Wells Fargo has sold two of its west suburban office properties at prices well below the properties’ assessed valuations, Polk and Dallas county real estate transaction data shows.

The financial institution sold property at 7001 Westown Parkway and 1725 68th St. in West Des Moines for $16.5 million to WB Realty Co., a Central Iowa commercial and residential brokerage firm. The property is valued at just over $73.2 million. Wells Fargo also sold property at 13733 University Ave. in Clive to Heartland Co-op for nearly $6.5 million. That property is valued at $16.1 million.

In early 2023, Wells Fargo announced that it was relocating many of its Des Moines-area employees to its Jordan Creek campus in West Des Moines. Buildings on the 160-acre campus have undergone over $40 million in renovations to accommodate the additional workers.

Wells Fargo Home Mortgage offices had been located at both the Westown and University Avenue sites.

Wells Fargo has also listed for sale properties it owns in downtown Des Moines.

Ryan Wiederstein, owner of WB Realty Co., said the company will lease space in the six-story, 415,636-square-foot office building that was constructed in 2000. Leasing options for potential tenants will range from 4,000 square feet up to the entire building for a single tenant, he said.

“We are excited to provide businesses with this Class A office opportunity in a thriving business environment,” Wiederstein said in a prepared statement. “The 7001 Westown Parkway vacancy now stands as the largest available office space in a single building in the western suburbs market.”

The 28.12-acre parcel also includes an underground data center that is located beneath the parking lot. The underground data center is encased in a rubber membrane that provides unique waterproof protection to the center, according to information on Loopnet.com.

The office building includes newly installed solar panels, an open atrium, cafeteria and fitness center. Over $7 million in upgrades have been made to the building since 2019, according to the Dallas County assessor. In 2022, the roof was replaced, solar panels were added and the fire system panel was upgraded. The chillers were rebuilt in 2021, and new revolving doors were added in 2019 and 2022, according to a Loopnet.com.

Plans for the building include the addition of a restaurant that will serve tenants as well as nearby residents and businesses, according to a news release.

“We’re exploring unique amenities such as indoor pickleball courts and golf simulators,” Dan Carlson, WB Realty project manager, said in a prepared statement. “These amenities, along with the central location, will help businesses attract and retain employees.”

Few new Class A office projects are expected to be built in the western suburbs during the next three years, according to a news release. High interest rates are deterring some companies from building new offices and instead, some are considering relocating into existing vacant space, the release said.

“The decline in new construction is expected to drive demand for existing high-quality office spaces,” Brittany Freund, WB Realty’s senior vice president of commercial real estate, said in a prepared statement. “This demand, along with attractive rental rates, will position 7001 Westown Parkway as a key choice for businesses looking for Class A office space.”

The property’s assessed valuation of $73.2 million is nearly $10 million, or 15.5%, more than in 2022, when its valuation was $63.37 million, assessor information shows.

The transaction also includes 1.7 acres at 1725 68th St. on which a surface parking is located. That property is valued at $674,710.

Listing agents in the transaction, recorded Dec. 29, include Justin Lossner, Jeffrey Miller, Michael Minard and Lucas Hedstrom, all of JLL’s Des Moines office.

In a related transaction, Heartland Co-op has acquired the Wells Fargo property at 13733 University Ave., real estate records show. Officials from Heartland Co-op did not respond to a request for comment.

The 11-acre parcel includes a three-story, 103,813-square-foot building constructed in 1999.

The property is near Heartland Co-op’s administrative offices at 2829 Westown Parkway in West Des Moines. The cooperative leases office space in the building. The cooperative operates grain elevators in over 70 locations in Iowa, Nebraska and Texas.

The transaction between Heartland Co-op and Wells Fargo was recorded Dec. 28.