American Ventures' Sale of Miami Office Tower Sets Record Transaction Price for Florida Commercial Real Estate.

MIAMI -- American Ventures Realty Investors, the largest institutional real estate investment manager in Florida, today announced that its sale of Miami's 1401 Brickell Office Tower set a record transaction price for the Florida Class A office building market. The 188,000 square-foot office building at 1401 Brickell Ave., sold for more than $61 million, or some $325 per net rentable square foot. The acquirer was Testa Inmuebles en Renta, S.A., a major Spanish public real estate company. The complete structure that was sold, including a parking garage, encompasses 393,000 square feet.

"The price paid per square foot, obviously, illustrates the health of the Miami commercial real estate market," said Philip Blumberg, president and CEO of Miami-based American Ventures. "Our company and investors received a very strong return on our investment, while Testa acquired a superbly positioned office building, which we expect will generate steady lease revenue for years to come."

The Brickell Office Tower is 96-percent leased and includes Banco Santander; Citibank; and Foote, Cone & Belding as major tenants. With the divestiture, American Ventures' holdings include commercial properties in the Southeast and Southwest U.S., while the company evaluates acquisitions in new markets.

Founded in 1979 by CEO Philip Blumberg, American Ventures specializes in U. S. commercial real estate, including acquisitions, market research, due diligence, and the management and leasing of commercial properties. Its investment portfolios have comprised some $500 million in commercial real estate assets around the United States.

American Ventures, a Blumberg Capital Management company, is a member of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries. Investors in the American Ventures property fund include high net worth individuals, as well as foundations, pension funds and banks.