HYATTSVILLE, MD—In the end, there were overseas and institutional investors chasing the acquisition of The Shoppes at Metro Station, Marcus & Millichap's Dean Zang tells GlobeSt.com. At first glance, though, the asset might have seemed destined to be a net lease play, given that the 30,089 square-foot retail property was anchored by a free-standing CVS. "But this was a hybrid opportunity with the CVS/Pharmacy taking only about one-third of property," he says. Other tenants of the fully-leased center include Starbucks, T-Mobil, and Niebauer Dental.

The asset sold for $12.3 million at a 7% cap rate based on the projected net operating income.

Zang along with Mark Taylor, Michael Shover and Matthew Gorman represented the seller, Baltimore based Multi-Properties. The buyer was a joint venture led by Rosenthal Properties, LLC.

"This was a good investment for Rosenthal as it is a nice, high-quality asset," Zang says.

The pricing was strong--stronger than one might expect for Hyattsville, a lower-income submarket--but here too appearances can be deceiving.

"In general what we are seeing is premium pricing for class A properties even in areas that have not typically seen premium pricing, such as Hyattsville."

This was the first time the property traded since it was developed in 2002.

Eventually the three acre site could be a mixed-use redevelopment, Zang says. "Yet at over $400 per square feet, we do not believe the new ownership is planning that anytime soon,” Shover says in a prepared statement.