Highwoods leaves Columbia, S.C., with $24M sale

Highwoods Properties has sold its last remaining buildings in Columbia, S.C. - a move that fulfills its promise to exit the market.

The Raleigh real-estate investment trust said it sold the buildings, mostly flex space encompassing 253,000 square feet, for $23.6 million. Highwoods (NYSE: HIW) said the buildings were an average of 20 years old and 83 percent occupied.

Columbia had been deemed a "non-core market" for Highwoods, which wasn't pleased with its portfolio there or the area's potential for growth. The buildings it sold were expected to bring in just $1.5 million in net operating revenue in 2008.

Highwoods, headquartered in Raleigh, has made efforts to pull out of other non-core areas - some with more success than others.

The company's plan to sell off its assets in Winston-Salem, for example, has been stymied by the size of its portfolio there: 1.3 million square feet of office space, 300,000 square feet of industrial space and 14 acres of land. Highwoods announced the delay of that sale in November, saying the credit crunch has made it difficult for a potential buyer to put together a deal.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: bizjournals.com