Newmark Knight Frank (NKF) said Wednesday it sold 7 Powder Horn Drive in Warren on behalf of a joint venture partnership between Ivy Realty and Waterfall Asset Management.

The sale represents NKF’s second prominent life sciences asset sale in New Jersey in the last year.

Executive Managing Director Kevin Welsh, Managing Director Brian Schulz and Associate Jason Emrani of NKF’s Capital Markets group represented the seller in the transaction. Executive Managing Director Steven Schultz and Director Dan Reider also provided support on the deal.

The team was also responsible for procuring the purchaser, Thor Equities, while NKF’s Debt and Structured Finance team secured acquisition financing for the purchase.

7 Powder Horn is a 181,210-square-foot specialized life sciences facility that is 100% leased to Celgene/Bristol-Meyers Squibb and serves as a Clinical Center of Excellence. This strategic location is illustrated by Celgene’s more than 32 years at the property, which included a 107,000-square-foot expansion in 2019 to accommodate the company’s growth, and a recent lease extension.

The seller recently completed a capital improvement program featuring a new roof, site work and HVAC upgrades.

“Being situated in New Jersey’s most concentrated life sciences hub, along with the property’s specialized infrastructure, attracted investors to this rare opportunity,” said Welsh. “Investor demand for life sciences facilities has substantially increased in the real estate market during the pandemic.”

According to NKF Research, 7 Powder Horn is part of 8.8 million square feet of specialized life facilities throughout northern and central New Jersey. Vacancy for this asset class is 15.3%, which reflects a 10% decline over the past five years. Employment in the life sciences industry in New Jersey increased by 6.9% to 80,376 over the past two years.