Buyer seeking hassle-free property finds it on Portland's Industrial Way
Courtesy / Malone Commercial Brokers
14 Industrial Way, in Portland, sold $3.65 million on Sept. 20 to a buyer looking for an easier property to manage than the apartment complex he had just sold in South Portland.
A buyer who was looking for a property that wouldn’t be too management-intensive found it when he purchased 14 Industrial Way in Portland.
Keiter and Associates QI for KJS Family Trust purchased the property -- consisting of a 26,427-square-foot warehouse/flex building on 1.72 acres -- from Dairy Times LLC for $3.65 million.
The building was built in 1987.
Joe Malone and Jennifer Small, representing the seller, and Peter Harrington, representing the buyer, brokered the transaction, which closed Sept. 20. The three brokers are all with Malone Commercial Brokers. Harrington is also president-elect of Maine Association of Realtors.
The buyer took advantage of the IRS 1031 tax-deferred exchange program when he reinvested the proceeds from the sale of his South Portland apartment complex into the purchase of 14 Industrial Way, explained Harrington.
The sale of the apartment complex was timely, Harrington said, because apartment prices appear to have peaked at an all-time high.
He added, “He thought it would be a good time to exchange into a property that needed less management.”
The buyer’s name is confidential. But Harrington said the buyer owns a number of commercial buildings.
Top-shelf tenant
A search for a property to buy under the IRS 1031 program can take months, said Harrington.
“It’s very difficult to find something in greater Portland,” he said. “It’s a very competitive market.”
As it turned out, 14 Industrial Way wasn’t actually on the market, noted Harrington. Nevertheless, he said, Malone Commercial Brokers fielded a number of offers on it.
“A lot of sales happening now are properties that are off-market,” he said.
Off-market interest was spurred by the property’s high quality, he said.
“This is a nice, well-maintained building that doesn’t need any work done and has a long-term lease with a national credit tenant,” he said, noting that the tenant holds an investment grade rating based on its size and financial strength.
The tenant is DesignTex, which is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of Steelcase Inc., which produces office furniture, interior architecture and space solutions. According to its website, DesignTex designs and manufactures applied materials for the built environment.
In 2011, DesignTex purchased Portland Color, a large-format digital-printing company. DesignTex had been Portland Color's largest customer, the latter’s owner, Andy Graham, told Mainebiz at the time.
Some people might say the $3.65 million purchase price is a little high, noted Harrington. But given the high quality of the property and the tenant, its excellent location near the intersection of Riverside Street and Route 302 (Forest Avenue), and the high cost of new construction, Harrington said both buyer and seller considered the price reasonable.
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