Cushman & Wakefield Arranges Sale of One Million-Square-Foot Exit 8A Industrial Portfolio

Morgan Stanley's Prime Property Fund acquired the Six-Building Package after a highly competitive Bidding Process. End Quote

Newark, NJ (1888PressRelease) March 29, 2011 - A six-building, 1,026,634-square-foot industrial portfolio in the New Jersey Turnpike Exit 8A submarket has been sold, announced Cushman & Wakefield Inc.'s Metropolitan Area Capital Markets Group, East Rutherford, N.J. The Capital Markets Group team of Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut, and Gary Gabriel, along with industrial sales and leasing specialists Frank Caccavo and Jason Goldman, who are based at the firm's Edison, N.J., office represented the seller, BlackRock, and procured the buyer, Morgan Stanley's Prime Property Fund.

"There was wide interest in this offering, which was in the market for less than a month," said Merin. "Ultimately, we had in excess of two dozen offers, and it was a highly competitive process down the stretch. We are very pleased with the level of activity and the final pricing of this offering."

Completed between 1985 and 1989 by Matrix Development Group, the Exit 8A Industrial Portfolio consists of 3 and 6 Fitzgerald Ave., 151,000 and 204,000 square feet respectively; 3 and 17 South Middlesex Ave., 170,000 and 195,000 square feet respectively; the 145,000-square-foot Engelhard Drive; and the 161,500-square-foot 32 Commerce Court.

Ninety-three percent leased at the time of sale, the portfolio has just one recently vacated 75,000-square-foot unit available. The current tenant roster includes Villeroy & Boch, Dr. Jay's, Vertis, NAL Worldwide, Santini/NYDC, Hair System, Illinois Tool Works, and Sonsopete/Pack-Rat.

"The institutional-quality Exit 8A Industrial Portfolio offers attractive curb appeal, a highly functional configuration, and a solid occupancy history," Gabriel added. "The ability to control multiple competitive buildings within a single submarket places the buyer in a strong competitive position."

Located within one mile of the Exit 8A interchange of the New Jersey Turnpike, the portfolio offers close proximity to the country's largest transit hubs, including the ports of New Jersey and New York, Newark Liberty International Airport, and major distribution highways. Currently, four of the properties are divided with multiple tenants and two are single-tenant facilities.

"This transaction clearly demonstrates that capital is broadly available for investment, including in the Exit 8A submarket, which has been relatively quiet," Gabriel said. "With rents falling during the recession, many owners elected to hold and 8A has not been a place that institutional investors have been seeking to place capital. Now, however, we're seeing a changing tide.

"There is still a lot more capital chasing deals than there is product available, but this sale demonstrates the ability and willingness of many investors to write big checks to buy down at 8A," Merin said. "The market has clearly turned the corner and when we look back, people will probably say that this sale was the kick-off of a return to a more active trading market in the Exit 8A submarket."

Cushman & Wakefield's Metropolitan Area Capital Markets Group specializes exclusively in investment sales of office, industrial, multifamily and retail properties throughout New Jersey, New York, Fairfield County, Conn., and Pennsylvania. The team has completed more than $14.5 billion worth of transactions since 2000.

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