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A Braintree office property that went to auction in July sold for $8.7 million to auto dealer Daniel J. Quirk.

The price is a 49 percent decrease from the previous transaction in 2013, when Albany Road Real Estate Partners acquired it for $17.2 million.

The 100 and 150 Grossman Drive complex is located off Route 3 between a retail power center and the MBTA’s Braintree station, and includes such tenants as the Boston Herald newspaper.

“Some of the leases are going to expire, but if you hang in there, I think the office market, particularly in Braintree, is going to come back,” Quirk said.

The property is the first office building bought by Quirk, whose headquarters are located in Quincy and owns 15 auto dealerships in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. He also owns the 130-acre Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, after acquiring it for $9 million at a 2003 foreclosure sale.

Quirk said he plans to invest approximately $1 million in capital improvements. The property is currently 70 percent leased, and Quirk has hired Quincy-based Key Realty as leasing agent in anticipation of space becoming available as existing leases expire. The agency lists over 50,000 square feet for lease.

The all-cash transaction took place Oct. 11, according to data compiled by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman, following a July 13 auction.

The parcels span nearly 5 acres and include a 4-story office building totaling 126,048 square feet. The purchase price works out to $69 per square foot.

The buildings were originally completed in 1986 and have an assessed value of $19.3 million, according to Braintree assessors records.