SANTA ANA, CA-In a 1031 exchange that took the buyer from an apartment property to retail, a private investor from Northern California has acquired the 107,687-sf Bristol Marketplace for $20.5 million, according to Sperry Van Ness. The buyer acquired the fully leased center from an Oxnard-based private limited liability company that was represented by Ryan Litrich of Sperry Van Ness in San Diego and Brian Sperry of Sperry Van Ness in Irvine.

The property is occupied by a mix of tenants including Kohl's, Sprint, UPS Store and Countrywide Home Loans. In addition, Ralphs, CVS Pharmacy and Target shadow-anchor the property but were not part of the transaction.

The property previously sold in early 2005 with Sperry Van Ness representing the buyer, according to a GlobeSt.com report at the time, which listed the buyer as RPM Investments of Oxnard. The report also noted that Kohl's had recently signed a new 25-year lease. In this recent transaction, the buyer was represented by David Monetta of Monetta Ventures.

Fully leased properties like the Bristol Marketplace are one of the reasons that Orange County retail centers have remained popular with investors in recent years, according to market reports and brokers specializing in the county. With limited land available for new construction, and with the county's economy and population growing, reports say, owners and investors see the county's retail properties as a good long-term bet.

One effect of these conditions is that retail properties in Orange County generally trade less often than those in some other markets. Brokers say that retail owners often prefer to hang onto their properties for the reliable cash flow despite the high prices the buildings command when they hit the market.