MINNEAPOLIS—NorthMarq Capital's Minneapolisoffice recently arranged a $203.5 million loan on behalf ofMetLife and Allstate InsuranceCompany/Allstate Life Insurance Company for theiracquisition of Normandale Lake Office Park. The partners bought thefive-tower complex in suburban Bloomington from Sam Zell'sEquity Group Investments for a little bit more than $368million, or roughly $100 million more than Chicago-based Equitypaid for it in 2012. Northwestern Mutual is thelender.

The complex is one of the most notable office properties in theTwin Cities and consists of 1.7-million-square-feet of space, morethan the CBD's 55-story IDS Center. The purchase was just one ofmany big recent sales in the Twin Cities area as investors move into take advantage of the region's burgeoning economy. Florida-basedBeacon Investment Properties LLC bought the IDSCenter in 2013 for $253 million, for example, and KBS REITII, Inc. just sold 601 Tower at Carlson Center in suburban Minnetonka toArtis REIT for $75 million.

Normandale sits on 23 acres overlooking the2,500-acre Normandale Lake Recreational Area.Tenants occupy 93% of the park, an increase of 10% since Zell'scompany bought it. Many of the largest tenants have been there formore than 20 years. The tenant roster includes companies such asPrime Therapeutics, Aon Benfield,Schwan's, Towers Watson,Tata Consultancy Services, EmersonCorporation and Oracle Corporation. Thesale was the second largest suburban office sale in the US so farthis year, according to NorthMarq officials.