LOS ANGELES—JH Real Estate Partners has acquired the NoHo Commons shopping center in North Hollywood from Redrock Noho Retail for $43 million, or $703 per square foot. The 60,930-square-foot center was part of an exchange for JH Real Estate Partners, which recently disposed of a 14-building multifamily portfolio for $481 million.

“As part of an exchange, JH Real Estate is buying retail properties, and they liked this property for its location,” Jim Fisher, a managing principal in Lee & Associates L.A. North/Ventura office, tells GlobeSt.com. “It is next to the red line transit station in North Hollywood. They also really liked the tenant mix. There is a 24-hour Fitness and some food tenants. The property has been completely renovated and is turn-key, so this was a solid investment for my guys.” Fisher represented the buyer in the transaction along with Lee & Associates principal Mike Smith and associate Cory Stehr. Curtis Palmer of CBRE represented the seller.

The North Hollywood submarket doesn't have a lot of retail opportunities, but the buyers still didn't see much competition for the site from other investors. That is because CBRE marketed the retail property with a 292-unit apartment building. “The two were marketed together, and CBRE were kind of unsuccessful in selling them as a package,” says Fisher. “We made them an offer to buy just the retail portion, and they took it.”

Located at 5300 Lankershim Blvd. in North Hollywood, the property is located near the Magnolia/Lankershim Red Line Metro Rail. It is fully occupied by a tenant mix that includes a 24-hour Fitness, as Fisher mentioned, as well as Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Daphne's California Greek, Panera Bread, Panda Express, Wells Fargo, Fish Dish and Big Wangs. JH Snyder originally developed the property in 2004.

According to Fisher, multifamily development in the North Hollywood submarket has out-paced retail development, leading to limited opportunities. “A lot of multifamily has been built in the area but there is very little retail and very little has happened since the recession,” he says. “However, the market area is stable and getting better. The occupancy on the apartment side has really improved, and the transit station really helps.” The buyer plans to hold the asset in the long term.