ROCKVILLE, MD-Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (NYSE: WRE) has acquired a grocery-anchored retail center in Olney, MD for $58 million. The 199,000-square-foot property, anchored by Shoppers Food Warehouse, is located near the main intersection of Georgia Avenue and Sandy Spring Road. The acquisition fits in with the REIT’s “strategy of investing in high quality retail properties in areas with strong demographics," said George McKenzie, president and CEO of WRIT, in a prepared statement. The company was unable to return a call to GlobeSt.com in time for publication.
Built in 1979, the 98.7%-occupied Olney Village Center is leased to 32 tenants, including T.J. Maxx, HomeGoods and SunTrust Bank. The property was renovated in 2003. As part of the transaction, WRIT is assuming a $22.6-million mortgage with an interest rate of 6.37% that matures in 2023. It expects to achieve a first year unleveraged yield of 6.7% on a cash basis.
This transaction is part of WRIT’s--and indeed many area REITs'--strategy to sell off holdings with an eye to repositioning in new asset classes. WRIT, for instance, sold off its entire industrial portfolio recently, just as the asset class is becoming a hot item in the region.
Other recent transactions include the $58.8-million sale of phase One Dulles Station West and the acquisition of a West End office building for $47 million. Last year WRIT acquired two office buildings within the Quantico Corporate Center for $68 million.
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