Dealmaker: JLL Income Property Trust Buys Georgia Industrial Asset for $31M

JLL Income Property Trust, Chicago, acquired Mason Mill Distribution Center, a newly constructed industrial property in Buford, Ga., for $31 million.

The 340,000-square-foot Class A property in suburban Atlanta is fully leased to a pharmaceutical distribution company through 2027.

“The fundamental tailwinds benefitting the industrial real estate sector are numerous, and we expect to continue to capture upside associated with this trend as long as it continues,” said JLL Income Property Trust President and CEO Allan Swaringen, noting the real estate investment trust seeks increased exposure to core assets in high barrier to entry markets.

Mason Mill Distribution Center includes 32-foot ceiling heights, LED lighting and a cross-dock design. Its northeast Atlanta submarket has historically been favored by institutional investors because of access to skilled labor and an interstate highway nearby. The area has high barriers to entry due to topography, few available developable land sites and increased resistance by municipalities to permit industrial development.

Economy.com predicted Atlanta–the largest economy in the southeastern U.S.–should grow by 2.1 percent annually over the next five years.

With this acquisition, JLL Income Property Trust owns nearly $560 million of industrial real estate, which represents nearly one-quarter of its portfolio.