TIAA-CREF, the nation's largest institutional real estateinvestor, paid $145 million, or $342.78 per sf, for thesix-year-old, 98%-leased, 423,000-sf Pinnacle in the Buckheaddistrict and $55 million, or $197.13 per sf, for the adjacent44-year-old, 88%-leased 279,000-sf Two Live Oak asset. TIAA-CREFhas retained Cousins to lease and manage the properties.

At $342.78 per sf, the Pinnacle's price far outdistances fourrecent big-number sales transactions, according to GlobeSt.comresearch. In June of this year, Wells Real Estate Investment Trustpurchased the one-year-old, 14-story, 353,000-sf One Glenlakeoffice building in suburban Sandy Ridge, GA from Atlanta-based Pope& Land Enterprises Inc. and Dallas-based Granite PropertiesInc. for $82 million or $232.29 per sf.

In April, Parkway Properties Inc. of Jackson, MS paid RubensteinCos. of Philadelphia $78.6 million, or $192 per sf, for the92%-leased, 410,000-sf Capital City Plaza on Peachtree Road inBuckhead. Those were the two largest office building sales thisyear until the Cousins-TIAA-CREF transaction.