HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – The 47-story Texas Tower, one of the newest office towers in Houston, has been refinanced for $450 million.
The 1.2 million-SF building, located at 845 Texas Avenue on the site of the former Houston Chronicle, was completed in 2021. Today, it’s 95% leased with tenants including Vinson & Elkins, Morgan Stanley, and Cheniere Energy. The tower also houses Hines’ 188,000-SF global headquarters.
The high occupancy of Texas Tower stands in contrast to market trends. Houston’s overall downtown office vacancy rate is around 26%.
Flight-to-Quality
The Texas Tower is EXHIBIT A in the so-called flight-to-quality trend. With its hotelish lobby, two restaurants by Ben Berg, outdoor terraces and other amenities, the Texas Tower – with quality architecture by Pelli Clark Pelli – attracted top drawer tenants, even in the work-from-home, post-Covid era.
The building was developed by Hines, in partnership with Ivanhoé Cambridge, which is the real estate arm of a Canadian pension fund called CDPQ.
Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley provided the refinancing funding. Newmark arranged the financing package. Newmark’s Jonathan Firestone said it was the first time in two years that a multi-tenant building in Texas was financed with this particular type of loan
Hot Property: Opportunity to Buy-in was Oversubscribed 5X
“The refinancing for this award-winning property was particularly notable as it marked the first time in two years that a multi-tenant office tower outside of New York City was financed in the CMBS single-asset, single-borrower market,” said Firestone. “Our team worked closely with the lender to navigate rating agency and appraisal feedback, ultimately driving exceptional investor demand. The AAA-rated bonds were nearly five times oversubscribed, while lower tranches saw demand outstrip supply by as much as 20 times. This overwhelming interest led to pricing tightening significantly, resulting in final loan terms that exceeded expectations and an exceptional result for our clients.”
Newmark Co-Heads of Global Debt & Structured Finance Jordan Roeschlaub and Jonathan Firestone, Vice Chairmen Clint Frease and Blake Thompson, Managing Director Travis Bailey, Director Peter Mavredakis and Associate Director Tim Polglase assembled the financing package on behalf of owners Hines and Ivanhoé Cambridge.
Located adjacent to Houston’s Theater District, the Texas Tower sits on a block bounded by Milam, Prairie, Travis and Texas Avenue. A number of Hines high-rise properties, both office and residential, are located near the Texas Tower, including the 75-story JP Morgan Chase Tower.
Other tenants in the Texas Tower include several law firms: Clifford Chance, McGuireWoods and DLA Piper Sheppard Mullin law firms, along with Chicago Title, Charter Title Company, Sable Offshore Corp., Moelis & Co., and Squarepoint Capital.
Michael Anderson of Cushman & Wakefield has represented Texas Tower’s owners in leasing the building.
Hines was founded in Houston in 1957 by Mr. Gerald D. Hines.
March 3, 2025 Realty News Report Copyright 2025
Photo: Cynthia Lescalleet, CALpix, Copyright 2025
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