Before the property was listed with M&M, the seller received an offer for about $7 million. When the seller reached out to M&M for representation, the brokers said they could get a higher price for the project. Within a week and a half, 11 bidders put in offers, Bryn Merrey, regional manager of M&M’s Tampa office, tells GlobeSt.com. The highest bidder offered $7.95 million.

“Publix had a first-right of refusal so half-way through the deal they stepped into the contract that we procured, accepted the terms and pricing, and closed,” Merrey says. “We are seeing a lot of tenants now exercising first rights of refusals or options to buy. That’s likely because these companies have so much excess cash, or possibly because the change in accounting rules that affect how leases are carried on balance sheets.”

M&M predicts sales of single-tenant properties net-leased to top corporate credits will account for the greatest proportion of investment sales in north Florida during the months ahead as low returns on other investment options drive capital to real estate. National drug store chains and corporate ground leases on fast-food restaurants accounted for about 20% of deals in the first half of the year in Jacksonville, for example, and M&M predicts these types of investments will continue to garner investments when listed.