Developer Redco has purchased Wells Fargo’s longtime San Francisco headquarters building for $55 million and has major plans to transform the 1959 building.
A new rooftop deck, ground-floor restaurant, café and martini bar are all part of a makeover planned for the 12-story property at 420 Montgomery St. An underground bank vault would become a fitness center, bowling alley and speakeasy under the plan.
The banking giant is leaving next year and has designated 333 Market St. as its new headquarters — although CEO Charles Scharf and other top executives work out of New York.
Redco bought Wells Fargo’s headquarters building for $55 million. Photo courtesy of Redco
The deal is another sign of increasing investor appetite for downtown offices, after an exodus of tenants during the pandemic and major price discounts. A return to office and a boom in artificial intelligence have added momentum to the city’s comeback.
Redco has purchased numerous Financial District buildings, including the neighboring 400 Montgomery St. and 300 California St. It saw an opportunity at the 400,000-square-foot Wells Fargo building, which had never been sold and is being rebranded as 450 California. Redco also obtained a major discount — the $55 million price was less than half of the property's $127.6 million city-assessed value.
“Once you get in, it’s really amazing,” said Chris Freise, Redco managing partner. “It’s got amazing bones.”
There’s already a Japanese Zen garden, views of the bay and the Transamerica Pyramid, and a penthouse attached to the planned new outdoor space. Wells Fargo has cut around half of its San Francisco office space since the pandemic and also sold 550 California St.
However, it renewed its lease in Concord for 257,000 square feet, the San Francisco Business Times reported. The bank didn’t immediately provide comment.
Redco plans to invest millions to renovate the building, Freise said. Construction is expected to start in the second half of next year and take around nine to twelve months, he said.
Floorplan of the new food and beverage amenities in the former Wells Fargo branch on California. Courtesy of Redco
An artist’s rendering of a new lobby at the former Wells Fargo headquarters, which would include a new cafe, restaurant and bar. Courtesy of Redco
Annual asking rent will be around the high $60s to low $70s per square foot, he said. That’s lower than the most expensive offices in the city, which can go for over $100 per square foot, and Freise expects the pricing to give Redco a competitive edge.
He also noted that there aren’t many other available listings for 400,000 square feet in contiguous vacant space that are in that pricing range.
Though another bidder had floated the idea of converting the building into housing, Freise said Redco was eager to capture the business growth in the city, which has been fueled in part by a boom in artificial intelligence.
“We believe in San Francisco. We believe in office. We believe in tenants growing in the city. We think this is a super compelling space offering for the right HQ user,” he said.