The new owner is Seligman Western Enterprises Ltd., an affiliate of Detroit-based Seligman & Associates Inc., the highest offer of at least 10 that rolled in for the Niels Esperson Building at 808 Travis St. and Mellie Esperson Building at 815 Walker St. and their 600-space parking garage at 806 Rusk St. The no-ask offering went from marketing to closing in 90 days, drawing mostly out-of-state investors to the chase. "It speaks to how much attention Houston is getting from investors on a national level," says Doug Wiley, executive director of Denver-based Amstar.

Wiley says Seligman had a clear-cut advantage on the buying field because it has a historic office building in its portfolio. "They did bring a lot of certainty to close because they have one of these in San Francisco," he says. "They were the right buyer."

Wiley tells GlobeSt.com that the 75%-leased Esperson Buildings have less than a 15% annual roll in leases for the next three years. The upshot is Seligman can tag team on the upside by filling the 25% vacancy and getting market rates from rolling below-market leases. As the acquisition pushed toward closing, Wiley says rates had increased 20%. "They will get to immediately recognize higher rates in a fully renovated and well-maintained iconic asset in an extremely hot market," he stresses.