Caliber Collision: A Successful Net Lease Investment Is No Accident

One of the lessons that the net lease investment industry has learned over the past year is that reliance on human need makes for strong growth and recession resistance. We saw that fact play out in such sectors as pharmacy, casual dining–as long as there were drive through or curbside pickup options–and even in the industrial market.

The same can be said for the automotive industry in general and collision repair specifically. For net lease investors, the unfortunate news that accidents will always happen is the good news as well. Collisions, be they due to weather conditions, system failures or simply bad driving, are a fact of life on the road. Collision repair, on its surface, may not be the sexiest-sounding investment type. But considered as a recession- and internet-resistant asset that promises long-term and steady growth, it really cannot be beat.

Caliber Collision is the largest auto-repair company in the nation, boasting 1200 locations and rated the highest in customer satisfaction among its competition. Over the years, it has forged partnerships with an impressive 57 car dealerships throughout the US and no fewer than 34 insurance carriers, including such household names as AAA, GEICO, Farmers, Liberty Mutual, Allstate and USAA.

Owned by OMERS Private Equity, which is AAA rated by Standard & Poor’s, Caliber is closing in on $4 billion in revenue. This is supercharged by an aggressive stance of expansion, typified by the nearly $3-billion Caliber/Abra Auto Body Repair merger agreement of two years ago.

This impressive track record is set against an auto-parts and service industry that boasts cap rates under six percent and trending downward and typical lease terms north of 10 years. Caliber is clearly a hot investment type, as affirmed by both CoStar and LoopNet, who report that 47 Calibers were sold last year, and 30 to date this year. By comparison, Starbucks with a whopping 15,000 locations, traded 87 this year. As a market-maker in net lease, Caliber’s 2020 activity seems to be the go-to asset class.

It’s important to note as well that, since this type of service center requires special permitting to build, existing assets are even more valuable. Nevertheless, Caliber is on a growth trajectory, either through new construction or taking over existing real estate, always in high-population areas with easy access.

Buy or build, the strategy opens more opportunities for smart investors to get involved. As noted above, the collision industry as a whole is trading at a sub-six percent cap rate. By comparison, new construction sites occupied by Caliber are trading below a five cap, with 15-year lease terms and 10 percent bumps every five years. What’s more, according to Avison Young’s net lease team, since the beginning of the pandemic, the firm’s overall cap rate for deals with 10+ years of term has compressed from 6.2 percent down to 5.8 percent.

At a time when used car sales are booming and there’s a shortage of available new cars, this industry has sparked investors’ attention. It’s no accident that net-leased Calibers are thriving.