Retail Center Sells Despite $32M Encumbrance

Plaza El Paseo is occupied by a diverse mix of tenants.

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA—GlobeSt.com has learned exclusively that K&G El Paseo 1 & 2, LLC has sold Plaza El Paseo at Rancho Santa Margarita Town Center, a legacy-quality shopping center here, for $56.6 million to Plaza El Paseo Center, LLC. The center, which totals approximately 107,000 square feet of building area and is occupied by a diverse mix of tenants, was sold despite a $32-million encumbrance.

Built in 2002 and situated on 10.56 acres at the corner of El Paseo and Alma Aldea, the asset is anchored by Bed, Bath & Beyond; BevMo and Wood Ranch BBQ. It is centrally located within the 1-million-square-foot Santa Margarita Town Center, one of the region’s most successful master-planned retail developments, and is adjacent to Kohl’s and the Rancho Santa Margarita City Offices.

Faris Lee Investments‘ president and CEO Rick Chichester, along with the firm’s Nicholas Coo and Chris DePierro, created the comprehensive deal strategy on behalf of both the seller and the buyer. Chichester notes that the deal presented multiple challenges from a financing perspective. “Plaza El Paseo was encumbered by a $32-million conduit loan featuring an above market interest rate. This encumbrance had limited the buyer pool when previously marketed by a different firm and therefore demanded a more creative strategy to meet the seller’s objectives.”