REIT That Rents To Uncle Sam Buys 135K SF Dallas Office Building
A landlord specializing in leasing space to U.S. government entities purchased a Dallas office building to house Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Easterly Government Properties said in its first-quarter earnings report it acquired a 135K SF property leased primarily to ICE’s information technology and business solutions units. The building has been renovated to accommodate the agency’s specific needs.
ICE shares the building with two other tenants, according to a news release. More than 6K SF remains available for lease.
“This strategic acquisition positions us to further enhance Easterly’s cashflows and provide accretive growth for our shareholders,” Easterly CEO Darrell Crate said in a statement. “With the addition of this asset and the excellent creditworthiness of our tenancy, we continue to fortify our balance sheet to enable continued growth across market cycles.”
Easterly is a Washington, D.C.-based REIT that owns 91 properties totaling 8.9M SF. The company recently acquired a 100K SF Atlanta office building it leased to the Transportation Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection agency.
REITs were among the hardest hit by the Federal Reserve’s aggressive campaign to tame inflation, though some have begun to rebound. A government-heavy tenant base has kept Easterly’s portfolio fairly insulated from the fallout of heightened interest rates, with more than 97% of its portfolio occupied as of December, according to Income Investors.
