IN THE MEDIA: ACQUISITION

Arlington, VA, October 27, 2022 – Northridge Capital, LLC, the Arlington, VA.-based real estate asset management firm, and its partner Kamco Invest, a GCC based asset management and investment banking Group, recently acquired three (3) Class A office buildings totaling 553,841 square feet all located in one of New Jersey’s premier corporate parks – the Merrill Lynch Hopewell Campus. The 1.8 million square foot corporate campus is situated just off I-95 and is less than 10 miles from downtown Princeton. The campus was constructed in 2000/2001 for Merrill Lynch’s Global Wealth Management Division and consists of a total of (12) brick-clad Class A office buildings. Today, Merrill Lynch occupies nine of the twelve buildings (totaling 1.4 million square feet); the other three buildings are occupied between Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, BNY Mellon and Janssen Pharmaceutical companies.

 

Northridge Capital and Kamco Invest purchased buildings 1300, 1350 and 1400 all of which are occupied by Merrill Lynch on a long-term NNN lease. Each building in the campus portfolio is designed with a brick façade and gabled roofs, reminiscent of a university campus and feel. The buildings were designed to offer maximum flexibility with 14’ to 15’ ceiling heights, rectangular open floor plan layouts and demountable partitions for tenant reconfigurations and needs. The campus is truly unique as it is split up into four pods, of which each contains two larger office buildings with one adjoining “assembly” building. Although each pod is separate, tenants benefit from being part of the larger corporate campus with connecting walking trails and access to the best in market amenities it offers, including multiple structured parking facilities, conference centers, access to multiple cafeterias and a central landscaped plaza with water features and open area available for outdoor dining and collaboration spaces. In addition to being fully amenitized, the trophy park has an exceptional central location. It is a short distance to Bucks County, where a majority of the Princeton labor pool resides due to lower income taxes and more affordable housing options. It is also located within the Princeton Research and Development Corridor, and minutes from the Princeton University. Lastly, the campus is directly across the street from the Planned Scotch Road development, which will bring 2,100 residential units atop a grocery anchored shopping center.

 

“Northridge believes the “campus-like” feel of the Merrill Lynch Corporate Campus has compelling long-term value, which is why the campus continues to be one of the most desirable office destinations in New Jersey today. We are thrilled to once again partner with Kamco Invest; as this reinforces our common belief that return to the office is paramount, and that the need for a sense of community in a unified space will continue to be a necessity,” said David Jackson, President of Northridge Capital.

 

Mohammad Al Othman, Executive Director of Real Estate at Kamco Invest, said, “The acquisition of the Merrill Campus is a notable addition to our international, and especially U.S., net-lease real estate platform. The qualities that the tenancy, the property, the location, and the submarket demonstrate, as well as the bulletproof creditworthiness of the income, reinforce the value preservation attributes of this investment. We firmly believe that challenges create opportunities, and we continue to be determined to pursue best-in-class U.S. and international real estate opportunities to offer our valued investors, despite the various macroeconomic and geopolitical disruptions currently clouding the investment landscape”.

 

“We are excited to invest in such a thriving suburban community. We love Hopewell’s central location within New Jersey as it is only a short commute to and from both New York City and Philadelphia, and benefits from some of the other regional drivers including its established corporate presence, proximity to major universities, a highly educated labor pool, extensive area amenities and a diverse housing base,” said David Etemadi, Managing Director, Investments for Northridge Capital.

 

Northridge Capital, LLC, based in Washington, D.C., is an independent real estate asset management firm that has invested in 62 assets on behalf of investors, with a combined acquisition value of $2.49 billion. Since its founding in 1997, the company has focused on generating superior risk-adjusted returns for international high net-worth individuals and institutions. It acquires, manages and sells real estate assets across a wide variety of property types and geographic areas. For more information, visit www.northridgecapital.com.

 

Kamco Investment Company K.S.C (Public) “Kamco Invest” is a regional non-banking financial powerhouse headquartered in Kuwait with offices in key regional financial markets, established in 1998 and listed on Boursa Kuwait in 2003. It is an Independently managed subsidiary of KIPCO Group adopting highest standards of corporate governance and regulated by the Capital Markets Authority and Central Bank of Kuwait. The Company offers a comprehensive range of investment solutions covering asset management, investment banking and brokerage.

 

Kamco Invest has AUM of over USD13.8bn as of 30 June 2022 allocated to various asset classes and jurisdictions, making it one of the largest asset managers in the MENA region. It has acted as investment banker to deals exceeding USD30bn from its inception to 30 June 2022 in equity capital markets, debt capital markets and mergers & acquisitions.