Retail Center Trades Above List Price

Seller Bradcom Limited Partnership of Tampa had the property listed for about six months with a national brokerage house whom Bradcom declined to identify. The seller then gave the listing to Orlando-based retail investment broker Pocklington, Pocklington & Forster and the Pocklington group closed the deal in 70 days.

"We were able to secure several offers for the property within two weeks of listing it," Martin P. Forster, a Pocklington group principal, tells GlobeSt.com. "We had four letters of intent and three contracts which we narrowed to two through negotiations, and then selected the final buyer."

The broker calls the deal "a win-win for both parties. The buyer acquired a center with good upside and the sellers obtained 16% more than they had originally expected." The average asking gross rent range at the 10-tenant property is $13 to $18 per sf. The center was renovated in 1997.

The buyer wound up paying $137.04 per sf for the property which was initially listed for $118 per sf. David Fletcher of Wagner Realty negotiated for the buyer. The deal was done at this time because "the seller saw it as a good time to sell this appreciated asset, and the buyer sought a well-located stable asset with a history of high occupancy in a favorable mortgage environment, with upside potential as leases rolled over," Forster tells GlobeSt.com.

Pocklington, Pocklington & Forster works out of the Orlando offices of Advantis Real Estate Services Co./GVA. The Pocklington group specializes in the acquisitions, disposition, management and leasing of retail properties up to 85,000 sf. The group has closed seven retail center deals for a total $26 million since January. "We are ahead of target and ahead of last year," Forster says. The group has three properties valued at $12.7 million currently under contract. "Assuming all goes well, we should end up somewhere around $60 million to $70 million, which is our goal for the year," the broker adds.