By Katie Sloan The pandemic has brought many challenges to the student housing industry, particularly as it relates to the much anticipated — and often dreaded — summer turn season. In 2020, the biggest hurdle was keeping shared spaces sanitized while maintaining the safety of residents and onsite staff. Owners and operators had the added challenge of navigating labor shortages, which left many companies scrambling to find everything from cleaning crews to onsite staff, and supply chain issues that resulted in everything from paint to furniture and appliances being stuck offshore or in ports, with little predictability as to delivery. Student Housing Business polled a number of owners, operators and vendors on their thoughts and best practices for circumventing supply chain issues in the new year. Owners & Operators Plan Ahead Owners and operators are getting on the ball and starting to plan. “I’m no expert on the supply chain, but our experience this year really has focused on furniture delivery, whereas in the first year of COVID-19 it was supplies for cleaning and sanitizing,” says Christine Richards, president of management at Core Spaces. “Items that were supposed to be delivered in June were showing up in December, which created …
Multifamily
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rosemont, Ill.-based McShane Construction Co. has plans to build a 397-unit apartment community in Charlotte’s University submarket. Dynamik Design is the project’s architect, and Flournoy Development Group is the developer. The project is slated for completion by January 2024. The project’s name was not disclosed. The multifamily development will include five apartment buildings and 10 townhome-style buildings. Unit features will include vinyl plank flooring, quartz countertops and black fixtures and hardware. Additionally, 10 of the units will include a downstairs workspace for tenants to use as an office or small storefront. Community amenities will include a clubroom, fitness center, yoga studio, coworking lounge, hobby room, bike storage, kitchen, heated pool, courtyard, green space and a market. Located on 24.6 acres at 930 W. Mallard Creek Church Road, the project is situated within two miles from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and 5.8 miles from Charlotte Motor Speedway.
DALLAS — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of six hotels totaling 603 rooms in Texas and New Mexico, with the majority of the properties being located throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex. The DFW hotels consist of a 173-room, dual-branded Home2Suites and Tru by Hilton in Euless; a 120-room Fairfield Inn & Suites in downtown Fort Worth; a 128-room TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Fort Worth; and a 91-room Hampton Inn & Suites in Colleyville. The portfolio also included a 91-room Hampton Inn in Santa Fe, N.M. All of the hotels were built within the last four years. Chris Gomes and Allan Miller of Marcus & Millichap represented the locally based seller, ICON Lodging, in the transaction. The duo also procured the buyer, New York City-based MCR Hotels.
CYPRESS, TEXAS — Locally based developer D’Agostino Cos. has broken ground on Reserve at Cypress, a 300-unit multifamily project located on the northwestern outskirts of Houston. The community will feature one-, two- and three-bedroom units that will average 972 square feet and will be furnished with stainless steel appliances, stone countertops, tile backsplashes and individual washers and dryers. Amenities will include a pool, outdoor dining and entertainment areas and a fitness center. Austin-based OHT Partners is the general contractor for the project, which is slated for a January 2023 completion. Chris Bergmann Jr. of JLL represented the developer in its acquisition of the land, which occurred last June.
NEW YORK CITY — Global Real Estate Advisors (GREA), a full-service brokerage and advisory firm specializing in multifamily acquisitions and financing, has launched 11 offices across the country, including three in the major Texas markets of Dallas, Houston and Austin. The firm brings together representatives of regional brokerages including National Apartment Advisors, Greystone SG, Brown Realty Advisors, HFO Investment Real Estate, Rittenhouse Realty Advisors and Bel Real Estate Advisors. Combined, the brokerages transacted more than $4.5 billion in 2021 sales volume.
HONOLULU — Community Preservation Partners (CPP) has purchased Smith-Beretania Apartments, an affordable multifamily property in Honolulu. Terms of the transaction were not released. The 22-floor housing complex features 164 one- and two-bedroom units, all of which receive subsidy under a Section 8 HAP contract. The property also features a community room, on-site management, laundry facilities, controlled access entry and dedicated parking in the adjacent parking structure. The site also provides access to a public park with a playground, basketball court, pet park and open green space. CPP plans to work with Hawaii-based business partners to invest nearly $10 million to rehabilitate the complex, with renovations to include exterior paint, unit turns, energy-efficiency improvements, accessibility upgrades and site amenity updates. CPP partnered with local lenders BlackSand Capital and Bank of Hawaii to finance the property acquisition. The company also worked with Hawaii affordable housing specialist Ahe Group in the transaction. Now under CPP ownership, future renovations to the Smith-Beretania Apartments will be financed through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, which will preserve its affordable housing designation for decades.
WICHITA, KAN. — American Street Capital (ASC) has arranged a $4.3 million bridge loan for the acquisition of a 180-unit multifamily property in Wichita. Built in 1941 and recently renovated, the community is situated on 10 acres. The property was 88 percent occupied at the time of loan closing. Kyle Tyrrell of ASC arranged the loan, which features a 12-month term and interest-only payments. A debt fund provided the loan. The borrower was not disclosed.
NEW YORK CITY — Greystone has provided a $59.5 million bridge loan for the acquisition of Seaview Estates, a 316-unit affordable housing property in Staten Island. The property offers amenities such as landscaped courtyards, a fitness center and onsite laundry facilities. Miryam Reinitz-Kops of Greystone originated the 24-month, interest-only loan on behalf of the borrower, locally based investment and management firm Iris Holdings Group. Information about specific income restrictions was not disclosed.
RIDGEFIELD, CONN. — New England-based Senior Living Residences (SLR) has acquired a former Atria Senior Living Community in Ridgefield, located approximately 50 miles northeast of Manhattan along the New York-Connecticut border. SLR is rebranding the community, which opened in 2020, as Ridgefield Station Senior Living. The number of units and types of services provided were not disclosed.
GAINESVILLE, FLA. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $33.4 million sale of two apartment communities in Gainesville known as Mount Vernon and Williamsburg Village. Mike Donaldson and Nick Meoli of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, a New York-based private equity fund, in the transaction. An undisclosed private investor based in Orlando was the buyer. Mount Vernon is located at 2370 SW Archer Road, and Williamsburg Village is located at 2000 SW 16th St. Both multifamily communities offer one-, two- and three-bedroom floorplans. Unit features at both apartment communities include stainless steel appliances, laminate countertops, wood-style vinyl flooring, ceiling fans in living rooms and bedrooms, window coverings and a patio or balcony. Both properties feature a swimming pool, poolside fire pit, grilling station and onsite laundry services. Mount Vernon was 95 percent occupied at the time of sale, while Williamsburg Village was 93 percent occupied at the time of sale. Both properties are located close to retailers such as Butler Pizza, Whole Foods Market, Lowe’s Home Improvement, Total Wine & More, Trader Joe’s and Target. The properties are also situated close to the University of Florida College of Medicine, University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine and the Gainesville …