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Auto magnate Luis Somoano buys land underneath his Kendall Ford dealership for $20M
Somoano previously leased site from seller, family of the late Gus Machado, another car selling mogul
Luis Somoano paid $20 million for the land underneath his Ford dealership in Kendall.
An entity managed by Somoano acquired the 7.3-acre site at 15555 South Dixie Highway, according to records and Vizzda.
The sellers are two entities managed by Lilliam Machado, widow of the late Gus Machado, another Miami-Dade automobile dealership owner who died last year. In 2009, the Machado entities paid $13.6 million for the property, which includes a 68,225-square-foot dealership completed in 1968, records show.
In 2019, Somoano purchased the Ford dealership from Machado, but without the real estate. Samoano also owns a Lincoln Mercury dealership in Doral.
Auto retail sites have revved up this summer.
Last month, Dream Motor Group dropped $150 million for a portfolio of three auto-related properties and a former municipal administrative building in Miami-Dade County. The Birmingham, Alabama-based car dealership paid $45 million for the former police headquarters in Coral Gables, and $5 million for an auto body repair shop in Cutler Bay. Dream Motor also acquired two Mercedes-Benz dealerships in both cities for $100 million.
The seller, Coral Gables-based Ussery Automotive Group, and lender Mercedes-Benz Financial Services provided Dream Motor with $200 million in financing.
In June, Tampa-based Morgan Auto Group added to its South Florida portfolio by purchasing Al Hendrickson Toyota in Coconut Creek for $42 million. Morgan obtained a $113 million loan from Bank of America to buy the Toyota dealership and a Fort Myers car dealership.
Morgan also owns two dealerships in Kendall selling Hyundai and Genesis automobiles.
Last year, Oregon-based Lithia Motors boosted its real estate holdings in the tri-county region. Lithia paid a combined $96 million for six auto dealership complexes in Doral, Miami Gardens and Florida City. The company also purchased an industrial building near one of the Doral properties for $28.5 million.
In 2021, Lithia bought two dealership complexes in Coral Springs and Fort Lauderdale for a combined $43 million.