Busy investor grabs Mountain View office buildings at big discount

MOUNTAIN VIEW — A busy real estate firm that just bought a big tech campus in the South Bay has now grabbed two more office buildings in the vicinity, this time at a hefty price discount.

PSAI Realty Partners, in the most recent deal, has paid about $12.9 million to buy two adjacent office buildings in Mountain View, documents filed on Feb. 3 with the Santa Clara County Recorder’s Office show.

The buildings are at 335 and 345 E. Middlefield Road and are less than a mile from a five-building office campus, also in Mountain View, that PSAI Realty bought on Jan. 20 for $193 million.

The various transactions show that veteran and savvy real estate firms such as PSAI Realty are gaining confidence in the South Bay office market, which lately has begun to perk up.

The January acquisition involved an office hub totaling 289,000 square feet, commercial real estate databases show.

The two buildings in the latest deal total 31,200 square feet, according to marketing materials circulated by Colliers, a commercial real estate firm that has been attempting to find tenants for the sites.

PSAI Realty bought the latest buildings at an attractive price compared with their prior values, county property records show.

In 2017, the seller in the deal paid $24.8 million for the two Middlefield buildings. This means PSAI Realty paid 48% less than the prior price for the property. This also suggests that the property might suffer a decline in its assessed value.

If real estate values falter in a region, the decline could impede a crucial revenue stream from property taxes for cities, counties, regional agencies and school districts.