Landmark Gables Building Sold To Boston Firm

By Marilyn Bowden
One of Coral Gables’ most distinctive Class A office buildings, 550 Biltmore, has been sold to a Boston real estate investment advisory firm for $35.8 million.

AEW Capital Management, a 23-year-old company that provides management services to institutional investors, bought the 15-story, 161,150-square-foot building from New York company JP Morgan Fleming Investment Management. According to its Web site, AEW manages about $18.2 billion in capital invested in more than $25 billion worth of property and securities in the US, Canada and Europe. Its clientele includes government entities.

The property went on sale during the second quarter, said Jay Caplin, a senior director at Cushman & Wakefield who represented the seller in the transaction.

Mr. Caplin said the price is one of the highest on record in Coral Gables.

The building is about 93% occupied, he said. Prominent tenants include UBS, Cartier and Finser Corp.

Built by developer Al Sakolsky in 1986, the pyramid-shaped building features Travertine marble on its exterior and Swedish red granite on the interior. It was sold to PM Realty Advisors in 1998 for $33.2 million, heralded at the time as an area record. JP Morgan Fleming subsequently took over as adviser to the unidentified owner.