"We think Newbury Street and Back Bay retail is still a very solid place to invest real estate dollars," Abbey Road principal Alan Bates tells GlobeSt.com. The group last summer paid $9.5 million for the nearby 123 Newbury St. between Clarendon and Dartmouth Streets, the same block as 131 Newbury St.

In the just-completed round, Abbey Road Advisors affiliate Abbey Road Back Bay LLC also took over Winston's 569 Boylston St., around the corner from 131 Newbury Street, for $3.8 million, seeding the purchases with a $7.2 million mortgage from TD Banknorth. Abbey Road has been active in the Back Bay since 2005 when it purchased the 13-story, 230,000-sf Boylston St. office/retail building for $55 million, an asset the firm and its partner sold for $95 million in early 2007.

While such an impressive outcome could be difficult to replicate, Bates says his firm is enthused by the two new investments, concurring with other observers that Newbury Street has a global cache and the mettle to withstand harsh economic times. "We've had good experiences there, and we think it's still a good market to be in," he says. The Winston deal was an off-market transaction brought to Abbey Road by Dartmouth Co. broker Sam Hawkey, whom Abbey Road has dealt with since 399 Boylston St. The broker "really knows what we are looking for," Bates said, noting that Hawkey also negotiated the 123 Newbury St. deal.