Properties SD Retail Investors Are Eyeing

SAN DIEGO—Fully leased or value-add properties are drawing in retail investors from other states to the San Diego market, Lee & Associates associate Michael Golden tells GlobeSt.com. Golden, a 15-year veteran of the real estate and finance industries, recently joined the firm's North San Diego County office. He specializes in the sale and leasing of retail and investment properties throughout San Diego County. We spoke exclusively with him about the types of retail properties most in demand in San Diego and where he sees the market heading.

GlobeSt.com: What types of retail properties are most in demand from investors in San Diego?

Golden: Investors are looking for fully leased or value-add properties. A lot of people are either taking their money out of other states for value-add or fully leased property here for investment.

GlobeSt.com: What makes San Diego the ideal market for these investors?

Golden: The weather and lots of people moving into San Diego, which has been ranked highly as a national city. It's really about the property sect that's here; there are a lot of properties, and the California market is expanding. San Diego is a desirable market because the cap rates are among record lows, which makes it a great time for a seller to dispose of their asset.

GlobeSt.com: Where do you see the retail market heading here?

Golden: With the low interest rates, retail will stay really hot. There's very low supply as opposed to demand, and that's driving our market. That trend is going to continue unless they start changing interest rates and add supply to market. With interest rates still at all-time lows, it is a great time to use OPM (other people's money) to purchase a property. Commercial real estate is still getting higher returns than putting the money in the bank. Single-tenant properties with national-credit tenants are in high demand for their passive income-producing nature.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about the San Diego retail market?

Golden: Prices keep going up because of the low inventory. The market continues to set record sale prices. The San Diego market right now has low cap rates of 5 to 5.5. If you can find those properties, they're great deals. Low supply is keeping everybody busy—everybody into coming into CRE. This new position with Lee is a great opportunity for me to step into wider territory and offer more full service. I can bring in a team that helps me lease and offer a wider breadth of services as opposed to where I was before. If a property has vacancies, I just talk to my leasing team and they help me out. That way, if a client doesn't want to sell, they can lease to help accomplish their goals.

SAN DIEGO—Fully leased or value-add properties are drawing in retail investors from other states to the San Diego market, Lee & Associates associate Michael Golden tells GlobeSt.com. Golden, a 15-year veteran of the real estate and finance industries, recently joined the firm's North San Diego County office. He specializes in the sale and leasing of retail and investment properties throughout San Diego County. We spoke exclusively with him about the types of retail properties most in demand in San Diego and where he sees the market heading.

GlobeSt.com: What types of retail properties are most in demand from investors in San Diego?

Golden: Investors are looking for fully leased or value-add properties. A lot of people are either taking their money out of other states for value-add or fully leased property here for investment.

GlobeSt.com: What makes San Diego the ideal market for these investors?

Golden: The weather and lots of people moving into San Diego, which has been ranked highly as a national city. It's really about the property sect that's here; there are a lot of properties, and the California market is expanding. San Diego is a desirable market because the cap rates are among record lows, which makes it a great time for a seller to dispose of their asset.

GlobeSt.com: Where do you see the retail market heading here?

Golden: With the low interest rates, retail will stay really hot. There's very low supply as opposed to demand, and that's driving our market. That trend is going to continue unless they start changing interest rates and add supply to market. With interest rates still at all-time lows, it is a great time to use OPM (other people's money) to purchase a property. Commercial real estate is still getting higher returns than putting the money in the bank. Single-tenant properties with national-credit tenants are in high demand for their passive income-producing nature.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about the San Diego retail market?

Golden: Prices keep going up because of the low inventory. The market continues to set record sale prices. The San Diego market right now has low cap rates of 5 to 5.5. If you can find those properties, they're great deals. Low supply is keeping everybody busy—everybody into coming into CRE. This new position with Lee is a great opportunity for me to step into wider territory and offer more full service. I can bring in a team that helps me lease and offer a wider breadth of services as opposed to where I was before. If a property has vacancies, I just talk to my leasing team and they help me out. That way, if a client doesn't want to sell, they can lease to help accomplish their goals.