California picks broker to sell off buildings

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:

California has picked a broker to sell $2 billion worth of real estate that the troubled state hopes will plug some of its financial holes.

CB Richard Ellis Group will sell 17 state office buildings in Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento, San Francisco and Santa Rosa. After paying off bond obligations on the buildings, the state hopes to net $660 million that will go directly into the general fund to help offset the $20.7 billion deficit projected through June 2011.

"This is a way to free up cash that we desperately need," said Jeffrey Young, a spokesman for the state Department of General Services.

The National Association of Realtors has always said things like "they don't make anymore real estate." I guess they were wrong.