Sell your grocery store
Single-tenant or anchoring your center, performing or already dark after a merger. Options at below-market rent and all.
Grocery Store at a glance
- Typical deal size
- $3M – $30M
- Lease structure
- NNN, often with percentage rent
- Typical term
- 15–25 years with multiple options
- Escalations
- Flat in base term, 5–10% in options
Overview
What grocery stores are really worth
Our read
Grocery is the anchor category that held up when the rest of big-box retail did not, for the obvious reason that food is difficult to disintermediate. That durability is real, and it is why well-performing grocery-anchored assets trade at cap rates that surprise people who watched other anchors decline.
But the asset carries two features that consistently catch owners. The first is option structure. Grocers negotiate long option periods at flat or below-market rent, and those options belong to the tenant. A store with twenty years of options is not a twenty-year lease at today's rent — it is a call the grocer exercises if the store performs and abandons if it does not. The upside is capped and the downside is not.
The second is what performance data you actually have. Sales per square foot determines whether a store survives a chain's portfolio review, and rent above roughly two to three percent of sales is stressed regardless of remaining term. Owners without percentage rent often have no visibility into the single most important number about their tenant.
Valuation
How we underwrite it
The method
We underwrite grocery on store performance where we can see it and on trade-area fundamentals where we cannot. Sales per square foot and occupancy cost ratio predict renewal far better than remaining term, and a strong store with short base term is a better asset than a weak one with long term.
Option periods are modeled as what they are — tenant-controlled extensions at rents already fixed. We price the option rent rather than the in-place rent, because that is the income you actually control going forward.
Where the store anchors a center, we underwrite the co-tenancy exposure alongside it. A dark grocery does not just remove its own rent; it can trigger reductions and termination rights across the inline tenants, and that compounding is usually the real number.
Backfill gets a realistic assessment rather than a default. Grocery boxes re-tenant to discount and specialty grocers more readily than most anchor formats, but that depends entirely on the trade area, and we would rather tell you plainly how we read yours than build an optimistic assumption into a number we later retrade.
What moves the number
- 01Sales per square foot, which is the single best predictor of whether the store survives a portfolio review
- 02Occupancy cost ratio, since grocery runs on thin margins and rent above roughly 2-3% of sales is stressed
- 03Whether the store anchors a center you also own, because a dark anchor damages the inline tenants
- 04Remaining base term versus option term, as grocers hold long options at below-market rent
- 05Competition, particularly a new format entering the trade area
- 06Building size against modern format preferences, since older stores are frequently too large or too small
Capital markets today
- 10-yr Treasury
- 5.24%
- 4.12% a year ago
- SOFR
- 3.87%
- 4.2% a year ago
- 30-yr mortgage
- 7.28%
- 6.3% a year ago
- CRE loan delinquency
- 1.53%
- 1.57% a year ago
- CRE prices, YoY
- 6.58%
- -2.7% a year ago
Sources: FRED DGS10, 2026-10-01 · FRED SOFR, 2026-10-01 · FRED MORTGAGE30US, 2026-10-01 · FRED DRCRELEXFACBS, 2026-04-01 · FRED COMREPUSQ159N, 2026-01-01
Diligence
What a buyer actually looks at in a grocery store
- Check 01
Sales per square foot and percentage rent history
Grocers report sales where percentage rent applies. It is the best available signal of whether the location survives a review, and it is rarely volunteered.
- Check 02
Occupancy cost ratio
Grocery margins are thin. Rent above roughly 2-3% of sales puts renewal at risk no matter how much term remains.
- Check 03
Option structure and rent in the option periods
Grocers negotiate long options at flat or low rent. Those options cap your upside for decades and the tenant controls them.
- Check 04
Refrigeration, HVAC, and roof condition
Grocery mechanical is heavy and expensive, and refrigeration failures are urgent rather than deferrable.
- Check 05
Co-tenancy obligations if the store anchors a center
A dark grocery anchor can trigger rent reductions or termination rights across the inline tenants, multiplying the damage.
