WASHINGTON, DC–A few weeks ago the locally-based White Star Investments, which represents that family office of Ken Bajaj, acquired 4209 9th St., NW, an 11,500-square foot office building in Petworth. For anyone following the firm the acquisition was a bit of a departure: for the most part it has acquired and developed and renovated one asset class — retail — save for another office building in Loudoun County.
This is not to say that White Star doesn't look at other asset classes, according to Chief Investment Officer Craig Bernstein, who joined the firm for ten years from Cushman & Wakefield. “We acquire quality multi-generational assets that the family can own for long time,” he tells GlobeSt.com. “We evaluate these assets on a case by case basis.”
All together the firm owns nine assets and is currently working on its 10th — a retail holding in an emerging market in the District, according to Bernstein.
GlobeSt.com spoke with Bernstein to find out more about White Star's investment strategy. Following are excerpts of our talk.
Who is the Bajaj family: The family has been very successful in the technology space — it has sold more than $3 billion in tech and government IT companies over the years. One of the sons, Sunny, runs DMI, a large government contractor and the other son, Reuben is very active with White Star.
More about White Star's portfolio: The properties, mainly grocery-anchored retail and neighborhood centers, are located in core locations in the area including the Golden Triangle, Downtown Bethesda, Loudoun, Annapolis and Frederick. The firm has done ground up development, renovations and acquired income-producing properties — basically everything along the investment spectrum.
About the other office building: It is some 70,000 square feet in Loudoun, which was acquired last year. The decision to buy it was driven by its location and the size of suites, which are attractive to smaller users located along the Dulles Corridor and Route 28 Corridor.
About its latest purchase: It'll be closing by year end.
WASHINGTON, DC–A few weeks ago the locally-based White Star Investments, which represents that family office of Ken Bajaj, acquired 4209 9th St., NW, an 11,500-square foot office building in Petworth. For anyone following the firm the acquisition was a bit of a departure: for the most part it has acquired and developed and renovated one asset class — retail — save for another office building in Loudoun County.
This is not to say that White Star doesn't look at other asset classes, according to Chief Investment Officer Craig Bernstein, who joined the firm for ten years from Cushman & Wakefield. “We acquire quality multi-generational assets that the family can own for long time,” he tells GlobeSt.com. “We evaluate these assets on a case by case basis.”
All together the firm owns nine assets and is currently working on its 10th — a retail holding in an emerging market in the District, according to Bernstein.
GlobeSt.com spoke with Bernstein to find out more about White Star's investment strategy. Following are excerpts of our talk.
Who is the Bajaj family: The family has been very successful in the technology space — it has sold more than $3 billion in tech and government IT companies over the years. One of the sons, Sunny, runs DMI, a large government contractor and the other son, Reuben is very active with White Star.
More about White Star's portfolio: The properties, mainly grocery-anchored retail and neighborhood centers, are located in core locations in the area including the Golden Triangle, Downtown Bethesda, Loudoun, Annapolis and Frederick. The firm has done ground up development, renovations and acquired income-producing properties — basically everything along the investment spectrum.
About the other office building: It is some 70,000 square feet in Loudoun, which was acquired last year. The decision to buy it was driven by its location and the size of suites, which are attractive to smaller users located along the Dulles Corridor and Route 28 Corridor.
About its latest purchase: It'll be closing by year end.
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
