business Center. The five-building flex industrial project was acquired for $13.5 million by a San Mateo, CA private investment group.

Crown West Realty had boosted the 20-year-old asset’s occupancy to 90% following renovation and aggressive leasing. “That’s kind of their business model. They’re not typically long-term holders,” Tracy Cartledge, senior vice president for locally based Grubb & Ellis/BRE Commercial LLC, tells GlobeSt.com. “They try to enhance value, then sell. This is consistent with what they’ve done with their other assets.” The sales team included senior vice presidents Bob Buckley and Steve Lindley plus Rick Lee, principal with locally based Lee & Associates.

Cartledge says the marketing period for the complex at 2840-50 S. 36th St. and 2821-3201 S. 35th St. was brief, but attracted a great deal of interest, with G.W. Williams establishing itself early in the game with a strong offer. In addition, G.W. Williams owns two similar buildings in the neighborhood. “From start to finish, it was about a month-long process,” he adds.

Cartledge says the building, situated on 7.5 acres, has a stable lease roll, with its upside based on demand and potential rent increases. “We and the buyer believe that, given the cost to replicate that product, it’s ideally positioned to benefit from increased rents,” he says. “The market is close to full occupancy and to build that type of product would be expensive today. They couldn’t build for the rents they’re achieving now.”