Sumitomo Makes Big Splash in Buckhead Office Market
Sumitomo has officially returned to Atlanta.
The Japanese conglomerate announced this week that its Sumitomo Corporation of Americas division has closed on its purchase of Atlanta Financial Center, the 915k SF glass-encased tower straddling Georgia 400 in Buckhead, for $222.5M from Hines Interests and its JV partner, General Motors Asset Management. We broke the news about its pending sale.
According to info from Sumitomo Corporation of Americas, Atlanta Financial Center is the largest property that it has purchased to date. And for Sumitomo's Americas division, it's the first major office holding acquired in Atlanta. SCOA plans to implement renovations that will create a more energy-efficient property and raise its profile to the top of the building’s Class-A set. Eastdil Secured brokered the sale.
It's not the biggest office deal in the history of parent company Sumitomo. Its Sumitomo Life Realty division sold the 50-story One Atlantic Center tower in Midtown to Hines a decade ago for $300M, roughly the same price it purchased it for in 1988, which, at the time, was a record price for Atlanta commercial real estate.
Hines has owned Atlanta Financial Center for some 15 years after it paid $154M to buy it. Hines just recently sold One Atlantic Center to Starwood Capital for over $300/SF.
