Merit Office Divests of Dallas Holding

Bill Graham, with Sperry Van Ness in Dallas, tells GlobeSt.com the Riverbend property, located just off Interstate 35 at 1221 Riverbend Dr., drew about 10 offers. A high bid by Chicago-based Junior Shu won the keys to the two-story building. Graham, who declined to reveal the sale price on the building, says the property, which is set on 5.81 acres and 71% leased to Silverleaf Resorts, was on the market for $2.2 million.

Silverleaf a developer of timeshare units which has its headquarters in the building, has five years remaining on its lease and is the property's only tenant. Dave Brackney of LJ Partners represented the buyer.

Graham, who handled the transaction for the local seller, says Merit has put a portfolio of area office properties on the market for $68 million and expects to close on that sale within the next few months. Properties in that portfolio include the three-building, 248,770-sf Merit Center on LBJ Freeway and the two-building, 158,000-sf Parkway Plaza, located on the Tollway immediately north of the Galleria.

"We've had tremendous interest in the portfolio," says Graham, noting that Merit is currently negotiating with several groups in the US and a German organization. Merit also is marketing another building, Chisholm Place, a four-story, 65,000-sf office on the Central Expressway at Park Boulevard in Plano, Graham says. The asking price on that property is $6.15 million. Graham says Merit's asset sale is not unusual. The firm's strategy centers on a limited holding period for each asset. The assets are sold off as that holding period expires.