550 West Adams, a Class A 18-story office tower totaling approximately 483,677 rentable square feet in Chicago’s West Loop, has been sold to Munich-based GLL Real Estate Partners for $185 million. The seller, SEB Asset Management, is a real estate asset manager based in Frankfurt, Germany.

550 West Adams was developed by Fifield Companies and designed by DeStefano + Partners to be approximately 87 percent glass to allow natural light into the lobby and tenant spaces. Completed in 2006, the 18-story tower has ground retail space. An adjacent parking garage located at 125 South Jefferson provides 18 indoor executive parking spaces along with 16 additional reserved spaces.

The high-rise is anchored by the global headquarters of USG Corporation. Other major tenants include law firm Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard & Smith LPP; Humana Health Plan; and JP Morgan. Situated on .698 acres at the northwest corner of Adams and Clinton Streets, the building is across the street from Union Station and two blocks south of the Ogilvie Transportation Center.

[pullquote]Chicago has attracted strong interest in the redevelopment of vintage office properties into alternative uses, like hotels or multi-housing.
Jaime Fink, HFF[/pullquote]
An HFF investment sales team representing the seller was led by senior managing directors Jaime Fink and Jeffrey Bramson, managing director Mark Katz and real estate analyst Bryan Rosenberg.

“550 West Adams is an excellent example of the strong demand by global investors’ desire to acquire office towers in Chicago,” said Fink, in a statement. “The diversification of capital, both domestic and global, has never been greater than in the past few years.”

Fink added: “Investors realize the benefits of investing in Chicago’s growing economy and diverse employment base. Furthermore, Chicago has attracted strong interest in the redevelopment of vintage office properties into alternative uses, like hotels or multi-housing. Coupling this reduction in office supply with limited office development in the pipeline creates an environment that should bode very well for Chicago’s office markets and office owners.”

HFF recently named Fink co-head of its national office platform, and he assumed the leadership role in January 2015 alongside senior managing directors Stephen Conley and Michael Leggett.

Photo courtesy of Fifield Companies