Barings is the latest investment firm to cash in on the demand for retail properties, particularly those in Southern California, which continue to fetch high prices due to solid fundamentals and a virtually nonexistent new supply pipeline. 

Charlotte, N.C.-based Asana Partners paid $151 million for Seacliff Village, a 253,234-square-foot retail plaza in Huntington Beach, which traded for the first time since its redevelopment in the early 2000s, according to a LinkedIn post by JLL’s Gleb Lvovich, who represented the seller along with Daniel Tyner and Tess Berghoff. 

JLL also arranged about $84 million in acquisition financing, though the name of the lender was not immediately clear. Representatives for Asana and for Barings did not immediately respond to requests for comment. 

The Albertsons-anchored Seacliff Village sits near the corner of Yorktown Avenue and Main Street. The shopping center counts a few dozen retail businesses, medical offices and banks among its tenant list, including Chipotle, Coldwell Banker, LA Fitness and Cardinal Dental, according to its website. 

Asana is far from the only firm paying nine figures for retail properties in Southern California. Aside from the myriad mall sales over the past 12 months — including Lakewood Center, which a Pacific Retail Capital Partners-led JV acquired in August for $332 million — much of the investment activity has centered around redevelopment opportunities or the always dependable grocery-anchored shopping center. 

Late last month, local investor Dwight Manley paid $140 million for a 34-acre property in Brea that he hopes to transform into a mixed-use complex anchored by Costco. The Brea City Council in late 2025 agreed to grant Manley a 50-year sales tax rebate on the property if he secures a lease with Costco within one year of the purchase. 

In August, Regency Centers paid $357 million for a five-property retail portfolio at the Rancho Mission Viejo master-planned community in southern Orange County. 

Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.