Deerfield Office Building Sells For 70% Under 2010 Price

DEERFIELD, IL — Chicago real estate investors who plan to renovate a Deerfield office building when it becomes vacant next year were able to buy it from a New York for a hefty discount. Core Acquisitions, a Chicago-based real estate investment firm, purchased the property for nearly $6.8 million February from New York-based private equity firm Blackstone Group, Crain's Chicago Business reported.

Blackstone had acquired the office park south of Deerfield Road and west of Interstate 294 as part of its $7.6 billion acquisition of real estate investment trust Gramercy Property Trust last October. The deal represents a discount of more than 70% off the last time the building changed hands. It sold for $25 million in 2010, according to Crain's.

The firm anticipates spending up to $750,000 on improvements to the building, such as renovating the lobby and updating its facade, cafe and conferencing space, according to Crain's. Core Acquisitions principal Bradley Joseph told the paper he expected interest from tenants hoping to be close to nearby companies based in the north suburbs.

According to an overview of the north suburban submarket by the commercial real estate brokerage MBRE, vacancy rates declined by 3.1% from a peak of 25.4% and average rents rose by 1.7% as more than 21,000 square feet of office space was filled during 2018. The only submarket with more empty office space in the Chicago suburbs is the northwest area. Were it to come onto the market, 100,000-square-foot Ten Parkway North building would be among the top 10 largest available class A in the submarket, according to MBRE.

With businesses such as Mondelez International, Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Markel Insurance Company, the firm whose lease at 10 Parkway North expires next year, all relocating jobs from Deerfield in the coming months, commercial real estate investors are competing to offer the best amenities to attract tenants. For instance, GlenStar properties earlier this month announced it would start offering workers at its Bannockburn Lakes office complex free rides between nearby Metra stations between 4 and 10 a.m. as part of a two year pilot program, with 25% of its funding covered by the Regional Transportation Authority.

Related:

• Takeda To Close Deerfield Headquarters, Move 1,000 Jobs To Boston
• Mondelez Makes Move From Deerfield To Fulton Market
• Walgreens Moving Over 1,000 Workers From Deerfield To Chicago

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