- Check 06
Environmental — refrigerant and loading dock history
Older refrigeration systems and decades of loading dock activity produce findings that surface in diligence.
Backfill risk
What happens if the tenant leaves
The tenant-goes-dark scenario
A grocery box is one of the harder large-format backfills in retail, and the reason is size and specificity. A 45,000 to 65,000 square foot building configured for a supermarket — with loading docks, heavy refrigeration infrastructure, and a specific column grid — suits another grocer, and after that the field narrows quickly.
The good news is that another grocer is a realistic outcome more often than in most anchor categories, because food retail keeps reformatting. Discount grocers, ethnic and specialty grocers, and smaller-format concepts have absorbed a great many boxes vacated by conventional supermarkets. A store that is too large for its trade area can sometimes be subdivided, though loading and refrigeration make that more expensive than in general retail.
Where it gets difficult is a dark store in a trade area that has genuinely lost population or income. Then the box is competing against every other vacant big box in the region, and the realistic outcomes narrow to a discount retailer, a church, a fitness user, or demolition.
When the store anchors a center, the damage from going dark extends past the store itself — co-tenancy clauses can let inline tenants cut rent or leave, which is why an anchor decision matters more than the anchor's own rent line suggests.
Why this matters to you
Every buyer prices the tenant-goes-dark scenario, whether or not they say so out loud. It is the largest hidden input into the cap rate you get offered.
Understanding it before you go to market is the difference between negotiating and being negotiated with.
Who sells to us
Situations we see most often
- Owner of a store the grocer has flagged in a market consolidation
- Center owner whose grocery anchor is approaching an option decision
- 1031 buyer holding a single-tenant grocery with shortening base term
- Owner of a dark store after a chain merger closed overlapping locations
- Independent grocer who owns their building and wants capital out
Buy box
What we buy
- 01Single-tenant and anchored grocery, $3M to $30M
- 02Dark stores and announced closures
- 03Shortening base term with long options
- 04Independent and regional grocers
Process
How selling to Dizposition works
Day 0
01Send us the property
Address, asset type, and the lease if there is one. That is enough for us to start.
- 02
We underwrite it
Our underwriting runs the income against current market pricing and the cost of capital. No lowball anchor.
10 minutes
03You get a firm offer
In 10 minutes, with the math shown. You will know exactly how we got there.
As fast as 30 days
04Close on your timeline
As fast as 30 days, or as slow as you need. We are the principal, so the date is yours.
FAQ
Selling a grocery store
My grocery tenant has a lot of option term left. Is that good or bad?
Both, and it depends on the rent in those options. Long options give the income durability, but grocers negotiate them at flat or below-market rent and they are the tenant's to exercise. Effectively they cap your upside for the option period while leaving the downside with you. We price the options rather than the current rent.
How do I know whether the store is performing?
Sales per square foot is the number that matters, and if your lease has percentage rent you likely already receive it. Where you do not, it is worth asking. A store performing well is a durable asset; one that is not is on a list somewhere regardless of remaining term.
The chain merged and my store is closing. What is it worth?
It becomes a real estate question. Grocery boxes backfill to discount grocers, specialty and ethnic grocers, and smaller formats more often than most anchor categories, because food retail keeps reformatting. Trade area strength is what decides it, and we will be direct about how we read yours.
My grocery anchor is going dark and I own the whole center. How bad is that?
Worse than losing the anchor's rent alone, because co-tenancy clauses can let inline tenants reduce rent or terminate. That compounding is exactly why these centers stop trading conventionally. Send us the leases and we will underwrite the whole picture rather than just the box.
How long does it take to sell a commercial property to Dizposition?
You get a firm written offer within 10 minutes of sending us the property. If you accept, you can close in as little as 30 days — most of that is title work and your own timeline. There is no listing period, no marketing, and no waiting on a buyer's financing contingency.
Can I sell my property as-is?
