"It's the opposite of a vote of confidence for office," said John Kim, an analyst tracking real estate companies for BMO Capital Markets. "My question is, who could be next?"
Anxiety over office buildings has swept the financial world as the persistence of both remote work and higher borrowing costs undercuts the economic fundamentals that made the properties good investments in the first place. A wave of banks from New York to Tokyo recently conceded that loans they made against offices may never be fully repaid, sending their share prices plunging and prompting fears of a broader credit crunch.
But the real test will be what price office buildings actually trade for, and there have been precious few examples since interest rates started rising. That's why industry-watchers see discounted deals like CPPIB's as an ominous sign for the market.
The pension fund isn't actively backing away from offices, but it's not looking to increase its office holdings either, according to a person with knowledge of its strategy. And where a property requires additional investment, CPPIB might simply look to sell so it can put that cash somewhere it can get higher returns instead, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing a private matter.
Peter Ballon, CPPIB's global head of real estate, declined to comment on the recent deals, but said the fund has continued to invest in office buildings, including a recently completed, 37-story tower in Vancouver.
"Selling is an integral part of our investment process," Ballon said in an emailed statement. "We exit when the asset has maximized its value and we are able to redeploy proceeds into higher and better returns in other assets, sectors and markets, including office buildings."
CPPIB's C$590.8 billion ($436.9 billion) fund is one of the world's largest pools of capital, and its C$41.4 billion portfolio of real estate — stretching from Stockholm to Bengaluru — includes almost every property type, from warehouses, to life sciences complexes, to apartment blocks. While that scale would mitigate any potential losses from individual transactions, it also means even a small shift in CPPIB's office appetite has the power to cause ripple effects in the market.
At the end of last year, the fund sold its 29% stake in Manhattan's 360 Park Avenue South for $1 to one of its partners, Boston Properties, which also agreed to assume CPPIB's share of the project's debt. The investors, along with Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, bought the 20-story building in 2021 with plans to redevelop it into a modern workspace.
Boston Properties said last month that the selling partner — which the company didn't name — had already spent $71 million on the project, but severing its ties released it from an obligation to commit an additional $46 million to the effort.
