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COPT Defense Properties Takes $253M Write-Down on General Office Assets

COPT Defense Properties wrote down the value of six properties and a parcel of land in the Baltimore-Washington region by more than $250 million in the third quarter, the Washington Business Journal reported. The Columbia, MD-based REIT recorded a $252.8-million impairment charge for “six operating properties in the Other segment and a parcel of land, located in Baltimore, Maryland, Northern Virginia and Washington, DC” in the quarter ended Sept. 30 and plans to sell them.

The “Other” segment contains eight office properties, including six properties that were previously part of a “regional office” segment. Those properties were reclassified in Q3 as part of a larger move to focus on defense properties and as a part of a rebranding that COPT announced in September, reported the Business Journal.

COPT’s eight “Other” properties were only 75.9% leased and about 75.4% occupied as of the end of September, according to its latest earnings report. In contrast, its 188 properties in the defense/IT market were 97% leased and 96% occupied in the same time frame.

Pictured: COPT Defense Properties’ 250 W. West Pratt St. in Baltimore, one of the properties in the REIT’s “Other” segment.

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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