Newmark Knight Frank Completes Sale of Four Single-Tenant Retail Properties in Southern California Totaling $31 Million

June 19, 2020 — Newmark Knight Frank (“NKF”) completed four separate transactions of single-tenant retail properties located throughout Southern California for a total of $31 million.

NKF’s Vice Chairman Bill Bauman, Executive Managing Director Kyle Miller and Directors Michael Fogel and Matt Schwartz executed the four transactions.

“Single-tenant retail assets with solid credit, an operating history, favorable lease terms and quality real estate fundamentals remain in high demand, amid volatile capital markets due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Bauman. “We are seeing 1031-exchange investors very active in the market and pleased with the IRS’ decision to provide relief/extensions on 1031 timelines.”

Miller added, “Essential retail tenants, such as grocers and drugstores, continue to be highly sought after by investors, especially those who have experienced a significant increase in sales as of late.”

The first property, occupied by CVS, is located at 42150 Jackson Street in lndio and sold for $3.9 million in an all-cash transaction at a 5.1% cap rate. The seller was a private Orange County-based investor and developer, and the buyer was a private investor.

The second property, occupied by McDonalds, is located at 1712 Pacific Coast Highway in Lomita and sold for $2.4 million in an all-cash transaction at a 2.77% cap rate. The seller was a private family trust. The buyer, McDonalds, exercised its right of first refusal after the NKF team was able to generate multiple highly competitive offers.

The third property, which sold for $9.9 million at a 5.85% cap rate, is located at 14528 Palmdale Road in Victorville and is occupied by Cardenas, one of the leading Hispanic grocers in Southern California. The NKF team advised the seller, a private Orange County-based developer, and Ed Barkett of Atlas Properties represented the buyer, a private, 1031-exchange investor.

The fourth property, located at 14351 Hindry Avenue in Hawthorne, is occupied by Bed, Bath & Beyond and sold for $14 million. The seller was Hawthorne Gateway, LP, a private Los Angeles-based partnership, and the 1031-exchange buyer was a private, family office. The NKF team, along with Michael Grannis of Highland Partners, advised the seller, who has owned the property for nearly 18 years. NKF helped to implement a break-up strategy that included a simultaneous pay-off and recapitalization of the existing loan to free up the Bed Bath & Beyond parcel at close of escrow.

In the last month, the NKF team has launched over $150 million of high-profile, single-tenant transactions, including a Whole Foods in Santa Barbara and an Apple store located at Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, further underscoring the steady demand and momentum of single-tenant retail properties, amid recent economic turmoil.

According to NKF Research, private buyers drove acquisitions in recent years, a trend that will persist in 2020. Many of these buyers are high-net-worth individuals in search of yields that exceed the Treasury. COVID-19’s effects on global stock markets, which are highly volatile in the current environment, also enhance the appeal and security of net-leased investments as property owners receive the benefits of an income stream from a tenant and the underlying value of the asset.