McCoy Strikes $5.5-Mil Sale-Leaseback Deal

HOUSTON-J.A. Billipp & Co., a Houston-based commercial real estate and investment company, has teamed up with NYC-based partner W.P. Carey & Co. LLC in a $5.5-miillion sale-leaseback of the Houston headquarters of McCoy Workplace Solutions LP.

The 140,030-sf headquarters and distribution facility is located at 565 W. 38th St. McCoy, the city’s largest office furniture and floor covering company, will be leasing the structure from the purchasing entity, Corporate Property Associates 14 Inc. W.P. Carey & Co. manages the privately held REIT that focuses on single-tenant commercial properties.

Edward V. LaPuma, Carey’s executive director and acquisitions officer, says the deal is a vehicle to meet McCoy’s needs for additional capital and add “another great property” to the portfolio. The REIT’s current consists of 66 properties that are leased to 44 tenants in the US and Europe. All of the properties entail long-term, triple net leases, requiring the tenants to maintain properties, insure buildings and pay all real estate taxes. The sale-leaseback deals effectively remove the real estate from company’s balance sheets so capital can be redeployed for other business needs.