By its nature, retail properties look to appeal to the public by offering places to market goods and services that are easily accessible.  Retail buildings usually offer a high ratio of on-site parking spaces per square foot or at least access to nearby public transportation and city parking lots.  The following are sub-categories of retail real estate:

Strip Center – Also referred to as a “Strip Mall” or “Neighborhood Center”, this type of retail real estate is characterized by several stores sharing the same roof and parking lot.  Strip Centers are typically about 20,000 square feet and are located on a busy commercial street.  The property is often “anchored” by a well known tenant like a 7-Eleven which drives traffic to the supporting stores.

Shopping Center – It is the same in concept as the Strip Center except larger and often comprised of more than one building.  Appropriately, the anchor for a shopping center is a supermarket, department store, drug chain or movie theatre.  For mega malls, power centers or regional outlet centers, you can expect all of the above plus "category killers" like Home Depot and Best Buy.  

Freestanding Store – This is a commercial building ranging in size from a 1,200 square foot dry cleaning storefront to a 60,000 square foot Target.  A number of smaller freestanding stores grouped together and stretching several city blocks like in Old Town Pasadena can become a destination for shoppers.   Such small free-standing stores for the right price and in the right area can generate excellent income for the Investor.