CoStar Building Flip

In what is being called the most profitable real estate flip since the recession, CoStar Group recently announced that it is selling its downtown D.C. headquarters for a profit of $60 million.

CoStar originally bought the building, 1331 L St. NW, about a year ago for $41.25 million from the Mortgage Bankers Association and is now selling it to GLL Real Estate Partners, a Munich-based company, for $101 million.

The arrangement between the two real estate giants will be finalized at the end of the month. Although GLL will now own the 169,429-square-foot, LEED-certified facility, CoStar’s headquarters will remain in the building under a long-term lease in what CoStar is calling a “win-win” situation.

“This sale will enable us to unlock the value of this formerly distressed property and provide an attractive return on our investment,” said CoStar founder and CEO Andrew Florance in a press release. “At the same time, we were able to secure an efficient and environmentally responsible headquarters office for our Company at a tremendous downtown location for our employees, and create a valuable, fully leased long-term asset for the new owner.”

CoStar cites its professional insight in the real estate industry for being able to organize such a profitable flip in the midst of an economic recession.