KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT Acquires 21-Story Houston Office Tower | 1800 West Loop South in the West Loop/Galleria Submarket Is the Non-Traded REIT's Sixth Investment of the Year

KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT Inc. (KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT), a public non-traded real estate investment trust headquartered in Newport Beach, Calif., has made its sixth investment this year: 1800 West Loop South, a 400,101-square-foot, 21-story office tower in Houston. At acquisition, the building was 88-percent leased. 

Situated off Interstate 610 in West Loop/Galleria, Houston's premier business and shopping district, 1800 West Loop South was constructed in 1982 and renovated in 2005. KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT has plans for additional building improvements and modernizations, including an upgrade of the lobby and elevators. Onsite building features include a deli, laundry and dry-cleaning service and 11-story parking garage.

"We are pleased to acquire another quality Houston asset," said Jeff Rader, vice president of KBS Capital Advisors. "Houston is among the best performing markets in the country and we believe that strong oil prices, an increasingly diversified local economy, and the lack of new office development will contribute to significant demand over the long haul."

KBS-affiliated companies own four other Houston-area properties for a total of more than 1.3 million square feet. They include Ten West Corporate Center, a 199,001-square-foot office building in the Katy Freeway/Energy Corridor submarket, the 454,843-square-foot Two Westlake Park complex, Clay Crossing, a 222,750-square-foot industrial campus, and the 70,474-square-foot 8300 FM 1960 building.

KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT is a public non-traded real estate investment trust that intends to invest in and manage a diverse portfolio of real estate-related loans, opportunistic real estate, real estate-related debt securities and other real estate-related investments. KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT was sponsored indirectly by Charles J. Schreiber, Jr., Peter Bren, Keith Hall and Peter McMillan III and is advised by KBS Capital Advisors LLC, an affiliated entity which is indirectly owned and controlled by KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT's sponsors.