CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Portman has unveiled plans for 2161 Hawkins, a transit-oriented, mixed-use development in Charlotte’s South End. In addition to 370 apartments, the 24-story property will feature 18,700 square feet of ground-floor retail space and a plaza and greenspace that will connect 2161 Hawkins to The Line, Portman’s Class A office tower that opened earlier this year. The two towers will also be connected via a fourth-floor sky bridge. The Atlanta-based company will break ground on the 1.5-acre site for 2161 Hawkins in October, with delivery slated for third-quarter 2024. Planned community amenities include concierge service, a rooftop pool, coworking spaces, game room, climbing wall and indoor/outdoor fitness centers. Committed tenants for 2161 Hawkins’ retail space include the popular Sycamore Brewery, local restaurateur Dressler’s new concept Chapter 6, neighborhood market Savi Provisions and fitness concept GritBox Fitness. Foundry Commercial is handling leasing the retail component for 2161 Hawkins.
Multifamily
ATLANTA — The Radco Cos. has acquired Gibson Reynoldstown Apartments, a 205-unit midrise multifamily community located in Atlanta’s Reynoldstown neighborhood. The locally based investor has rebranded the property as Gibson by Radius, Radco’s high-end apartment brand. Robert Stickel and Alex Brown of Cushman & Wakefield brokered the transaction. The seller and sales price were not disclosed. Situated along Memorial Drive and two blocks from the Atlanta BeltLine, Gibson by Radius was delivered in August 2022. The property features a rooftop pool and poolside fire pit, as well as 1,700 square feet of retail space on the ground level. The property is currently in lease-up, according to Radco.
Northmarq Arranges $6.7M Acquisition Loan for Apartment Community in Petersburg, Virginia
by John Nelson
PETERSBURG, VA. — Northmarq has arranged a $6.7 million acquisition loan for Mill Creek Apartments, a 95-unit multifamily community located at 2701-2732 in Petersburg. Hunter Wood, Keith Wells and Reina Abboud of Northmarq’s Richmond office arranged the five-year loan through a regional bank on behalf of the undisclosed borrower. The loan includes 12 months of interest-only payments followed by a 30-year amortization schedule. Built in 1976, Mill Creek is situated within a half-mile of two regional shopping destinations: South Crater Road Plaza and Burgess Shopping Center. The seller was not disclosed.
NORTH HALEDON, N.J. — G.S. Wilcox & Co. has arranged a $52 million loan for the refinancing of a 180-unit multifamily asset located in the Northern New Jersey community of North Haledon. The four-building property features amenities such as a pool, pet park, fitness center, clubhouse and an outdoor entertainment area. Gretchen Wilcox, Wesley Wilcox and Al Raymond of G.S. Wilcox arranged the 20-year loan on behalf of the undisclosed borrower. The direct lender was also not disclosed.