Yes. We are the buyer, so there is no lender requiring repairs and no inspection contingency to renegotiate against you. Deferred maintenance, a failing roof, an aging tank system — we price it into the offer rather than asking you to fix it first.
Can I sell with a tenant in place?
Yes, and in most cases a tenant makes the property more valuable to us, not less. We will ask for the lease, a rent roll, and any estoppel certificates. You do not need to deliver the property vacant.
What if my lease is short-term or about to expire?
Short remaining term is one of the main reasons owners come to us. A conventional buyer needs lease term to get financing, which is why short-dated assets sit on the market. We underwrite the real estate and the backfill prospects rather than the remaining term alone.
What if the property is vacant?
We buy vacant assets. Pricing shifts from an income approach to what the building and land are worth to the next user, which is a different calculation — but it is one we do routinely rather than one that disqualifies the property.
Do I need a broker to sell to you?
No. We buy directly, and there is no commission because there is nothing to market. If you already have a broker, we will pay them. Selling without one saves the commission, but you should understand you are also giving up price discovery — a broker's job is to find out whether someone will pay more than we will.
What documents do I need to get an offer?
The address and the lease are enough to start. To finalize, we will want the rent roll, the last two years of operating statements, the title commitment, any existing survey, and any environmental reports you already have. You do not need an appraisal or a broker package.
How do you determine your offer?
We underwrite in-place income against what the space would re-lease for, adjust for capital needs and any environmental tail, and apply a cap rate supported by comparable transactions. We show you the inputs. If you disagree with an assumption, we would rather argue about the assumption than about the number.
What are typical seller closing costs?
Title and escrow fees, any transfer or recording tax owed in your state, prorated property taxes, and payoff of any existing debt. Because we are the buyer, there is no commission and no marketing cost. Transfer tax varies significantly by state and is often the largest single line.
Will I owe capital gains tax when I sell?
Usually yes, on the gain above your adjusted basis, and depreciation recapture is taxed separately from appreciation. State treatment varies. This is a question for your CPA before you sign, not after — the structure of the sale can change the answer.
Can I do a 1031 exchange?
Yes. A 1031 exchange lets you defer federal capital gains by reinvesting in like-kind property, subject to a 45-day identification window and a 180-day closing window from the date you sell. You must have a qualified intermediary in place before closing — it cannot be arranged afterward. Most states conform to federal treatment, but a few do not.
Can I sell if I am behind on payments or facing foreclosure?
Yes, and speed is the reason to move early rather than late. We can close on a defined date, which is what a lender or a receiver generally needs to see. Send us the payoff figure and any notices you have received.
Can I sell a property I inherited or that is in probate?
Yes. Probate sales take longer because the court timeline governs, not ours, and multiple heirs need to agree on the price before anything can close. We are used to working around both. Inherited property also generally receives a stepped-up basis, which can change the tax math substantially.
What if there is environmental contamination?
Send it anyway. Environmental history is one of the most common reasons a conventional sale falls apart, and it is one of the reasons owners call us. We price the remediation and the residual liability into the offer rather than walking away at the Phase II.
Is there any cost or obligation to get an offer?
None. There is no fee, no listing agreement, and no obligation to accept. If our number does not work for you, you keep the underwriting we showed you and we part ways.
Markets
Top markets we buy grocery stores in
Where the inventory is
62,947 U.S. establishments · Supermarkets and other grocery (except convenience) stores
- 01Sell a grocery store in New York8,320
- 02Sell a grocery store in California8,044
- 03Sell a grocery store in Florida3,850
- 04Sell a grocery store in Texas3,739
- 05Sell a grocery store in Illinois2,647
- 06Sell a grocery store in Pennsylvania2,543
- 07Sell a grocery store in New Jersey2,405
- 08Sell a grocery store in North Carolina2,007
- 09Sell a grocery store in Ohio1,893
- 10Sell a grocery store in Georgia1,769
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, NAICS 445110, 2023
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10-minute offer
Ready to sell your grocery store?
Send us the property and the lease. You'll have a firm offer, with the math shown, in 10 minutes.


