Criterion Real Estate Capital Affiliate Forecloses on Judiciary Plaza LLC ($166.6M D.C. Office Tower)
An affiliate of noteholder Criterion Real Estate Capital filed a foreclosure notice against Judiciary Plaza LLC, owner of the 539,478-square-foot former Department of Justice office building at 450 Fifth Street NW near Judiciary Square in Washington, D.C. The notice states the owner owes approximately $166.6 million on a $177.5 million note originated in 2007, with a public foreclosure auction scheduled for October 28, 2026.
Why it matters
The foreclosure derails a Commission of Fine Arts-approved plan to convert the Brutalist-style office tower into roughly 500 residential units, illustrating that an approved conversion plan does not protect a property from foreclosure if the underlying legacy debt is not restructured in parallel. Noteholders that acquire distressed commercial mortgage debt at a discount, as Criterion did in the secondary market, are often more willing to foreclose and capture redevelopment upside directly than to extend an existing owner further credit.
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