In pursuit of its Multi-Solution® Strategy, Next Realty has made two “acquisitions” in Florida—one personnel related and one property related.
Brad Saulson has been appointed Director of Acquisitions for the Southeast. Saulson brings 14 years of experience in commercial real estate. He is based in Tampa, where he will source new opportunities for Next in the southeastern U.S., with an emphasis in Florida.
The addition of Saulson expands Next’s infrastructure and enhances the firm’s ability to cover a broader geographic area. He has extensive national commercial real estate brokerage and development experience, completing more than $600 million in transactions. Most recently he was Director of Acquisitions at The Altman Companies and focused on acquisitions and development.
This hire aligns with Next Realty’s ongoing focus on sourcing acquisitions that fulfill the firm’s Multi-Solution® investment and management strategy. Purchasing a diversified portfolio of properties is intended to balance attractive risk-adjusted current yields with a potential for value creation. Last month, for example, an affiliate of Next Realty acquired the Shoppes of Rolling Hills in Davie, Florida.
Why Florida?
As a fund manager, Next Realty seeks acquisitions where it can add value by developing and executing individual business plans for each property. Ultimately, the ability to achieve rent growth is critical to enhancing value at any property. Next sees Florida as a market that should produce strong rent growth for the long term.
In a number of markets across the country, increased operating expenses, including real estate property taxes, make it increasingly more challenging to achieve the rent growth necessary to capture an acceptable level of risk-adjusted returns.
With patience and agility, Next is targeting the Southeast, including South Florida, to better position itself to achieve greater diversification and risk-adjusted returns for investors.
Shoppes of Rolling Hills
An affiliate of Next Realty, LLC, has completed the acquisition of the Shoppes of Rolling Hills, a 16,820-square-foot retail center at 2853-2889 S. University Dr. in Davie, Florida. This represents Next Realty’s second acquisition in Florida. The property was acquired on behalf of Next Realty Fund X, LP. Next expects to make additional investments in targeted markets throughout the southeast.
The fully leased Shoppes of Rolling Hills features a mix of restaurants and convenience-oriented tenants that are well-known throughout Broward County including Fresh Kitchen and Vicky Bakery.
The Shoppes of Rolling Hills is an ideal example of an unanchored retail strip center, an asset class that has been attracting a growing number of bids in today’s market environment due to lack of construction of new space. The fully occupied property and its tenants are performing exceptionally well thanks to its infill location, high traffic counts and ideal mix of service and convenience retail uses.
Directly across the street from the property, Mill Creek Residential is building Modera Academical Village, a two-phase apartment community which will feature approximately 800 units, with first move-ins anticipated in the Fall of 2024. The center is also located near several educational institutions, including Nova Southeastern University (directly across the street), satellite campuses for the University of Florida and Florida Atlantic University, and the main campuses for Broward College and McFatter Technical College.
