The country's largest publicly traded office landlord is cashing out of an office tower it built for the world's largest hotel chain.
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BXP sold its 50% ownership stake in the Marriott International headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland, at a $430M valuation, the REIT announced Monday. It sold the stake to its development and joint venture partner The Bernstein Cos.
The developers delivered the 21-story, 743K SF office building for Marriott in 2022. The building has a three-story atrium, a rooftop terrace, two dining options and conference rooms.
The REIT recorded net proceeds of $83M with the deal, it said in a release. CBRE's Tommy Cleaver, Bill Shanahan, Dan Grimes and Chloe Neal represented BXP.
“This transaction underscores the strength of our longstanding partnership with The Bernstein Companies and the successful development and delivery of Marriott International’s global headquarters,” BXP D.C. region co-Head Pete Otteni said in a statement. “It positions us well to reinvest in new opportunities and further our commitment to high-quality assets across the Washington, DC region.”
The project included a 245-room hotel that isn't part of this sale, and it has an outdoor plaza. It achieved LEED Gold status and a three-star rating from healthy building certifier Fitwel.
The site at 7750 Wisconsin Ave. in Downtown Bethesda previously housed the Bethesda Court Hotel, which D.C.-based Bernstein Cos. had owned for 30 years. It brought on BXP as a partner, and Marriott selected the site in January 2017 for its new headquarters.
“Together, we delivered a world-class building for Marriott International’s global headquarters that sets a new standard for excellence, innovation, and collaboration,” Bernstein CEO Adam Bernstein said in a statement. “We are grateful for this relationship and look forward to being exceptional stewards of this unique headquarters campus.”
The hotel giant was previously based at the Rock Spring office park in a more suburban part of Bethesda. Its former campus is being redeveloped into senior housing.
For BXP, the project was one of a series of build-to-suit office deals it landed in the D.C. region around that time, also including offices for the Transportation Security Administration, Leidos, WilmerHale and Fannie Mae. The REIT has gone on another winning streak over the last two years, landing law firms to anchor a pair of rare new office buildings in downtown D.C.
It also continues the REIT's spree of sales around the country. Last year, it announced plans to sell nearly $2B of assets and quickly set about shedding properties. Most recently, it sold a development site in Rockville to Toll Brothers for $25M and the 508-unit Signature apartment building at Reston Town Center for $236M.
