At a time when most analysts predicted a slowdown in the commercial real estate market, Manekin LLC has closed a multimillion-dollar, multiproperty transaction in Howard County.
The Columbia-based commercial real estate firm recently negotiated the $44.2 million sale of Rivers Corporate Center, a portfolio of nine single-story office/research and development buildings in Columbia, totaling 280,000 square feet of space.
“This is absolutely a monumental transaction in these economic times,” said Don Schline, senior associate for Manekin who brokered the transaction along with associate Liz Martin. “Deals have been slow to come to the market, and it?s been difficult for investors to secure financing.”
Columbia-based Oekos Management Corp. acquired the property from Rivers Center LLC, a group of Howard-based private investors. The property was offered to qualified investors in the fourth quarter of 2007, and Schline said Manekin initially received 11 offers.
“The number of offers and the valuations of the asset were competitive and prove that despite perceived weakness in the investment sale market, the Baltimore-Washington corridor remains healthy,” Schline said.
Oekos Management purchased the office park for three big reasons, said Sid Roros, the company?s vice president.
“One is the excellent location of an office park between Baltimore and Washington in Howard County … the second is there just isn?t a lot of land left in the county to build on … and the third is BRAC,” Roros said.
Rivers Corporate Center is 93 percent leased, Schline said. The office park, located just off Routes 32 and 29, includes tenants such as United Healthcare, Data Direct Networks, Applied Data Systems, Staples, Celsion Corp., Segami and St. Agnes Healthcare.
“Rivers Corporate Center has been a stable asset that remains well-leased due to its location and close proximity to Baltimore, Washington, Fort Meade and BWI,” said Ted Swingle, sales and leasing representative for Manekin who, along with Vice President George Santos, will handle sales and leasing at the office park.
