IMC Equity Group buys shopping center near Lake Worth for $31M

It’s been a busy year for North Miami’s IMC Equity Group, which has added yet another South Florida retail plaza to its commercial portfolio.

County records show the investment firm just scooped up the Lantana Square Shopping Center at 6169 Jog Road for $31 million, or roughly $293 per square foot. The seller is the real estate arm of Principal Global Investors, an Iowa-based company that has business interests in everything from insurance to securities.

Data from the CoStar Group shows Lantana Square’s 105,550 square feet of rentable space is fully leased with Petco as its largest tenant. The shopping strip also boasts an asking rent of $22.44 per square foot, which is 12 percent above the market average.

The strip was built in 1986 and has since traded a handful of times, most recently when local retail investor Woolbright Development scooped it up for $21.325 million. Principal Global Investors took control of the property for an unknown amount in 2009.

It’s anchored by a Walmart Neighborhood Center located at the strip’s center, though that piece wasn’t included in the deal — Walmart bought the location for $5.78 million in 2008.

The deal was financed with a $21.95 million loan from BB&T, according to county records.

IMC, led by CEO Yoram Izhak, has spent more than $100 million on South Florida commercial properties this year, making it one of the region’s more active investment players. According to its website, the company holds a commercial portfolio encompassing over 9 million square feet.