MIAMI — Melo Group has received an $85 million loan for the construction of Art Plaza Apartments, a 667-unit apartment community located at 58 N.E. 14th St. in downtown Miami. Construction is underway on the transit-oriented development, which is located one block from the Miami-Dade Metromover School Board Station. The community will include two 34-story towers with a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments units, as well as 11,764 square feet of ground level retail and restaurant space. Community amenities will include a resort-style pool, Jacuzzi, fitness center, valet service, covered garage parking and a social room for residents. Florentino Gonzales of Shutts & Bowen represented Melo Group in the loan transaction, and Elena Otero of Holland & Knight LLP represented Ocean Bank. Melo Group expects to wrap up construction on Art Plaza Apartments in mid-2019.
Southeast
DURHAM, N.C. — Lantower Residential has acquired BullHouse, a 305-unit apartment community located in downtown Durham, for $76.3 million. Woodfield Development, which completed construction on the property earlier this year, sold the asset. BullHouse is located at 504 E. Pettigrew St., roughly three miles from Duke University & Hospital. The community features a mix of studio to three-bedroom units with stainless steel appliances, designer kitchen cabinets, white quartz countertops, USB outlets and floor-to-ceiling windows in select units. Community amenities include a heated saltwater pool, sky terrace, fitness center with separate yoga and massage rooms, electric car charging stations, Amazon Hub package system, dog spa and a clubhouse with entertaining space. Including this acquisition, Lantower Residential’s portfolio features 18 multifamily properties consisting of 5,938 units.
WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. — Aztec Group has arranged a $42 million construction loan for a 208-room Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel located in downtown West Palm Beach. Boaz Ashbel of Aztec Group originated the financing through Florida Community Bank N.A. on behalf of the hotel owner and operator, Concord Hospitality Enterprises Co. The hotel will be located at 201 N. Flagler Drive, within a 435,000-square-foot mixed-use project under development by Navarro Lowery Properties. In addition to the new hotel, the site will feature 250 residential units, more than 30,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, outdoor recreational space and a multi-level parking structure. The hotel is scheduled to open in fall 2019 and will feature a full-service restaurant, fitness center, 4,000 square feet of meeting space and a rooftop swimming pool and lounge.
PHENIX CITY AND MOBILE, ALA. — Capital One Multifamily Finance has provided a combined $37 million in agency loans for the acquisition of two multifamily communities in Alabama. In Phenix City, Capital One provided a $26.5 million Fannie Mae loan on behalf of EBSCO Income Properties for the acquisition of The Grand Reserve at Phenix City. The 12-year, fixed-rate loan features eight years of interest-only payments and a 30-year amortization schedule. Developed in 2010, The Grand Reserve at Phenix City features a pool, clubhouse and a fitness center. A 22-acre, grocery-anchored shopping center is scheduled to open adjacent to the property in 2019. In Mobile, Capital One provided a $10.5 million Freddie Mac loan for the acquisition of Southern Oaks Apartments. The 10-year, fixed-rate loan features five years of interest-only payments and a 30-year amortization schedule. StoneRiver Co. acquired the 224-unit asset from the PEM Real Estate Group. Built in 1975, Southern Oaks Apartments feature a clubhouse, fitness center, barbecue station and a swimming pool. StoneRiver plans to update the community with new appliances, flooring, countertops and painting. Chad Thomas Hagwood of Capital One originated both transactions.
CHESAPEAKE, VA. — Steadfast Apartment REIT III Inc. (STAR III) has acquired Cottage Trails at Culpepper Landing, a 183-unit multifamily community in Chesapeake, for $30.1 million. The name of the seller was not disclosed. Completed in 2015, the Hampton Roads property include eight, three-story buildings with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Community amenities include a community clubroom with catering kitchen, saltwater pool, fitness and yoga studio, dog park, playground, residential storage units, cyber café and grilling areas. STAR III plans to replace laminate countertops with quartz countertops in the kitchens and bathrooms, as well as renovate and update some of the common amenities.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Capital One Multifamily Finance’s Chad Thomas Hagwood kicked off with a fastball. When prompted with the often used “what inning are we in?” question, Hagwood’s response was indicative of how competitive commercial real estate lending is today. “I don’t know what inning we are in of the cycle, but I know I want to play ball,” says Hagwood, senior vice president of Capital One Multifamily Finance. “People are after it, and we intend to fight it out tooth and nail.” Hagwood’s commentary came during the closing capital markets panel of the ninth annual InterFace Carolinas, a half-day event that drew 212 attendees from North and South Carolina’s commercial real estate community. Bryson Thomason, senior director of Greenville, S.C.-based PMC Real Estate Capital, moderated the panel. The most intense competition for financing is in the multifamily space because of the proliferation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and their designated lenders. The two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) have been competing against each other as well as other lenders. Hagwood describes the competition between the two agencies as a “bloodbath.” “It’s all out brutal warfare competition the two,” says Hagwood. “I do expect Fannie and Freddie to be very competitive …
ORLANDO, FLA. — Tishman Select Partners, an affiliate of New York-based Tishman, has acquired three hotels in Orlando from developer Kalson’s Hospitality. The portfolio sold for $81 million, according to local media reports. The sold portfolio adds 400 rooms to Tishman’s portfolio and includes Homewood Suites Orlando Theme Parks, located at 6940 Westwood Blvd.; Homewood Suites Lake Buena Vista, located at 11428 Palm Parkway; and Hilton Garden Inn Lake Buena Vista, located adjacent to Homewood Suites Lake Buena Vista. All three properties are situated less than five miles from Walt Disney World. Tishman currently owns the nearby Walt Disney World Swan and Walt Disney World Dolphin Resorts.
ATLANTA — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $78.3 million sale of a six-property, 1,522-unit multifamily portfolio located across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. Tampa-based Blue Rock Partners acquired the properties from Atlanta-based Varden Capital Partners. Tyler Averitt, Jimmy Adams and Craig Hey of Cushman & Wakefield’s Atlanta office arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller. The sold portfolio includes the 184-unit Madison Square in Dothan, Ala.; the 324-unit Preserve at Bent Creek in Atlanta; the 384-unit Lakeview Trails and the 210-unit Epic Brookside in College Park, Ga.; the 188-unit Orchard Cove in Covington, Ga.; and the 232-unit Gardens of Canal Park in Robinsonville, Miss. Community amenities across the portfolio include swimming pools, playgrounds, business centers, laundry facilities and fitness centers.
TAMPA, FLA. — Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc. has sold the 293-room Renaissance Tampa International Plaza Hotel in Tampa for $68 million, or $232,000 per room. Newport Beach, Calif.-based Clearview Hotel Capital and funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management LP acquired the asset. According to Braemar, the Renaissance Tampa hotel achieved RevPAR of $158 with occupancy of 83 percent and an average daily rate (ADR) of $191 in the 12-month period ended March 31, 2018. The Marriott-branded property features a fitness center, rooftop hydroponic garden, outdoor pool, onsite dining and an onsite wine bar. Lou Plasencia, Joe Corcoran, Chris Plasencia and Nick Plasencia of The Plasencia Group arranged the transaction on behalf of Braemar.
KENNESAW, GA. — InvenTrust Properties Corp. has acquired Kennesaw Marketplace, a 114,000-square-foot retail center in the northwest Atlanta suburb of Kennesaw, for $64.3 million. Atlanta-based Fuqua Development delivered the center in 2017. Whole Foods Market anchors the development, which was 99 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants including Starbucks Coffee, MOD Pizza, PNC Bank, AT&T, Sports Clips, Del Taco, Zoe’s Kitchen, Newk’s Eatery and Navy Federal Credit Union.