Continental Realty Corporation has expanded into the Southern California retail property market with the acquisition of a 292,000sqft lifestyle centre.
The US real estate fund manager, investing on behalf of Continental Realty Opportunistic Retail Fund I (CRORF), has acquired the South Coast Collection (SoCo) in Costa Mesa, an asset IPE Real Assets understands is worth around $110m (€103m).
The luxury home furnishing and design lifestyle centre with 60 stores is 97% leased.
Josh Dinstein, SVP of acquisitions at Continental Realty Corporation, said: “SoCo is the only shopping venue of its kind in an extensive, high net worth trade area. An irreplaceable asset strategically located in a top-tier infill urban market, it features an attractive, customer-friendly layout and a synergistic tenant mix that includes some of the nation’s top home design and furniture stores.”
Dinstein said the asset’s “institutional quality and strong value-add potential”, plus its location in the heart of Orange County, made it the perfect acquisition for Continental Realty’s entry into southern California.
Continental Realty Corporation’s CEO JM Schapiro, said: “We believe in the enduring strength of the Southern California marketplace, and we are confident that the unique ecosystem at SoCo, low sub-market vacancy and lack of new supply are key factors that will enable us to execute our strategic plan to add value and deliver a solid risk-adjusted yield to our investor group.”
The SoCo transaction is the second asset acquired by Continental Realty on behalf of CRORF this year, following a $78m deal to buy Lakeside Village, a nearly 460,000sqft regional lifestyle centre located east of Tampa, Florida.
CRORF targets diversified portfolio of distressed, opportunistic and value-add retail properties throughout the US.
With the latest transaction, Baltimore-based Continental Realty has now acquired nearly $740m worth of retail real estate over the past three years. The manager is active in 11 states, managing over $3.7bn assets.
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