Wells Fargo, Bank of America Provide $650M CMBS Refi for Boston Office Complex

The U.S. commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) market continues to fund some of the biggest transactions in the Class A office space. 

A joint venture between Carr Properties and National Real Estate Advisors has secured a $650 million single-asset, single-borrower (SASB) CMBS refinancing for One Congress, a 43-story, 1 million-square-foot office property in Boston that opened in 2023, according to JLL Capital Markets.  

The CMBS deal was led by Wells Fargo and Bank of America, while a JLL Capital Markets team of Riaz Cassum, Coleman Benedict, Jim Meisel, Mike Shepard and Hugh Doherty arranged the financing. 

In statement to CO, a spokesperson to Carr Properties and National Real Estate Advisors classified the CMBS loan as an environmentally friendly “Green Bond”  and said that the loan will position One Congress for long-term stability through “efficient, sustainable financing.”

“The $650 million refinancing of One Congress marks an important milestone and underscores the long-term strength and value of this skyline-defining, trophy office tower,” added the spokesperson.

JLL’s Cassum noted in a statement that securing CMBS financing for SASB borrowers in an uncertain market — with 30-year Treasury yields crossing 5 percent on Monday— requires both strong sponsorship and a Class A asset, and that One Congress held both cards. 

“The Carr and National partnership delivered an office asset that has redefined the trophy office landscape in Boston,” he said. “We are honored to have played a role in this significant financing.”

Sitting at 1 Congress Street in downtown Boston and part of the larger Bulfinch Crossing development that includes three office towers and a new residential building, One Congress is the cornerstone of a 4.8-acre redevelopment of Boston’s downtown. One Congress was the first of the four buildings to open. 

Along with One Congress, Bulfinch Crossing will eventually deliver Two Congress, a 12-story, 500-000 square-foot Class A office and life sciences development; The Sudbury, a 45-story multifamily tower with 368 apartments and 55 condos; and an unnamed second residential tower holding 291 units across 28 stories. 

All told, Bulfinch Crossing will deliver 2.9 million square feet of mixed-use development space, including more than 30,000 square feet of retail and 1,020 parking spaces. 

The all-glass office building at One Congress features column-free floor plans, a rooftop terrace that spans 15,000 square feet, and a 7,000-square-foot fitness center. The building achieved 100 percent leasing more than 12 months before it was completed in 2023, and current tenants include financial services giant State Street Corp., which now calls the building its headquarters, InterSystems Corp., law firm Husch Blackwell and Trillium Asset Management.

The $650 million CMBS refinancing for One Congress comes on the heels of two other enormous SASB office refinancings secured in the last six months in New York City, both by owner Tishman Speyer. Tishman landed a $3.5 billion CMBS refinance for its Rockefeller Center office complex in October and sealed a second $2.85 billion SASB deal for The Spiral, its office tower in Manhattan’s Hudson Yards. In both cases, the CMBS loans were co-originated by consortiums that include Bank of America and Wells Fargo. 

Brian Pascus can be reached at bpascus@commercialobserver.com