SRS Real Estate Partners Announces Record-Breaking $6.15 Million Ground Lease Sale of a New Construction Chick-fil-A Property in Murrieta, California

Commercial Real Estate Transaction Alert

SRS Real Estate Partners Capital Markets has completed the $6.15 million ground lease (land ownership) sale of a 5,000-square-foot Chick-fil-A property located at 27960 Clinton Keith Road in Murrieta, Calif. The new construction property recently opened for business in March this year and has a 15-year ground lease in place.

The transaction marks two sales records. First, at 3.9%, it is the lowest cap rate for a Chick-fil-A property sold this year nationwide. Second, the sale is the lowest cap rate this year for all Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) sales in Southern California with annual rent above $200,000.

SRS Capital Markets First Vice President Winston Guest and Managing Principals Matthew Mousavi and Patrick Luther represented the seller and developer of the property, Newport Beach, CA-based Sage Investco, as well as the all-cash buyer, a private family trust from California.

The Chick-fil-A property sale is part of a break-up strategy valued in excess of $20 million for the class A pads at The Vineyard Shopping Center, a 26.3-acre retail project anchored by Costco Wholesale and ALDI near Interstate 15. Other parcels being sold by SRS include Chase Bank, Chipotle and Verizon Wireless, Ono Hawaiian BBQ, and Ramona Tires.

“Despite current market conditions, we are seeing specific segments of the buyer pool come forward seeking high-quality real estate and certain credits, as was the case here with this Chick-fil-A sale that was acquired by a repeat non-1031 client for a long-term hold,” said Mousavi. “Our SRS team is pleased to complete this record-breaking sale for both parties and we look forward to the completion and sale of the remaining parcels.”

“High profile retail developments like this in Southern California can take years to get to this point and are scarcer as markets saturate and become further developed,” added Guest. “The remaining parcels for sale adjacent to this Chick-fil-A represent some of the best real estate available, and we expect the demand for those to increase as a result of this record-breaking sale.”

Situated on 2.09 acres, the property is strategically positioned within an expanding retail corridor with numerous plans for additional development. Nearby development projects include a 522 home single-family residential project in Murrieta Hills; a 210-unit apartment complex near Interstate 15; and a commercial and retail center, among others.

According to Technomic Ignite, since 2018 Chick-fil-A has doubled its total sales volume. Last year the chain generated $21.58 billion in sales which is a 14.7% increase over the previous year’s $18.81 billion and over 43% over 2021’s $15 billion. This brand has also continued to gain market share over its biggest competitors in the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) chicken sandwich category – Popeyes and KFC. Further, Chick-fil-A released its latest Franchisee Disclosure last month which showed that the average unit volume (AUV) for non-mall locations in 2023 reached a record $9.3 million, an 8.1% increase over the previous record of $8.67 million in 2022.

Over the past 12 months, SRS has sold Chick-fil-A assets in Arizona, California, Texas, Michigan, Florida, Kansas, New Jersey and Georgia, and has locations on the market in California, Florida, Texas, Maryland, Arkansas, on the market.

Year to date, SRS Capital Markets has completed approximately $840 million in deal volume comprised of over 200 transactions in 34 states. SRS currently has in excess of 698 properties actively on the market with a market value surpassing $3.7 billion.