HOUSTON-With office buildings trading fast and furious, thelatest real estate to hit the block is the 1.7-million-sf WellsFargo Plaza, an un-priced offering with a $283-million taxassessment. In the CBD, comparable high rises have been trading for$275 per sf.

Owned by New York City-based Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.since the early 1980s, the seller is disposing of the asset at 1000Louisiana St. in a time of high demand and low supply. “A scarcityof space in the CBD and underlying fundamentals of the Houstonoffice market as well as the overall Houston economy are the mainfactors for the offering,” says Kent Peters, senior vice presidentfor CB Richard Ellis in Houston.

Peters says the sale of the 91%-leased high rise could set a newbenchmark in terms of pricing, adding there's already been stronginterest from both domestic and offshore institutional investors.He tells GlobeSt.com that MetLife would like to close the sale bythe end of the year. He and CBRE's executive vice president RichardRudd, also from Houston, are teaming with CBRE vice chairman andpartner Darcy Stacom in New York City and executive vice presidentRussell Ingrum in Dallas.