HOUSTON-Following a four-year hold of the 1.4-million-square-foot Williams Tower, Hines REIT Properties LP has decided to sell the class A office building. Jones Lang LaSalle is tapped to handle marketing activities for the 30-year-old asset, which is also where Hines and its REIT has its headquarters.

Located at 2800 Post Oak Rd., the office building is more than 95% leased to tenants including Rowan Cos., Quanta Services and Cadence Bancorp. Hines developed the trophy asset in the early 1980s, when it was dubbed the tallest skyscraper in the world outside a CBD at the time of its construction.

"Williams Tower is a special asset to Hines REIT and Hines," says Charles Hazen, CEO of Hines REIT in a press release.  "Not only is it one of the REIT's most significant investments, it is also the global headquarters for Hines, and we wanted to choose the right firm to help us market the asset.  We believe that the time is right to sell this asset and generate returns for our investors, and we selected Jones Lang LaSalle because of its outstanding reputation and access to major investors around the world, who we believe will be attracted to this world-class property.  JLL's global capital markets team will include leaders from Houston, the U.S. and international markets."

Hines REIT acquired the trophy asset in 2008 from Transco Tower Ltd. for $272 million.  Formerly known as Transco Tower, Hines managed and leased the high-rise since it opened.