South Florida’s retail market is in the midst of a buying spree for grocery-anchored shopping centers, buoyed by low single-digit vacancy rates and healthy asking rents.
Deal volume for grocery-anchored shopping centers in the tri-county region hit $1.7 billion during the 12 months that ended Sept. 30, according to a third quarter Colliers report. The deal flow was fueled by institutional investors and local players.
For instance, Boston-based Longpoint Partners, led by Dwight Angelini, dropped $82 million for grocery anchored-shopping centers between the third quarter of last year and the third quarter of this year. Meanwhile, Fort Lauderdale-based Fort Partners purchased supermarket-focused centers totaling $165 million in the past 12 months, Colliers found.
Publix, the Lakeland-based grocery chain, is also in the mix, scooping up South Florida shopping centers anchored by the company’s stores for a combined $187 million since the third quarter of last year, the report states.
South Florida leasing activity is performing well, with vacancy rates holding at less than 4 percent across the three counties, and asking rents also remaining relatively unchanged year-over-year, Colliers found.
Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade County experienced the most notable increase in asking rents year-over-year in South Florida. Retail landlords asked an average of $46 a square foot in the third quarter, compared to $43.26 a square foot during the same period of last year, the report shows. The vacancy rate hit 2.8 percent during the three months ending Sept. 30, virtually the same as the 2.9 percent vacancy rate in the third quarter of last year.
Landlords filled up 117,000 square feet of space, while 28,000 new square feet of retail was completed. Another 1.2 million square feet is under construction, the report states.
Among the largest deals in the third quarter, New York-based Benderson Development, led by President Randy Benderson, paid $83.8 million for Shops at Midtown Miami, a project featuring several big box stores including Target, Marshall’s and Dick’s Sporting Goods. Coral Gables-based Cervera RE Ventures, led by Javier Cervera, scooped up Miller Plaza, a Kendall shopping center, for $18 million.
Broward County
Retail landlords in Broward County increased the average asking rent by a dollar to $28.03 a square foot in the third quarter, compared to $27.03 a square foot during the same period of last year, Colliers found. The vacancy rate inched up to 3.9 percent in the third quarter, compared to 3.5 percent during the same period of last year.
New tenants leased 500,000 square feet of space, and 35,000 square feet of new space was completed in the third quarter, the report shows. Another 519,000 square feet is under construction.
Publix, led by CEO Ken Murphy, notched two of the biggest purchases in the third quarter. The company paid $50.7 million for Davie Shopping Center in Davie, and $32.3 million for Regency Square in Pompano Beach. Both retail sites are anchored by Publix stores.
New York-based Shopone Centers REIT also notched a major acquisition in Broward during the third quarter. The firm paid $36.4 million for Midway Plaza, another Publix-anchored shopping center in Tamarac.
Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County landlords experienced a slight drop in the average asking rent to $28.05 a square foot in the third quarter, compared to $30.02 a square foot during the same period of last year, the report states. The vacancy rate also rose a little to 3.9 percent in the third quarter, compared to 3.4 percent during the same period of last year.
New tenants filled up 340,000 square feet of space, while 32,000 square feet of new space was completed, the report shows. Roughly 224,000 square feet of new space is under construction.
Publix was also involved in a major retail deal in Palm Beach County, paying $36.2 million for Wood Walk Plaza, a shopping center anchored by one of its stores in Lake Worth Beach. In another deal, Boca Raton-based Pebb Capital, led by Todd Rosenberg, nabbed The Press Retail in West Palm Beach for $31.2 million.