Author: ipgocorp

ATLANTA, GA – Balfour Beatty Communities, a national residential real estate investment and management company responsible for the ownership and operation of more than $6 billion in multifamily assets, announced the acquisition of three apartment communities located in the Atlanta, Georgia suburbs, totaling 882 units and encompassing 91 acres. The ‘Evergreen Portfolio’ properties were acquired as part of a joint venture with Torchlight Investors.

With the acquisition, Balfour Beatty Communities expands its Georgia footprint to ten properties and more than 6,500 units. The well-positioned Evergreen Portfolio apartments serve the Atlanta metropolitan area’s vibrant southwest suburbs with close proximity to the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Evergreen Commons, located in Union City, GA, includes 328 units built in 2001 and 2004. The gated community offers 1, 2 and 3-bedroom apartment homes and amenities that include a pool, fitness center, playground, tennis and other sport courts.

Evergreen Park consists of 310 units located in Fairburn, GA. Built in 2005, this gated community features 1, 2 and 3-bedroom apartment homes and amenities that include indoor/outdoor pools, tennis court, putting green and playground.

Evergreen Terrace is also located in Fairburn, GA and consists of 244 units built in 2009. The gated community offers 1, 2, 3 and 4-bedroom apartment homes and indoor/outdoor pools, tennis court, bowling alley and playground.

“The Evergreen Portfolio acquisition reflects our ongoing strategy to grow and diversify our portfolio in high-growth U.S. Sun Belt markets,” said Chris Williams, president of Balfour Beatty Communities. “With demand on the rise stemming from the area’s steady job growth, we are excited about the potential for these properties and look forward to bringing improvements in both quality and service to residents.”

“We are excited about this acquisition as we believe it is positioned to benefit from positive growth trends in the Atlanta suburbs and from a well-designed capital improvement plan to be implemented by our experienced partner,” said Henry Gom, senior vice president of Torchlight Investors.

Balfour Beatty Communities will self-perform property management services through its Multifamily Division and will invest in a series of capital improvements to the properties, including both interior and exterior upgrades.

GARFIELD, NJ – C6 Real Estate Partners, a vertically integrated real estate owner and operator, announced the acquisition of River Edge at Garfield, a 100-unit Class-A multifamily community located in Garfield, New Jersey. The property was built in 2017 and features oversized floor plans, a large swimming pool and two gyms. Located 15 miles northwest of Manhattan, the property is strategically located with direct access to Route 80, I-95, The Garden State Parkway, Route 21, Route 4 and Route 3.

The newly built property was acquired vacant by C6 in a joint venture partnership with Citymark Capital, an institutional private equity real estate fund manager. C6 will manage all aspects of investment execution on behalf of the partnership.

“River Edge is a rare off-market acquisition of luxury multifamily units in tightly constrained Bergen County, NJ. We are excited to bring institutional ownership and management standards to the value creation plan for this asset. The property benefits from being part of a larger master planned community that includes luxury condos, and is positioned as best-in-class from a quality of life and amenity standpoint,” said Brian DiSalvo, C6 Principal.

“Citymark Capital is delighted to partner with a great company like C6 to bring attractive, institutional quality apartments to the Greater New York City area,” said Dan Walsh, founder and chief executive officer of Citymark Capital. “This aligns with our national platform of investing in leading U.S. markets and taking a disciplined approach to generating solid returns for our investors.”

“Bergen County continues to be a strong draw for a wide range of residents seeking both luxury and convenience,” added DiSalvo. “River Edge provides a spacious and attractive neighborhood feel that distinguishes itself from the competition.”

HOUSTON, TX – National Asset Services (NAS), one of the Country’s leading commercial real estate companies, has successfully delivered a lending source for refinancing an 18-member, tenant-in-common (TIC) multifamily property, preserving the co-owners original 1031 Exchange benefits and options.

With a reputation of developing loan maturity options for commercial real estate investors, NAS assumed management responsibility of Chartwell Court Apartments in 2015. Company executives immediately initiated a multi-faceted strategy to increase the property’s revenue by increasing occupancy through aggressive leasing, while creating a better living experience by addressing deferred maintenance issues. The property’s exterior was also painted.

The property’s occupancy and revenue growth, along with NAS’ strong reputation for closing, were key factors in securing a capital source for refinancing the asset.

