Apple just scooped up a 43-acre development site in North San Jose, causing local real estate players to nearly fall of their seats this week. Here's why.

The purchase at 2347 North First St for more than $138M "took us all by surprise and is an absolute win for San Jose," Colliers SVP David Buchholz (here in another winning franchise's locker room) tells us. The site, which consists of undeveloped land, is approved for up to 2.8M SF of office space (like its Campus 2 location in Cupertino). Apple hasn't yet submitted building plans for the site.

The deal was a bit of a shock because Apple was all over the Coleman Highline project (pictured) with Deke Hunter; it was speculated to be the development for the rumored Apple car. It would’ve been fitting in that FMC Corp developed the Bradley Fighting Vehicle on that same property, David says. It was evident about three weeks ago that Apple had blown out of the Coleman Highline project (or there was at least a wrinkle in the negotiations) when the brokers released a new brochure on the project, he says, adding Apple may have desired more control to pick a destination and build exactly what it wanted, and it was just natural to move a little north and take down more acreage.

This follows Apple's move to lease the nearly 300k SF 101 Tech campus at 2325 Orchard Pkwy last month, taking its first big bite out of San Jose in decades. It's a win for Ellis Partners, which picked up the property in 2011 and began an extensive renovation, creating a sleek campus Apple would be interested in. Apple has been on a tear, acquiring property all over the Valley, says David. "It’s going to be very exciting to see what products they develop next." The city's only statement at this time about the growth is: "We're excited to welcome Apple to San Jose," according to spokesperson Cara Douglas.