The asset management division of Darien-based Signature Group will manage 992 and 1011 High Ridge Road in Stamford, incorporating a total 38,000 square feet.
The properties are owned by a private family trust.
In addition to traditional leasing and property management services, Signature Group, which describes itself as a full-service commercial real estate brokerage firm, will handle tax planning and advanced reporting functions on behalf of the trust.
Signature Group President Bob Gillon negotiated the arrangement with the ownership trust and will manage the account.
The 992 High Ridge Road property is a three-story office building with 13,000 rentable square feet. It currently has a mixed office/medical tenant base. The 1011 High Ridge Road building is also three stories with 25,000 rentable square feet and what Signature Group described as “a similar tenant mix.”
Both properties are located within a half mile of the Merritt Parkway.
Gillon said asset management is a particularly sound option for passive owners of one to five properties. In a number of situations, he said, including with the High Ridge Road properties, a property has been inherited and/or a family requires assistance.
Another case for business management involves owners who acquired a building primarily to house their own business and prefer not to be landlord to the other tenants in the building.
Signature also cited potential clients as those investors who find managing the investment more complicated than they expected; those retiring who want to ensure a property”™s continuing financial viability and cash flow; those with other business responsibilities who don”™t have the time to manage the properties; those who want to maximize the value of a property for sale and need advice on capital improvements; and those seeking better financial record keeping to support pricing and facilitate buyer due diligence.
Peter Sahmel, a trustee of the High Ridge Road properties on behalf of his mother, said, “I”™m an architect by training and practice and understand how to improve and maintain the physical plant and office spaces, which is helpful. However, that”™s only one small part of successfully managing the properties. It”™s a business unto itself. It requires dedicated time and the kind of expertise that Signature Group brings to the table. In a nutshell, it’s about trust, experience, confidence, consistency and reliability.”
Signature Group developed its Asset Management Services division managing Parklands Office Park in Darien, where its offices are located, and in which Gillon is a member of the ownership group. Those class-A offices with Interstate-95 visibility have attracted tenants such as Norseland Inc., the exclusive sales and marketing agent for Jarlsberg, Jarlsberg Lite and other Norwegian cheeses, which relocated from Stamford.
“We manage each client”™s property as though it were our own to assure long term value,” Gillon said. The company website is signatureg.com.
