The office building that houses The Hartford in Farmington has changed hands for more than $23 million.
GTJ REIT, of West Hempstead, N.Y., bought the 107,654-square-foot office building from 8 Farm Springs Road Associates LLC, a joint venture of Holyoke, Mass.-based ESCO Realty Inc. and AFI Properties of Fairfield.
The building is 100 percent leased to The Hartford and the property, which spans more than 10 acres, is located within the Farm Springs Office Park in Farmington.
CBRE’s New York Institutional Group represented the seller along with the firm’s Hartford office, led by John McCormick and Patrick Mulready.
Jeffrey Dunne of CBRE described the building as “irreplaceable within the Hartford office market.” He cited the convenience provided by its proximity to Interstate 84.
GTJ REIT is a private trust located on Long Island. The purchase is the company’s initial foray into the Hartford region.
Condo Sales Tumble
The number of condominium sales in the state fell by 28 percent in February and declined by 32 percent in the first two months of 2008, according to data supplied by The Warren Group.
The hardest hit county was New Haven, which saw its condominium sales fall by nearly 50 percent in February compared to the same month in 2007.
Sales in Hartford County dropped 19 percent, and Tolland County had a 35 percent drop.
While home sales in the state also declined, as did the median price for home sales, the average statewide price for condominium sales actually increased by 1.5 percent in February.
The reverse was true in Middlesex country, where condominium sales skyrocketed by 85 percent, but the median price skidded down 17 percent.
Conveyance Tax Moves On
The state’s 0.50 percent real estate conveyance tax could hang around for at least two more years if proposed legislation is adopted.
Created in 2003 to help balance the budget, the tax imposed on the transfer of real estate property brings in roughly $40 million a year for cash-starved municipalities.
The proposal to extend the tax until 2010 narrowly passed the finance, revenue and bonding committee by a 29 to 21 vote. The legislation has been referred to the Office of Legislative Research and the Office of Fiscal Analysis.
Initially, the bill contained a sunset provision and it was supposed to end after its first year. But municipalities have argued that the tax revenue is still necessary.
Members of the Connecticut Association of Realtors said the bill creates an additional barrier to homeownership and penalizes property sellers.
New Faces, New Places
Coldwell Banker Resident Brokerage announced that it has acquired the assets of Preferred Properties Inc., a family-owned real estate firm located in Greenwich.
“It is an honor to be selected to carry on Preferred Properties’ local traditions of personal service and real estate expertise,” Kate Rossi, president and COO of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Connecticut and Westchester County, N.Y., said in a statement.
The roughly 80 Preferred Properties associates, located primarily in Fairfield County, will now operate under the Coldwell Banker banner.
Colliers Dow & Condon announced the addition of Carl S. Zoephel to its team. Zoephel will specialize in commercial, industrial and investment properties in Farmington Valley and the Windsor area. Zoephel had been the director of business development for Windsor-based TRC Cos.
Sean O’Leary is a Hartford Business Journal staff writer.
