Hanley Investment Group, a real estate brokerage and advisory services company based in Corona del Mar that specializes in retail property sales, arranged the sale of a new Bliss Car Wash in Valencia for $3.72 million.
The arrangement, which was part of a 1031 exchange, marks Hanley Investment Group’s 80th car wash sale in the last 48 months and the firm’s fourth property sale at this unnamed shopping center, now totaling over $13.8 million.
“This sale represents the first Bliss Car Wash to trade as a leased investment,” Bill Asher, an executive vice president at Hanley Investment Group, said in a statement.
The new Bliss Car Wash, which is currently under construction and is slated to open early next year, will be a 4,260-square-foot building located at the intersection of Copper Hill Drive and Rio Norte Drive.
Bliss Car Wash signed a long-term triple-net ground lease at the property several years prior to the change in ownership.
Asher and Jeff Lefko represented the developer and seller, Fountainhead Development of Newport Beach, in the sale. Jenny Eng from CBRE Group Inc. represented the buyer, a private investor.
“Express car washes are one of the most profitable tenants in the net-lease sector,” Asher said, who noted that top-performing car washes anchor shopping centers as they have the ability to bring in tens of thousands of cars annually.
“With margins between 50% and 60%, the average location can be very profitable and withstand potential future economic challenges,” Asher said. “Based on the recent expansion of numerous car wash operators, we expect a significant increase in single-tenant net-lease car wash properties for sale over the next six to 12 months.”
Hanley Investment Group previously sold two new single-tenant ground leased pads – one leased to El Pollo Loco Drive-Thru and the other leased to Circle K – in addition to a new, single-tenant new-leased investment Havana Savannah Coffee Drive-Thru, all within the same development. All three were sold to separate private buyers at record-low cap rates.