January 14, 2004

Two Nashua , N.H. , Buildings Purchased by Investment Firms

By Karen Spiller

The TJ Maxx and Panera Bread stores on Amherst Street have new owners.

Real estate investment firms Greenstreet/Niosi Capital Partners, based in New York City , and Boston-based Taurus Investment Holdings acquired the land and buildings for $ 5.2 million, the companies announced Tuesday.

The 32,250-square-foot property that makes up TJ Maxx and Panera has been "net leased" to the investment firms. Net leases are long-term agreements in which the tenant is responsible for the building, operating expenses and structural repair.

Eric Jones, principal of Greenstreet/Niosi, said the Amherst Street corridor is attractive because there's no income tax and competes with Massachusetts.

"We hold TJ Maxx and Panera Bread in high regard," Jones said, adding that Target -- which owns its own pad -- is another draw to the site.

The investment firms bought only the TJ Maxx and Panera land and buildings at 590 Amherst Street . Target is still owned by Target Corp. LLC. Texas Roadhouse, on a separate tract, is owned by Texas Roadhouse Holdings LLC.

The lease agreement with TJ Maxx is valid for 10 years, and the firms have a 15-year lease with Panera.

The change of ownership will not affect the stores, Jones said.

Taurus officials could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The 15.5-acre site is subdivided into three separate lots, with a 128,000-square-foot Target occupying the largest parcel at 600 Amherst Street . Texas Roadhouse, at 580 Amherst Street , was sold to Texas Roadhouse Holding last year by Amherst Tract LLC, the developer.

Local commercial real estate broker Mike Monks, owner of Monks &Co., said that with the stock market coming back, investors are looking at net leases.

He described a net lease as someone is buying the strength of a particular company.

"We call them coupon clippers," Monks said.

An owner that invests in a net lease property could live in Hawaii and own property in Nashua because the property is relatively low maintenance, he said. Besides low maintenance, another advantage of net-lease property ownership is that net lease investments also offer decent income-producing return, typically about 8 to 10 percent a year.

"And you've got an investment for 20 years with a Target, which happens to be a financially strong company," Monks said. "The real value is the Target name or guarantee on the lease." Taurus Investment Holdings is a real estate investment firm that owns and operates both directly managed and joint venture commercial real estate properties throughout the eastern United States and recently Canada . The Boston-based company has purchased and sold over 10 million square feet of office, industrial, retail, residential and hotel assets, according to a press release.

Greenstreet/Niosi Capital Partners is involved in investments in real estate assets and has relationships with operating partners across a broad spectrum of properties including multi-family, office, shopping center and industrial properties.

The acquisition announced marked the fifth investment the two firms have done together over the last 2 1/2 years that together total more than $ 80 million.

Mark Prolman of Prolman Realty in Nashua said it's common for investors to look at net leasing of property, especially in places like the Route 101A corridor, which is "really taking off," he said.

" Daniel Webster Highway is built out and people are looking at the fact that Route 101A has a high traffic count," Prolman said. "There's a lot of development going on out there."

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Copyright 2004 Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Copyright 2004 The Telegraph, Nashua , N.H.