October 1, 2021

CRC Enters Michigan Market With Purchase Of Oakland Plaza And Oakland Square In Troy For $34 Million

Acquisition is first for Continental Realty’s Opportunistic Retail Fund, a private equity fund formed this year and focused on acquiring value-add retail and opportunistic retail investment opportunities throughout the United States

BALTIMORE, MD (October 1, 2021) – Continental Realty Corporation (CRC), a Baltimore-based real estate investment and management company, has entered the Michigan real estate market with its acquisition of Oakland Plaza and Oakland Square, two shopping centers located in Troy, MI, consisting of nearly 392,000 square feet of gross leasable area on 41 acres. The assets were cumulatively 87% occupied at the time they were acquired for $34 million ($87 per square foot). The centers have leases with 23 tenants, including national retailers such as TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Kohl’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, DSW, Michaels, and Planet Fitness. Amy Sands and Clinton Mitchell, Managing Directors for JLL, represented the seller in this transaction.

Oakland Plaza and Oakland Square were purchased on behalf of Continental Realty’s Opportunistic Retail Fund. This is the first acquisition in this Fund, which was formed in 2021 to acquire value-add retail properties throughout the United States.

“We were attracted by the opportunity to acquire two high-quality assets below replacement cost in a dense in-fill location.” stated Josh Dinstein, Senior Vice President, Acquisitions for Continental Realty Corporation. “The greater Detroit metropolitan region offers compelling fundamentals to ensure the long-term health of these assets. Favorable financing, a low vacancy rate across the Troy retail market, and the lack of new supply allow us to have confidence in the ability to deliver a strong risk-adjusted yield to our investors.”

Delivered in 1979 and renovated in 1994 and 2014, Oakland Plaza consists of three buildings and three outparcels comprising 171,518 square feet of retail space. It is 71% leased to 16 tenants, including Michael’s, Planet Fitness, and TJ Maxx. The average tenure for the existing tenant roster is 18 years.

Delivered in 1986, with additional construction completed in 1997, Oakland Square is also a three-building retail center, comprising 220,226 square feet of retail space. The asset is 100% leased to seven tenants, including Kohl’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Chuck E. Cheese, DSW, Five Below, HomeGoods and Ulta. Placer.ai ranks foot traffic at Kohl’s in the 94th percentile in the United States. The average tenure for the existing tenant roster is 10 years.

According to Placer.ai, a market research company that reports on consumer behavior by tracking store visits, this is the number one Michael’s in the state of Michigan, a top 10% Kohl’s and DSW nationwide, and above chain average performance for most of the other tracked tenants. In addition, Kohl’s, Michael’s, Five Below, Ulta, and Bed Bath & Beyond have recently renovated their stores or are planning near-term renovations.

Oakland Plaza and Oakland Square are situated in Troy’s John R Road retail hub, across the street from the 1.5 million square foot Oakland Mall. Nearly 300,000 people reside within a five-mile radius of the centers, including more than 126,000 households with average household incomes exceeding $84,000. More than 32,000 vehicles pass the site on a daily basis via John R Road.

Major employers in the greater Troy area include Fortune 500 company Kelly Services, Bank of America, Dupont Automotive, J.D. Power & Associates, High Tech Finance, PNC Financial Services and The Woodbridge Group. Troy is ranked as the safest city in Michigan; the best city in which to raise a family in the state according to Niche Rankings; the fourth best small city in the United States to start a business in; and 24/7 Wall Street calls it the seventh best city to live in the United States. More than 85,000 people reside in Troy.

“We are thrilled to own these assets,” stated JM Schapiro, CEO of Continental Realty Corporation. “We are inheriting high-performing tenants who are reinvesting in their stores. We believe there is pent up demand for retail space in this section of Troy, and we have the relationships to add great retailers to the tenant mix here. We are confident this will be a win-win for our investors and for the Troy community.”

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, Continental Realty Corporation has acquired seven centers, totaling more than 760,000 square feet of space for over $140 million. This includes South Plains Crossing, a 144,241 square foot retail center in Lubbock, Texas for $18.25 million; and 111 Broadway, a mixed-use and entertainment venue in Nashville, Tennessee, for $36 million. CRC now owns and manages more than five million square feet of commercial space across nine states.

Headquartered in Baltimore and founded in 1960, Continental Realty Corporation is a full-service commercial real estate and investment company focused on acquiring and operating retail and multifamily properties. The privately-owned firm owns and manages a diversified portfolio of retail centers consisting of more than five million square feet of commercial space and over 9,000 apartment homes across nine states, with a portfolio value exceeding $2 billion. For additional information, visit www.crcrealty.com.

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