Joint Venture Flips Complex for $22M

"Colwick is an excellent investment opportunity," says Michael Blunt, first vice president at CB Richard Ellis in Philadelphia, who teamed with colleagues Michael Hines, Robert Fahey, Lizann McGowan and Douglas Joseph to orchestrate the deal. "It provides tremendous value enhancement opportunities, but also has a strong rent roll of creditworthy tenants."

Approximately 84% leased at the time of sale, the property's tenant roster is headed by Ace American Insurance, which renewed for 51,500 sf through 2010 last December. Other major tenants include the Internal Revenue Service, Thomson Scientific and the Philadelphia Enquirer.

The sellers didn't own the property for very long. The New York-based Praedium and the Bala Cynwyd, PA-based Endurance formed a partnership called Colwick Business Associates to buy the complex in December 2004 for $15.2 million. The seller in that earlier deal was a group of local private investors, and the sale price amounted to $89 per sf. Praedium and Endurance subsequently carried out a capital improvement plan at the property, which was built in 1987.

For Bergman, the acquisition marks a rare incursion into South Jersey. Virtually all of the new owner's holdings, nearly 30 office and apartment properties with a value of approximately $200 million, are located in the northern and central parts of the Garden State.