The Commonwealth Building is Shorenstein’s fifth major purchase in the nation’s capital. The company first entered the market in 2001 with the purchase of Washington Harbour, a 537,000 square foot office complex in Georgetown. That asset was sold in March 2003 but Shorenstein currently owns nearly one million square feet of office property in the East End submarket as well as the city’s Central Business District. The Commonwealth Building is also located within the CBD, just three blocks from the White House on prestigious K Street.

Commenting on the purchase, Douglas Shorenstein, Chairman and CEO of Shorenstein Properties, said: “The Washington DC market continues to show positive growth from a real estate investment perspective, especially in the office sector, and we are delighted to expand our holdings in this vital market. This is a well located asset positioned to benefit from anticipated growth among the Capitol’s professional and government tenant base and fits well into the national office portfolio we are in the process of creating for our current fund.”

Since 1992, Shorenstein has sponsored a series of closed-end investment funds. The company has acquired and developed through these funds over 19 million square feet in markets throughout the United States. In investing these funds, Shorenstein applies its investment and operating capabilities to capitalize on opportunities offering the most attractive risk-adjusted returns. As a result, fund investments have included everything from ground-up development to asset repositioning to stabilized assets. Investment structures have included 100% acquisitions, preferred equity, mezzanine loans and structured joint ventures.