NAS worked with Keystone Mortgage Corporation in securing financing for Chartwell Court Apartments. The Southern California-based company, known for its expertise as a commercial financing advisor, is an example of NAS’ network of highly reputable industry resources. 

Obtaining refinancing for a property, with a small number of TIC co-owners is uncommon in today’s environment. Securing capital for a large TIC group is an even more highly unusual event.

“Karen Kennedy and the entire NAS team worked tirelessly to make the Chartwell Court refinance a reality. Their management of the property is the best I have ever experienced; they are my safety net!” commented Ralph O. Farinas, a Chartwell Court TIC Co-owner. “We spent about two years in court to replace the previous manager and engaging NAS made it all worthwhile. They have that very rare combination of honesty and results.”

Chartwell Court Apartments was one of hundreds of properties purchased by TIC investors in the mid 2000’s during the wave of financing with highly leveraged, 10-year CMBS loans. As the commercial market began contracting in 2009, many properties faced economic challenges, due to market conditions as well as mismanagement. With the industry still experiencing the wave of CMBS loan maturities, capital sources are reluctant to refinance a tenant-in-common property, unless the TIC structure consolidated into one legal entity.  Refinancing a property with the TIC ownership structure in place, ensures that the investors original 1031 Exchange options remain intact after close of the refinancing.   

“Our ability to leverage our strong industry relationships made the possibility of refinancing an 18-member, tenant-in-common property a reality,” commented Karen E. Kennedy, President and Founder of National Asset Services. “The option to refinance, while keeping the existing TIC structure in place was the very best possible outcome for our clients invested in this property.”

Originally built in 1995, a group of TIC investors purchased the apartment community in 2007. Chartwell Court is located about two miles west of Interstate-45, approximately 17 miles north of downtown Houston. The 253,553 square foot complex consists of 243 units housed in 20, two-story buildings, a leasing office and clubhouse. All units have an attached garage and community amenities consist of a fitness center, business center, cyber cafe and coffee bar. There is a resort-style pool with an outdoor grill.   

(RECAP: Do we always need an appraiser to tell us what a house is worth? The country’s two biggest sources of mortgage financing — Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae — think not. With no formal public announcement, Freddie Mac on June 19 began phasing in its plan to transition to appraisal-free mortgages for certain loan applications.)

(RECAP: The housing market crash, which started in 2007 and kicked off the Great Recession, blighted both the financial and real estate industries. Among the many participants whose reputations were ruined, few took more damage than the mortgage brokers who sold adjustable-rate mortgages. Known as ARMs, they became a four-letter word within the industry. But nine years after their fall from grace into near oblivion, ARMs are making a slow, but steady, comeback.)

(RECAP: A Valley domestic violence shelter is hoping to further expand their services after receiving a substantial amount of money from a statewide grant. Governor Terry McAuliffe (D-Virginia) announced last week $83.3 million would be awarded to programs and services assisting the Virginia criminal justice system. First Step, Inc., in Harrisonburg, is set to receive more than $280,000.)

SEATTLE, WA – Freshwater Investments has acquired The Stinson Apartment Homes – a 93-unit garden style community located at 133 124th St SE, Everett, Washington, within walking distance of a popular retail plaza, 10 minutes drive from Boeing factory and 30 minutes from Seattle Downtown.

Alex Rozenfeld, Freshwater Investments Founder and Managing Partner, commented: “Entering a new market is always exciting! Based on strong demographic and economic trends, I have high confidence investing in Seattle and neighboring cities. This addition to Freshwater portfolio is in line with our strategy of buying value-add properties in solid markets and generating stable cash flow for our investors.”

Built in 2000, this property is comprised of large one- and two-bedroom apartments with an average unit size of 841 square feet, and features a recently upgraded clubhouse, fitness room, pool, playground and dog run. The transaction was closed on June 9, 2017 at a purchase price of $16.8 million.

Rozenfeld added, “We assumed the long term Freddie Mac loan with the favorable rate, which will allow us to start investors’ distributions almost immediately. What makes this acquisition even more special is the fact that over 10 years ago I started my Real Estate Investment career as an analyst with Fowler Property Acquisitions, and today they were the Seller in the Stinson deal.”

The seller was represented by Chris Ross of HFF, Seattle.

Founded in 2015, Freshwater Investments is a real estate investment firm offering individual investors opportunities to co-own multifamily housing properties.

