UPDATED, Sept. 29, 10:50 a.m.: The Government Properties Income Trust is looking to sell its 187,000-square-foot Midtown East building that’s entirely leased to the Union Nations, sources told The Real Deal.
The Massachussetts-based real estate investment trust just locked in the UN for a short-term renewal of all 187,000 square feet in July, after its 10-year lease expired.
The REIT has owned the 16-story Class B property at 305-311 East 46th Street, also known as the Albano Building, for six years. In 2011, it paid $114 million to the seller, Gary Barnett’s Extell Development.
Sources said it is now expected to trade for closer to $120 million or $130 million, or between $640 and $695 per square foot.
The Albano Building, located between First and Second avenues in Midtown East’s Turtle Bay neighborhood, was constructed in 1928 and became part of the UN compound that was established in the 1950s.
Sources said the REIT has recently hired Eastdil Secured’s Doug Middleton and Brett Siegel, but has not officially put it on the market yet.
Representatives for the Government Properties Income Trust and the UN could not be reached for comment.
The UN signed a lease in 2007 for the majority of the building, while the landmarked Secretariat Building at 750 First Avenue was undergoing a renovation. The intergovernmental organization ended up staying put.
The REIT, which is led by David Blackman and specializes in leasing its office buildings to government tenants, owns 50 properties in the U.S. The holding company the RMR Group manages the REIT’s properties.
Elsewhere in the UN district, the Republic of Turkey is building a crescent-inspired 35-story tower that would serve as the headquarters of the Consulate General of Turkey in New York.