AMHERST, MASS. — Largo Capital, a financial intermediary based in upstate New York, has arranged a $17 million construction loan for a 67-unit multifamily project in Amherst, about 90 miles west of Boston. The property will house a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units and roughly 7,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. Ned Perlman of Largo Capital arranged the financing. The names of the direct lender and borrower were not disclosed.
FORT WAYNE, IND. — Merchants Capital has provided $17.4 million in Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity financing for the construction of Reserve on Park Place, an affordable seniors housing community in Fort Wayne. Brown Capital Group, Leo Brown Group and Rogers Development Group are developing the 187-unit property. Restricted to seniors age 55 and older, the three-story community will feature 15 studios, 136 one-bedroom units and 36 two-bedroom units for residents earning up to 80 percent of the area median income. The units are designed to support senior and special needs with features such as handrails, grab bars, intercoms, limited access and video surveillance. Completion is slated for April 2025.
GILBERT, ARIZ. — JLL Capital Markets has arranged $12 million in construction financing for ATLAS Germann, an industrial development in Gilbert. The borrowers are ATLAS and OakPoint. Jason Carlos, Jarrod Howard, Steve Larsen and Kyle Westfall of JLL Capital Markets secured the five-year, fixed-rate loan from a regional bank. Snack-food manufacturer Frito-Lay Inc., a subsidiary of PepsiCo, will fully occupy the 60,500-square-foot property that is situated on 8.2 acres.
WINDSOR, MASS. — MassHousing has provided $7.5 million in financing for Prospect Estates, a 25-unit multifamily property located in the western Massachusetts community of Windsor. The borrower, Affordable Housing & Services Collaborative, will use the proceeds to acquire and renovate the property. NEI General Contracting will handle renovations, which will include upgrades to kitchens and bathrooms, as well as building systems and exterior components. The development team will also preserve historic elements of the original structures, such as windows and wood flooring, and add a management office.
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How to Clear Affordable Housing’s Construction Financing Hurdle
Developers are finding it tougher than ever to finance affordable housing. And often, the biggest hurdle for the sector’s borrowers involves construction — either obtaining that initial loan at a manageable cost or qualifying for take-out financing after a protracted construction period — which has strained resources and delivery schedules for a number of developments. Limitations on rent increases make the industry especially vulnerable to rising costs, and expenses today have risen precipitously across the board. Rents have also grown, but not on pace with construction and operating costs driven up by inflation, wage pressures, soaring insurance premiums and a series of interest rate hikes, observes Tracy Peters, a senior managing director on Lument’s affordable housing production team. “Borrowers are squeezed by a number of things in this marketplace,” Peters says. “The fed funds rate climbing 5 percent over the last two years means the interest rates on construction loans have basically come up 5 percent or more over that time. Now folks who had budgeted for a much lower interest rate — if they are still in construction mode — are trying to figure out how to deal with these higher interest rates.” At the same time, the …
MARANA, ARIZ. — Gantry has secured a $7.8 million permanent loan to refinance 26,387 square feet of retail space within The Shoppes at Continental Ranch at 9110-9150 Silverbell Road in Marana, a suburb of Tucson. Tony Kaufmann and Alex Poulos of Gantry arranged the financing for the borrower, a California-based retail developer. The 10-year permanent loan features a fixed rate locked at application and a 30-year amortization schedule. The retail space includes an inline strip and four pad buildings. An independently owned Safeway grocery store shadow anchors the property. Current tenants include a mix of national and local dining, professional services and essential retailers.
CLARK, N.J. — JLL has arranged a $49.5 million loan for the refinancing of Walnut Hill, a 177-unit apartment complex in Clark, about 23 miles southwest of New York City. The newly built property features one-, two- and three-bedroom units and amenities such as a fitness center, pool, clubhouse with lounges and a game room. About 15 percent (28 units) of the residences are reserved as affordable housing. Evan Pariser, Matthew Pizzolato and Jackie Ferrer of JLL arranged the 10-year, fixed-rate loan through Nationwide. The borrower was an affiliate of locally based developer Garden Communities.
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Locally based financial intermediary Largo Capital has arranged an $11.1 million first mortgage loan for the refinancing of a 150,000-square-foot office building in Buffalo. Jack Phillips of Largo Capital arranged the financing on behalf of the undisclosed buyer. The direct lender was not disclosed. The building was fully leased at the time of the loan closing.
LOS ANGELES — Thorofare Capital Inc., a Los Angeles-based affiliate of asset management platform Callodine Group LLC, has provided a $125.9 million loan for a medical office portfolio in greater Washington, D.C. The portfolio comprises eight properties totaling more than 705,000 square feet, the majority of which are situated on or adjacent to hospital campuses. Thorofare Capital provided the three-year, floating-rate loan to the borrower, an investment vehicle managed by Chicago-based Harrison Street. Felix Gutnikov, Jacob Yi and Nicholas Krueger of Thorofare Capital originated the financing. John Nero, Ben Appel, Jay Miele and Michael Greeley of Newmark’s Healthcare Capital Markets Group arranged the loan.
BOSTON — Cottonwood Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity real estate firm, has provided $240 million loan for the refinancing of the St. Regis Residences, a luxury multifamily tower in Boston’s Seaport District. Built in 2022, the 22-story waterfront building houses 114 residences with private balconies and amenities such as a pool, spa, fitness center, lounge, concierge services and an onsite restaurant. The borrower was Boston-based Cronin Development.