NEEDHAM, MA — Wellesley, MA-based Riverside Properties has purchased 160 Gould Street, a 135,272-square-foot office building in the Boston suburb of Needham, MA, for $19 million, in a deal that reflects shifting dynamics in Greater Boston’s commercial real estate market.
The sale was arranged by Newmark, which represented the seller, James Campbell Company, and procured the buyer.
The transaction underscores the broader challenges facing office markets across the region, with pricing and occupancy under pressure.
According to the Boston Business Journal, the $19 million purchase price marks a steep decline from the $26 million James Campbell Co. paid for the property in 2012. The BBJ also reported the property had previously changed hands for $28 million in 2001, highlighting a significant depreciation in value over more than two decades.
Newmark’s Capital Markets team, led by Co-Head of U.S. Capital Markets Robert Griffin and including Executive Vice Chairman Edward Maher, Vice Chairman Matthew Pullen, Executive Managing Director James Tribble, Senior Managing Director Samantha Hallowell, and Associate Director William Sleeper, facilitated the transaction. Boston Private Capital’s Joseph Alvarado and Casey Valente also participated.
“160 Gould Street is a historically strong performer, serving as one of the most attractive options for small-block tenants in the area south of the Interstate 90/95 junction,” said Newmark’s Samantha Hallowell. “It offers an attractive mix of stable in-place tenancy and upside potential, which can be realized through repositioning its lobby and amenities to appeal to modern tenant demand.”
Located less than 20 miles from Downtown Boston, the building offers convenient access to Interstate 95, sits five miles south of the I-90 interchange, and is just a mile from a commuter rail station. Its sub-divisible floor plates of roughly 45,000 square feet and three-story atrium lobby provide flexibility and appeal for tenants seeking suburban space with urban-style amenities.
Tenants at 160 Gould Street include Leader Bank, the Bulfinch Group, the nonprofit Justice Resource Institute, Amparo Insurance, and First Help Financial. A former full-service cafeteria and an outdoor area present opportunities for future amenity enhancements.
As the BBJ noted, the sale occurs amid a broader downturn in the Boston-area office market, with high vacancy rates and declining valuations becoming the norm. The trend is reflected in other deals, including the recent $227 million sale of 99 High Street in downtown Boston, which traded at a 17% discount from its price two decades earlier.
A report from the Boston Policy Institute and the Center for State Policy Analysis warns that Boston could face an annual budget shortfall of $135 million this year, rising to more than $550 million by 2029, largely due to falling office values and the city’s reliance on commercial property tax revenues.
Despite the market headwinds, Riverside Properties continues to focus its investments in Greater Boston suburbs. With its latest acquisition, the firm appears to be betting on long-term recovery and the continued appeal of well-located suburban assets that can adapt to evolving tenant needs.