Experience Senior Living Plans 26-Story Community Within Strathmore Square Mixed-Use Development in Bethesda, Maryland
by Jeff Shaw
BETHESDA, MD. — Experience Senior Living, a seniors housing developer, has unveiled plans for The Reserve at Strathmore Square. The project will be part of Strathmore Square, a planned arts-centric mixed-use community located in north Bethesda above the Grosvenor-Strathmore Red Line Metro station and adjacent to the Strathmore Music Center. The seniors housing community will rise 26 stories and span 300,000 square feet, featuring 240 units of independent living, assisted living and memory care. Experience plans to break ground on the project in the fourth quarter of 2023. Amenities at the community will include a swimming pool, pickleball court, wellness suite with a fitness room, salon, massage, sky lounge, outdoor spaces including a private memory care courtyard, multiple dining venues and a bar. The plan calls for The Reserve to be part of an intergenerational housing development with programs and activities for engagement between residents of the seniors housing community and the other residential properties in Strathmore Square. The larger Strathmore Square project comprises eight acres of developable space. The master-plan developer, Fivesquares Development, expects the full build-out to include 2,000 residential units, approximately 35,000 square feet of retail, walking paths to the Metro station and a 1.3-acre central park. …
By Kimberly A. Rollins, Senior Vice President, Rollins & Randall Multi-Family Group, Commercial Properties Inc. The big question on everyone’s mind is where Phoenix’s multifamily market is going. After several years of pandemic-caused uncertainty, the implications are still transforming the market. Whether it is workforce mobility, supply chain issues, or labor shortages, uncertainty and inflation have affected all areas of real estate — no place more so than here in the Phoenix Metro Area. The perfect storm of historically low interest rates, job opportunities, limited new development and a low cost of living have given rise to the housing shortage that has played out in the Valley over the past several years. We saw multifamily effective rent increase 22.7 percent year over year in the third quarter of 2021, and an average market sale price per unit of $297,697, with a 3.9 percent year-to-date cap rate, according to CoStar. Over the past 10 years, vacancy rates have dropped every year. They fell from 8.3 percent in 2012 to a low of 5.8 percent in 2021. Conversely, year to date we are seeing a vacancy increase for the first time during that timeframe, to 7.7 percent. Last year also saw the highest level of …
CHICAGO — Standard Communities led a public-private partnership that acquired Lake Park Crescent Apartments in Chicago’s Oakland neighborhood for roughly $54 million. Built in 2004 and located at 1061 E. 41st Place, the mixed-income apartment community is comprised of 148 units across 13 buildings. Of the 148 units, 112 are designated as affordable for renters who earn 40 to 80 percent of the area median income. As part of the transaction, 60 Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) public housing units were converted to project-based vouchers under the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program. The federal RAD program enables public housing authorities to protect the long-term affordability of public housing units in need of rehabilitation and financial support. Affordability will be extended for at least 30 years. Standard completed the transaction in partnership with HUD, the Illinois Housing Development Authority, CHA and the City of Chicago Department of Housing. Financing came from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits arranged in partnership with Boston Financial Investment Management. Citibank provided additional financing. Standard will oversee a renovation of Lake Park Crescent at a cost of approximately $72,000 per unit. Common areas and exterior grounds will also be improved.
CONROE, TEXAS — Thompson Thrift Residential, a subsidiary of Indianapolis-based investment firm Thompson Thrift, has sold Watermark at Grand Central Park, a 288-unit apartment community in Conroe, about 40 miles north of Houston. Built in 2021, the garden-style property offers one-, two- and three-bedroom units with stainless steel appliances, quartz countertops and full-size washers and dryers. Amenities include a pool, fitness center, outdoor kitchen, clubhouse, lounge, coffee bar and walking trails. Jennifer Ray of Walker & Dunlop represented Thompson Thrift in the transaction. San Diego-based CEG Multifamily purchased the community for an undisclosed amount
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Greysteel has brokered the sale of University Quarters, an 84-unit apartment complex located near the University of Texas at Austin. The property comprises four buildings that were constructed between 1973 and 1978 and house one-bedroom units with an average size of 450 square feet. J.R. Ellis and Jack Stone of Greysteel represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. The buyer and sales price were also not disclosed.
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Northland, a private equity investment firm based in Newton, Mass., has purchased 511 Meeting, a 221-unit apartment community located in Charleston’s North Meeting Street neighborhood. The seller and sales price were not disclosed. Situated near King Street and the upcoming Lowcountry LowLine linear park, 511 Meeting comprises studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments, 33 of which are rent-restricted. The podium-style, mid-rise building features a fitness center with a separate yoga studio, bike storage and repair area, media center, business center and a second-story pool deck with a fire pit and grill stations. Other amenities include a resident lounge with a billiards table, foosball table and bar space, as well as 2,960 square feet of retail space occupied by Blum, a local coffee and wine bar. 511 Meeting is Northland’s third investment in the Charleston area, joining The Standard on James Island and Wharf 7 on Daniel Island.