Twitter Inc.'s New York City headquarters located at 245 and 249 West 17th Street has reportedly been sold to New York REIT Inc. (NYRT), a publicly traded real estate investment trust, for $335 million.
Savannah Capital Partners, the owner of the 12-storey Chelsea office building, announced Thursday that it had entered into a contract with NYRT to trade the building for $1,188 per square foot.
Savannah put the building on the market in June this year after giving it a $29.4 million gut renovation. It hired Eastdil Secured to market the property and within a month, they have found a buyer for the office tower, reports The Commercial Observer.
"We are thrilled to have reached agreement to acquire the headquarters of Twitter. This flagship property located in one of Manhattan's most desirable sub-markets, has been fully renovated and is distinguished by two new lobbies, brand new state-of-the-art building systems, windows, elevators and a stunning rooftop terrace that overlooks the Hudson River, " Michael A. Happel, president of NYRT, said in a statement.
Happel added that the location and the tenants of the buildings were what attracted them to the property.
"We are confident that these buildings, located in New York City's epicenter of creativity, technology and style, will add significant value to our growing, first-class Manhattan property portfolio," Happel added.
The price that NYRT paid for the property is perhaps the highest amount paid for a property located midtown south Bloomberg reports citing an e-mailed statement by Dan Fasulo, managing director of research firm Real Capital Analytics Inc.
"They successfully executed a redevelopment and lease-up in an improving market -- a recipe for big returns," Fasulo said.
Twitter is relatively new to the building. In January this year, the social media giant inked a deal to lease 141,000 square feet of space in the buildings just after Savannah re-launched the office space in November 2013 after the renovations.
"[The properties] afforded us the perfect opportunity to utilize our capital and expertise in transforming two underfunded, run-down properties into modern, loft-style offices equipped with Class A infrastructure," Kevin Hoo of Savanna said in a statement announcing Twitter's lease in January.
"We are proud of the significant turnaround that we have achieved in record time while being excited to welcome Twitter," he added.
The buildings' other tenants include Flywheel Sports Inc., Room & Board Inc and some others. The buildings are currently 99 percent leased and asking rents ranging from $70 to $10 a square foot.
Take a look at the photos and specs of the buildings at 245-247 West 17th Street in a brochure here. (Note: brochure made before the sale.)
