MIAMI—In case you haven't noticed, the charter school market is ticking up. The latest example of a net lease sale in this sector comes out of Charlotte.

Stan Johnson Company just brokered the sale of a 29,169 square-foot educational facility 100% leased by Corvian Community School. A private investor snapped it up for $4.2 million.

Brad Pepin and Zach Harris of Stan Johnson represented the seller, Charlotte-based RJS Properties. Stan Johnson also represented the buyer in the deal.

“The property featured several elements of a net lease deal that made it attractive from an investment perspective, including a long-term lease with scheduled rental increases, absolute triple net expense structure and an attractive location in a desirable market,” says Harris. The net leased charter school is in the University City area of Charlotte, a high-technology business district near UNC-Charlotte.

“The primary challenge with this transaction was getting a buyer comfortable with the non-profit nature of the tenant and the state and county funding structure that is a principal characteristic of charter schools,” Harris says. “We were able to source a unique buyer with previous experience in acquiring educational assets and current interest in acquiring charter school properties.”

This is not the only example. In a record low cap rate for a charter school, The Imagine School building in Boynton Beach, FL traded hands in January. The building is under a long-term, triple net lease.

Michael Zimmerman, managing director with Calkain Companies, represented both parties in the transaction. The seller, a South Florida-based development company, originally constructed the property as a build-to-suit for the tenant.

Located at 3333 High Ridge Road in Boynton Beach, FL, the net leased asset sold to a private investor for $16,381,800. The cap rate was 7.5%.

“While it may seem second nature to understand a Walgreens, charter schools however, are a bit more complex,” says Zimmerman. “I really had to do my research prior to bringing this asset to market, as understanding how charter schools work, and more importantly being able to really educate prospective buyers about the entire charter school industry as well as this property's performance was imperative.”

Some said that sale could prove to be a bellwether for the charter school sector. Pricing for the more commonplace net lease retail assets such as pharmacies, banks, and quick service restaurants have all seen record low cap rates of late, but the charter school sector has been long overlooked.