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Grocery Stores Provide Stability

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Commercial Real Estate Agent with Sperry Van Ness 80571

 

Neil Victor, CCIM and Terri Dean of Sperry Van Ness Huntsville, Alabama office would like to share this article written by Jonathan Hipp:

Grocery stores are often thought of as recession-proof, much like dollar stores, because they sell the essential products we use daily.  Recessions may cause consumers to cut back on luxury items and dining out, but people still have to eat and must buy the staples in good times and in bad.

Overall, cap rates for grocery stores have compressed from 7.93% in 2010 to 7.81% in 2011. The best grocery investments are located in a great location with ample parking, good demographics and growing neighborhoods. Popular national grocery chains such as Aldi, Safeway, Bloom, Food Lion, Harris Teeter, Publix’s, Whole Foods and Wegmans are among the most attractive to investors.

Grocery stores provide centers with better visibility; more foot traffic and a greater overall credibility which helps landlords retain other tenants.  The surrounding area becomes more desirable for other retailers and so raises the success of the entire neighborhood. Vacancy rates can be lower and landlords often cash in on more stable rent streams being near grocery stores due to the day in/day out traffic.

 
Sperry Van Ness International, an Irvine-based commercial real estate firm, has completed several investments in new technology. Some of these include improvements to its online tracking system (OTS) and the integration of consumer relationship management (CRM) and social media applications. Earlier this year, Realcomm recognized these and other innovations with a 2011 Digie Award for “Best Use of Automation – Brokerage” for it use of Web 2.0 technology.

“[We have] embraced cloud computing for the past decade,” said Kevin Maggiacomo, chief executive officer and president of Sperry Van Ness. “We pioneered OTS, our single-point-of-entry tracking system, years before the technology caught on within the industry. Today … we continue to invest in new technology to enhance its value for our advisors and clients.

“We are committed to delivering leading-edge solutions that bring efficiency and value to our advisors and clients,” added Maggiacomo. “Integrating new technology into OTS was an opportunity to take our culture of innovation, collaboration and transparency a step further.”

Sperry Van Ness has also added new upgrades to its iPhone and iPad application. The enhancements will allow consumers to more easily search for property listings, find office locations and connect with advisors.

"Sperry Van Ness is unique in that they offer all their advisors free access to a complete suite of technology tools, including our [consumer relationship management] system,” said Michael Griffin, chief executive officer of ClientLook. “This is an incredible benefit that definitely helps differentiate Sperry Van Ness' quality of service."

The Sperry Van Ness office in Huntsville, AL  Broker: Ava Terry  Uses the latest technology furnished by Sperry Van Ness Corporate.  Neil Victor is currently the President of NALCOM (North Alabama Commercial Brokers Assoc.)  

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