Kin Properties Inc. of Boca Raton, Fla. has acquired a portfolio of five office supply stores in three states for $11.5 million. The properties sold include four Office Max stores and one Office Depot. The name of the seller, an Ohio-based developer, was not disclosed.

The newly acquired properties include:

Office Max, Alexandria, Minn.

• Office Max, 23,500 sq. ft., Alexandria, Minn.
• Office Max, 23,525 sq. ft., Brainerd, Minn.
• Office Max, 23,503 sq. ft., Mankato, Minn.
• Office Max, 23,620 sq. ft., Martinsburg, W.Va.
• Office Depot, 24,000 sq. ft., Traverse City, Mich.

“All of the stores have between seven and 11 years remaining on their corporate-guaranteed leases and all have renewal options,” says Barry Wolfe, vice president of investments in the Fort Lauderdale office of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, which brokered the sale.

“The locations are major retail hubs, or are situated close to large retail centers,” adds Wolfe, who represented the buyer, Kin Properties, in the transaction.

Single-tenant, net-lease properties that contain national retailers with a strong credit rating remain the most sought-after deals as high-net-worth individuals and well-funded REITs compete for acquisitions, says broker Scott Wiles with Marcus & Millichap’s Cleveland office.  

Wiles, who represented the seller in the deal, says that many prospective buyers today are exhibiting a flight to safety.

“Unimpressive returns offered by alternative investments and ongoing stock market uncertainty continue to heighten private buyers’ appetite for low-risk, corporate-backed assets.”