Sears Holdings Corp.'s recent announcement of its plans to close two Kmart stores and one Sears Essentials store in Volusia County creates both challenges and opportunities for the communities in which those stores are located, area real estate market observers say.

It's a chance for entrepreneurs to buy or lease large existing commercial spaces, renovate the older retail stores and attract new businesses to replace struggling operations.

However, it's also a challenging economic time to buy, sublease or sell a large building in areas with many existing empty storefronts. Qualifying for commercial credit to relocate an existing business or start a new one is also still difficult, real estate professionals said.