Silverstein Properties confirmed as buyer of US Bank Tower

Silverstein Properties has made its first acquisition in Los Angeles, and it’s an iconic one.

The New York-based developer is the confirmed “institutional purchaser” that’s paying $430 million for Downtown LA.’s US Bank Tower, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Singapore-based investment management firm OUE Limited announced the sale agreement last week without disclosing the buyer, and the deal is expected to close in September. The sale price is a 34-percent discount from the OUE’s valuation of the property in its latest annual report, reflecting uncertainty in the investment sales market caused by coronavirus.

“This is a unique opportunity to manage a trophy asset in a dynamic market,” Silverstein’s head of acquisitions, Jeff Grasso, said in a statement. “This is our first investment in Los Angeles, and we are looking at a number of other opportunities in the city, and elsewhere on the West Coast.”

In 2019, Los Angeles surpassed Manhattan to become the top investment sales market in the U.S. with more than $28 billion in deals, boosted by record-high multifamily and industrial activity.

But social distancing and remote work, as well as a recent resurgence of coronavirus cases in L.A., are all obstacles for the city’s office market, at least in the near term.

Workers at US Bank Tower — or tourists visiting the 73-story building’s observation deck — have to take up to three separate elevators to get to their destinations from the six-level underground garage. [LAT] — Kevin Sun