The US government has acquired the headquarters of the Defense Health Agency (DHA) in Northern Virginia for USD 285 million. This transaction integrates another large, previously leased office complex into the federal government's real estate portfolio. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command carried out the purchase of the 44-acre property at 7700 Arlington Boulevard in Falls Church.
The seller of the property was GBA Associates, the long-term owner of the site. This is according to land registry documents and information from a General Services Administration (GSA) official cited by the Business Journals. The campus has housed the Defense Health Agency, which manages healthcare for military and uniformed services, since 2011. The agency signed a 15-year lease for USD 370 million in 2010.
Details of the Acquired Campus
The site comprises three Class B office buildings with a total area of approximately 686,000 square feet, constructed between 1954 and 1984. The complex also includes a separate plot with 2,000 parking spaces. Plans from 2018 envisaged the construction of another office building with 179,200 square feet and additional parking facilities, but these were not implemented.
The decision to purchase the property instead of continuing the lease is expected to save the federal government 'several million dollars per year'. This acquisition is part of a broader initiative to reduce federal lease commitments and strengthen its own real estate holdings.
Regional Trends in Federal Real Estate Purchases
The current transaction is part of a series of other large acquisitions of previously leased properties by the federal government in the Washington region. In 2025, the CIA paid USD 247 million for an office building it occupies in Chantilly, Virginia. In 2023, the federal government acquired Liberty Crossing I and II in McLean, Virginia, for USD 531 million. Shortly before the pandemic, the GSA also purchased the Department of Transportation headquarters near the Washington Navy Yard for USD 760 million. These purchases underscore the government's strategic approach to bringing essential facilities into its own ownership.
