Photo courtesy of JLL

A Miami-based real estate investor made the first plunge into Boston’s chilly office investment sales market since early 2022 with the $41 million acquisition of a Financial District property.

Azora Exan Capital acquired 7 Post Office Square from Nuveen Real Estate, which paid $38 million for the 64,246-square-foot building in 2016.

The 7-story structure is 91 percent leased to eight tenants including anchor Fidelity Investments, which operates an investor center branch in the prominent ground-floor space facing Post Office Square.

JLL represented the seller and procured the buyer. The sales price equates to $638 per square foot.

In a statement, Azora Exan Managing Partner Ignacio Gil-Casares said the firm is seeking to buy trophy office buildings in prime locations in select markets.

Rising interest rates, uncertainty about post-pandemic office leasing demand and the effects on market rents and building valuations have largely put major investment sales on hold even for well-leased properties with credit tenants.

Asking rents for Boston office space declined 0.5 percent in the second quarter to $46.72 per square foot, according to JLL data. But class A rents increased and high-end buildings have withstood the disruption in workspace usage.

“This deal validates investor appetite for differentiated assets in the right location,” JLL Senior Managing Director Chris Angelone said in a statement.

Investor Breaks the Ice with Downtown Office Buy

by Steve Adams time to read: 1 min
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