The property is 98% leased with 38% of the space occupied by physicians and other medical professionals affiliated with Southeast Georgia Health System, a 356-bed nonprofit healthcare system. Codgell Spencer president and CEO Frank Spencer tells GlobeSt.com that the seller was a locally based group of investors.

"We were able to identify this property in a private transaction," Spencer says. "We were dealing principal to principal which is how we like to operate."

The property's link to Southeast Georgia Health System was among reasons it was attractive for acquisition, Spencer says. Southeast Georgia Health System is the only hospital in Glynn County and the primary healthcare provider for the seven surrounding southeast Georgia counties, including the resort communities of St. Simons Island and Sea Island. The facility's recent expansions include a new outpatient care center that opened in 2006.

The property is in good condition and has no immediate need for capital improvements, Spencer says. "We will continue to operate the buildings and provide hands-on management," he says.

The acquisition further expands the REIT's portfolio in the growing coastal regions of Georgia and the Carolinas, which includes more than 790,000 sf of medical office space. "We want to grow our portfolio in the Brunswick market," Spencer says.