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Third Lake Partners buys UPC’s properties
As St. Peterburg-based United Property and Casualty insurance (UPC) is exiting the state, Third Lake Partners is scooping up its remaining properties in St. Petersburg.
Tampa-based Third Lake Partners, which recently purchased UPC’s headquarters at 800 2nd Ave. S. for $10.5 million, purchased UPC’s additional office building and the surrounding vacant land.
The new $6.5 million purchase includes the four parcels at 724 2nd Ave. S. and 3rd Avenue S. near UPC’s former HQ.
UPC’s office building at 724 2nd Ave. S., St. Petersburg. GoogleMaps.
The group purchased the properties under the LLC entity TLP RE MF VI Saint Petersburg II Owner, which is linked to Rob Forsythe and Ken Jones of Third Lake Partners.
Jones was not immediately available for comment.
The distance between UPC’s former HQ and the office site and the surrounding vacant parcels that were acquired. GoogleMaps.
The sale comes after UPC’s parent company Demotech’s financial stability rating was withdrawn due to seeing a downgrade, and its personal lines subsidiary UPC carrier announced it was pulling out from its operations and going into an orderly run-off.
The company has suffered significant losses, including a $173 million net loss in the third quarter. Additionally, UPC was hit with $1 billion Hurricane Ian-related claims, creating a deeper financial hole.
Insurance experts expect UPC to declare insolvency; however, the company is currently solvent as it cancels policies in Florida and was recently placed on administrative supervision by the state.
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation’s order for the administrative supervision sates that UPC must maintain staff to communicate with policyholders, submit customer service scripts for approval and that its agents must assist with transferring policies with other carriers. It also mandates that customers receive all unearned premiums by June 1, 2023.
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Prior to the sale of its HQ and being placed under administrative supervision, UPC sold several of its other parcels in St. Petersburg. At that time, the company said it sold the parcels as it was pivoting to a hybrid workforce and did not require a large physical footprint.
