Jackson Financial Sues to Foreclose on Bob Hope Building in Washington

News May 06, 2024 at 10:01 AM
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Bob Hope appears on a podium in front of a 10-story building that was completed in 1963.

Jackson Financial has sued to foreclose on an $18.1 million mortgage backed by the Bob Hope Building, a 10-story office building in Washington.

Bob Hope, an actor and comedian, attended a dedication ceremony at the building May 30, 1985, when the United Services Organizations named it in his honor.

Jackson and the owner of the building, BHB Partners, did not respond to requests for comment on the suit, filed April 12.

Jackson ended 2023 with $1.4 billion of investments in office mortgage loans and $61 billion in all types of general account investments.

The Bob Hope Building: The building now known as the Bob Hope Building was originally known as the Judiciary Building in 1961, when construction on the building began.

Many of the early tenants were District of Columbia government agencies.

The USO, a charitable organization that provides support for active-duty service members and military families, bought the building in 1982, renovated it and reopened it as the USO headquarters building in 1985.

The USO named the building after Hope because of his decades of support for efforts to provide entertainment for U.S. military personnel.

The USO moved its headquarters out of the building in 1992, and other tenants moved in.

The mortgage: Jackson provided a fixed-rate loan for BHB Partners in 2016, according to a document filed along with the complaint.

The interest rate on the loan was 3.53% per year, and the monthly payment was $53,244.17.

In September 2023, the principal balance was $16.7 million.

The loan matured March 10. Jackson sent BHB a notice of default March 13.

"Defendant does not appear to contest that it has caused an event of default under the loan documents," according to the complaint.

The backdrop: Office-related investments were flourishing before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since then, higher interest rates, increased use of work-from-home arrangements and tenants' interest in newer, higher-tech buildings have hit the value of older office buildings hard.

Bob Hope appeared in May 30, 1985, at a ceremony marking the renovation of Washington's old Judiciary Building and naming it the Bob Hope Building. Credit: Carol M. Highsmith/Library of Congress

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