EY Ventures Buys 1980s Office in Houston Galleria Area

13 February 2025

A Dallas-based investment firm has acquired a 1980s era office building in Uptown Houston.

EY Ventures, led by co-founders Dan Stansbury Jr. and Steven Mancillas, purchased the 275,000-square-foot building at 515 Post Oak Boulevard, the Houston Business Journal reported. The deal was facilitated by Jeff Hollinden and Kevin McConn of JLL, who represented the buyer as well as the seller, New York Life Real Estate Investors.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Harris Central Appraisal District values the building at $37.5 million, or $136 per square foot.

The 12-story building is on a 3.12-acre site just east of the 610 West Loop, with easy access to Interstates 10 and 59 and the Westpark Tollway, in the Galleria submarket. The property is near high-end restaurants, retail and entertainment venues.

The property has undergone over $1 million in recent capital improvements and is 74 percent leased, with tenants including the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Fullenweider Wilhite, Top Spot and Kelly Drye Jackson. Amenities include a fitness center, tenant lounge, game room and café.

Houston’s office market is facing challenges, particularly for older buildings, as tenants prefer newer buildings with better amenities. The vacancy rate for Houston buildings constructed in the 1980s was 28.7 percent in the second quarter, according to Avison Young. The rate for buildings constructed since 2010 is more like 5 percent.

The vacancy rate in downtown Houston was 26.8 percent in the third quarter, up from and 26.4 percent a year earlier. Houston’s popular Energy Corridor fared better with a rate of 22.9 percent.

LM & Associates recently acquired a 93,500-square-foot office building in the Energy Corridor. The property, at 15990 North Barkers Landing Road, was purchased from Miami-based Banyan Street Capital, which had acquired it in 2014 as part of a larger deal involving 2.2 million square feet from Parkway Properties.

Despite these challenges, the market saw some positive developments. The trophy segment, representing high-quality office spaces, experienced 811,000 square feet of positive absorption last year, according to Avison Young. Additionally, there was a notable increase in office conversions, with 3.7 million square feet announced for conversion last year, per CBRE.

— Andrew Terrell