A lifelong Ann Arbor resident who's built his real estate career in the city is turning to other areas of Michigan for his next investment rounds.

The strategy, said John Bogdasarian, stands contrary to how much of the nation views this state.

Yet, Bogdasarian said, with enough capital behind the building purchases and careful consideration of location and property fundamentals, there are both bargains and strong investments here.

"There's a unique situation in Michigan," Bogdasarian said. "People think Michigan is (not worth investing in). We don't believe that.

"The best values are in good locations in Michigan."

Bogdasarian's latest deal will close on Sept. 15 when his investment group - PF1 LLC - buys three restaurants on long-term lease to Applebee's. They're based in Ludington, Big Rapids and East Lansing.

This deal follows purchases earlier this year of five medical office buildings in Grand Rapids.

It's also coming together as Bogdasarian repositions his investment group by merging all of his 2009 buys into a single investment vehicle, allowing for more participants.

Those investors will help push the equity in the buys to about 30 percent, reflecting today's lending standards and Bogdasarian's low-leverage platform.

With the Applebees buildings, the capitalization rate - or rate of return based on purchase price and net operating income - will be 10 percent. That compares to about 8.5 percent for a similar building buy in another state, such as the $3 million Applebees listed in Arizona. Which means that for a lower price on the Michigan restaurants, the return will be higher.

While buyers in other states may look at those numbers and say they reflect a higher risk for Michigan, Bogdasarian says that's what makes this purchase smart.

"We feel like we got a bull market price," he said.

Meanwhile, Bogdasarian, who runs the Preview Properties real estate office in Ann Arbor, continues to look for opportunities here, too. He's owned residential homes and commercial property, and looks at the development opportunities in the city.

Market realities haven't caught up to the pricing in Ann Arbor yet, he said. And part of that is the tax rate.

"Ann Arbor," he said, "is still very difficult to buy in."

Paula Gardner is the business news director at AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at 734-923-2586 or paulagardner@annarbor.com.