The multi-tenant retail sector swung back into investor favor at the end of 2021, recording a near record of $22.5 billion in sales volume nationally, according to research from Stan Johnson Company. The quarter was the strongest in three years and the second best on record.

Fourth quarter sales were up 44% from the previous quarter and 142% since the fourth quarter 2020. Annual sales volume was $54.7 billion, not a record but a significant 97% year-over-year jump, illustrating investor confidence in the asset class.

REITs are dominating the investment activity, serving as the buyers in 84% of multi-tenant retail sales. This isn't a new trend. REITs have been increasing allocation to multi-tenant retail for the last several years. In 2018, they represented only 3% of the multi-tenants buyer pool. By 2021, they made up more than a quarter of the buyer pool in the US.

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Kelsi Maree Borland

Kelsi Maree Borland is a freelance journalist and magazine writer based in Los Angeles, California. For more than 5 years, she has extensively reported on the commercial real estate industry, covering major deals across all commercial asset classes, investment strategy and capital markets trends, market commentary, economic trends and new technologies disrupting and revolutionizing the industry. Her work appears daily on GlobeSt.com and regularly in Real Estate Forum Magazine. As a magazine writer, she covers lifestyle and travel trends. Her work has appeared in Angeleno, Los Angeles Magazine, Travel and Leisure and more.