Insignia Real Estate Cos.group buys Vanderbilt Shops floors

BUYER: Strada Holdings LLC, Cranston, R.I.

SELLER: 9045 SSC LLC

PROPERTY: 9045 Strada Stell Court, units 101-108, 201-205, 301-305, 401-405, North Naples

PRICE: $2.5 million

PREVIOUS TRANSFER: $11.58 million, October 2009

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Roetzel & Andress LPA, Fort Myers

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Strada Holdings LLC, an investor group managed by Cranston, R.I.-based Insignia Real Estate Cos., purchased commercial condominiums encompassing four floors of the Vanderbilt Shops of North Naples for $2.5 million.

The price equated to $61 per square foot. That figure is lower than the two-year average price per square foot for office space ($120) in the Southwest Florida market, according to the CoStar Group.

The Collier family owns the top floor of the building and uses it for its offices. The building was built in 2009, but that same year it was taken back by an affiliate of Reliance Bank through a deed in lieu of foreclosure. Located at the intersection of Vanderbilt Beach Road and Airport Pulling Road, the largely vacant building is near the Ritz-Carlton and Tiburon Golf Course.

The purchased floors are still grey shell without developed interiors. However, Anthony Emma, CEO of the Insignia Real Estate Cos., says the lack of interior development allows the new owner to subdivide the property to accommodate future tenants.

“We can customize any space so the tenant can fit it out to their liking,” he says. “We see it as a value-add position to turn this into a core asset.”

The new owner has hired a design firm to create a model tenant space to help attract interest. Insignia Real Estate has hired Clint Sherwood of Investment Properties Corp. as the lead broker on the project and plans to market the vacant space for $18 a square foot fully improved.

“I always say that the Collier family could have bought space anywhere in Collier County, but they decided to be in this building,” Emma says. “We've also seen that Naples space has become more attractive; between the Mercato and the Fifth Third sale. This is one of the only buildings offering continuous office space of more than 6 or 7,000 square feet in Naples.”

Insignia Real Estate has been operating in the Naples market for the past 16 years. Most recently it converted a former Bank of America site on Tamiami Trail into a Taco Bell restaurant.

Strada Holdings LLC mortgaged the property to Reliance Bank for two loans totaling $3 million.