(RECAP: Market-rate Affordable Housing, or MARK as Arlington calls it, are units affordable to households earning up to 60 or 80 percent of the area median income not because the government requires it, but because of a property’s age, location, condition and/or amenities. Those units, largely found in garden-style and mid-rise communities, are disappearing at an alarming rate.)

SAN DIEGO, CA – MG Properties Group, a private San Diego-based real estate investor and operator, has announced the acquisition of the Alexan Melrose Apartments in Vista, California.

Alexan Melrose is a 410-unit luxury apartment community built in 2015.  The property offers market-leading amenities to residents, including a modern fitness center, clubhouse with gourmet kitchen, dog park and wash station, and eight unique resident courtyards featuring barbeque stations and seating.

The community is adjacent to the new Melrose Drive Sprinter light-rail stop and close to the 76, 78, 15, and I-5 freeways, providing convenient public transportation and access to job corridors throughout north-county San Diego. MG Properties Group plans to rebrand the property as Preserve at Melrose Apartments.

The property was purchased for $134,000,000 from Trammell Crow Residential and their joint venture partner.  The sellers were represented by Hunter Combs and Sean Deasy at HFF. The acquisition was financed with an $84,973,000 10-year-fixed-rate Freddie Mac loan arranged by Bill Chiles and Scott Peterson at CBRE.

According to Mark Gleiberman, MGPG’s Chief Executive Officer, “The high quality of this property makes it an excellent long-term strategic purchase for our private investment capital.  We believe in the potential of the San Diego region and are pleased to have added two properties to our existing portfolio here within the past six months.”

Alexan Melrose marks MG Properties Group’s 14th acquisition in the past 12 months.  The fourteen acquisitions totaled 4,150 units and approximately $730,000,000 in combined purchase price. The company is targeting further acquisitions in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. 

MG Properties Group is a privately owned West Coast real estate owner and operator specializing in multi-housing assets. Over the last 25 years MG Properties Group has acquired 104 communities with its private investors and institutional joint venture partners totaling over 21,500 units, representing more than $3.1 billion in total asset value, including 13,000 units at a value of $2.0 billion since 2010.

TEMPE, AZ – National Asset Services (NAS), one of the Country’s leading commercial real estate companies, has successfully delivered a 30% return on ownership’s original investment with the recent sale of Apache Station, a student housing property serving students enrolled at Arizona State University.  NAS increased the property value ahead of an impending loan maturity on behalf of 35 tenant-in-common (TIC) investors, who each had a deeded interest in the property.

Known for their reputation of turning around undermanaged properties, NAS executives began employing an aggressive, proactive management approach in 2014 that also increased monthly cash disbursements to investors by 100%. 

NAS executives employed a strategy that included new onsite property management and aggressive, strategic leasing efforts. In addition, effective cost controls lead to the optimization of property expenses. 

Revenue grew as occupancy increased to over 90%, while cash reserves accumulated to offset property operations and maintenance. Major property improvements, designed to help offset the property’s market-disadvantaged distance of 3 miles from the ASU campus, included painting building exteriors and remodeling the clubhouse & leasing office.

“Apache Station is a good example of our ability to manage proactively with long term goals during the investors’ hold period and increase property value, despite challenges facing the asset in the marketplace,” commented Karen E. Kennedy, President and Founder of National Asset Services.  “We were delighted that this successful strategy provided more options for our clients as they headed toward a loan maturity. Our performance at Apache Station underscores our proven ability to deliver positive results for investors in any class of commercial property.”

Originally built in 2001, the TIC group purchased the garden-style student housing property in 2007 and re-named the asset, Apache Station, as part of a marketing strategy to capitalize on the close proximity to the light rail station on Apache Boulevard. The property is located about three miles from the center of the Arizona State University campus, which is a greater distance from the school than most of the property’s competitors. Situated on 19.39 acres, the 422,764 square foot complex consists of 400 units with 684 beds housed in 19, two-and-three story buildings. The average size per unit is 1,058 square feet.

All units in the property contain a full-size washer and dryer, oven and range, microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator with icemaker, garbage disposal, walk-in closets, garden tubs and built in bookshelves. The community has a single-story club house/leasing office with popular amenities that include two resort-style pools with hot tubs, tanning facilities, a sand volleyball court, picnic areas, fitness center, business center and study room.