Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors, a nationally recognized real estate brokerage and advisory firm specializing in retail property sales, announced today that the firm recently completed the sale of Stables Town Center I, a 42,800-square-foot shopping center anchored by Walgreens and shadow-anchored by Kroger in an affluent suburb in the Houston, Texas metro area.
Hanley Investment Group’s Executive Vice President Kevin Fryman, in association with ParaSell, Inc., represented the seller. The buyer was Wu Properties, based in Houston.
“We generated multiple offers from Houston- and California-based buyers in the first week of marketing the property for sale and maximized pricing by procuring a buyer who understood the property’s rare value-add investment opportunity,” reported Fryman. The property was 53% occupied at the time of the sale.
“Investors were attracted to the positive lease-up outlook given the shopping center’s short-term leases and available pad building and shop space,” Fryman continues. “The buyer waived contingencies within 10 days of executing the purchase agreement and closed escrow in 45 days.”
Built in 2001, the property is located at the signalized intersection of Spring Cypress Road and Champion Forest Drive on 4.96 acres, 18425-18535 Champion Forest Drive, in Spring, Texas. Tenants include Walgreens, which represents 63% of Stables Town Center’s current tenancy, Texas American Title, Elite Spine and Health Center, and Coldwell Banker. Nearby retailers include Kroger, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Taco Bell, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Wendy’s, Dutch Bros, Chase bank, Imagine early education and childcare center, Postal Annex+ and Massage Envy. The average household income within a one-mile radius is more than $151,000. Within a five-mile radius, there are more than 252,000 people.
The Houston Metropolitan Statistical Area is the fourth largest U.S. MSA with a population of 7 million people. The region’s population is expected to increase by 17% from 2020 to 2029. The Houston MSA is the nation’s energy capital and a leader in national employment. The forecasted gross metropolitan product (GMP) of the Greater Houston area was $543 billion and was ranked the seventh largest U.S. metro economy in 2021. The Houston MSA had the second largest concentration of Fortune 1000 companies in the country (49 companies) and houses 22 Forbes Fortune 500 companies.
According to Fryman, “Despite rising interest rates and the talk of a possible recession, it had no impact on Wu Properties’ decision-making when acquiring this asset nor their future outlook for the Houston retail market, especially the submarkets the company targets. In fact, while institutional investors have pulled back from acquisitions given the uncertainty, Wu Properties continues to pursue opportunities. Wu Properties believes that the Houston region will continue to gain jobs and population, driving demand for additional retail space in the Houston area so vacancy rates will remain low.”
Wu Properties continues to look for additional assets to acquire and it is their intention to do so throughout 2023. The capital they deploy is only dependent upon the assets available to acquire that fit within their acquisition criteria, noted Fryman.
In mid-January 2023, Hanley Investment Group completed the sale of Northwest Crossing Centre, a 180,000-square-foot shopping center with anchors Burlington, Dollar Tree, Marshalls, Planet Fitness and Hibbett Sports and shadow-anchored by Target in Houston. The property was 91% occupied at the time of the sale and provided the buyer with the opportunity to lease up the vacant shop space.
“Buyers like Wu Properties continue to aggressively pursue value-add opportunities, especially ones with the ability to re-tenant and/or develop a single-tenant pad as there are ample tenants looking to open drive-thru sites,” Fryman noted.