Woodbridge Corporate Plaza at 485 Route 1 South in the Iselin section of Woodbridge — Courtesy: KBS
By Joshua Burd
KBS has sold a nearly 630,000-square-foot office campus in Woodbridge for $88 million, in a transaction arranged by Newmark’s New Jersey-based capital markets team.
The private equity firm, which is based in Southern California, completed its sale of Woodbridge Corporate Plaza more than 15 years after acquiring the six-building complex. Northeast Capital Group of Ramapo, New York, purchased the property, which is located at 485 Route 1 South in the town’s Iselin section.
“The New Jersey office market is home to a diverse roster of Fortune 500 companies and tenants who are drawn to a highly accessible, regional location,” said Marc DeLuca, KBS’ Eastern region president. “Woodbridge Corporate Plaza is defined by its proximity to the intersections of (interstates 95 and 287) and Route 1 with exceptional mass transit connectivity via Amtrak, New Jersey Transit and the Metropark Station.”
KBS touted the deal as a sign of continued investor confidence in well-located suburban office buildings, despite the effects of the pandemic.
“The office market is poised for recovery as we move out of this health and economic crisis,” DeLuca said. “We’ve heard from numerous tenants that they are eager to return to the workplace after many months of working remotely. During the shutdown, productivity has begun to dip as people have grown weary of working from home.
“Companies and their teams are looking forward to coming back to the office safely where they can do their best collaborative and creative work. Properties like Woodbridge Corporate Plaza represent the type of superior-quality, well-amenitized space these firms are seeking as they navigate their way back to the office.”
Newmark Executive Managing Director Kevin Welsh, Managing Director Brian Schulz, Associate Jason Emrani and Transaction Manager Maria Betancourt, along with support from the firm’s Jamie Drummond, represented KBS in the sale.
“Woodbridge Corporate Plaza has seen close to a half million square feet of leasing velocity since January 2017,” Welsh said. “The property is 90 percent leased to a diverse base of 64 tenants with investment-grade anchors, providing stable cash flow and staggered rollover. Moreover, this asset offers Northeast Capital Group a secure income stream with strong cash-on-cash returns at an attractive basis. The property’s dynamic location and market-leading leasing velocity make it a rare investment opportunity in the area.”
KBS originally purchased the 629,189-square-foot business park in 2005, completing a multimillion-dollar renovation that upgraded its corridors, restrooms, flooring and lighting, with the addition of new entrance doors and signage opportunities for tenants, according to a news release. The property today is home to amenities such as a new 6,000-square-foot fitness center, a full-service café and caterer, an on-site management office and shuttle service to the Metropark transit hub.
“Northeast Capital Group recognized an extraordinary opportunity to acquire one of Metropark’s most desirable office parks,” said Stephen Close, asset manager for Woodbridge Corporate Plaza and senior vice president of KBS. “The renovations KBS completed at this property make this well-located asset even more attractive to existing and prospective tenants. This business park is an excellent addition to the buyer’s portfolio.”
Attorneys Bruce Fischer, Howard Chu and paralegal Amanda Kennedy of Greenberg Traurig LLP’s Orange County office, together with attorney Steven Fleissig in the firm’s New Jersey office, represented KBS as legal counsel in the disposition.
“We enjoyed representing KBS in the successful disposition of Woodbridge Corporate Plaza,” said Fischer, Greenberg Traurig’s chair of the West Coast real estate practice and co-managing shareholder of the Orange County office.
