Salesforce shelled out $145 million for a San Francisco building on the same day that the Bay Area shelter-in-place order went into effect

• Salesforce paid $145 million for a building in San Francisco in March.
• The century-old, five-story building sits across Mission Street from the company's behemoth Salesforce Tower.
• The transaction closed on March 17, the same day that the Bay Area entered a shelter-in-place order to contain the coronavirus disease.
• As thousands adapt to remote-work culture, employers could use office space differently once shutdowns are lifted.
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Salesforce scooped up a century-old building in San Francisco for $145 million in March, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.

The five-story building at 450 Mission sits across the street from the software giant's goliath Salesforce Tower, whose tenants include WeWork as well as others. Salesforce also owns another high-rise nearby. The company now either owns or leases about 2 million square feet of office space in this part of town.

The newly purchased building is zoned for a height of up to 550 feet, as the Chronicle reports, meaning Salesforce could build upon the site. A company spokesperson confirmed the transaction.

The transaction closed on March 17, the same day that San Francisco and other Bay Area counties entered a shelter-in-place order to contain the coronavirus disease, known as COVID-19. Salesforce, as well as other tech companies, had already asked their employees to start working from home before the order was enforced and the real estate purchase was made. The city's center and its myriad offices are all but desolate.

Since the coronavirus pandemic has hit the US, the country's white-collar employees have begun adapting to remote work as millions remain in their homes to curb the spread of the illness. Office culture as we know it may look very different once society re-emerges from the lockdown.

Some real estate experts say the flexible office industry — including co-working space company WeWork — could experience a boom as employers opt for less committal office leases over traditional, long-term ones, as Business Insider's Meghan Morris and Alex Nicoll reports.