NEW YORK, ATLANTA — A group of investors led by real estate investment manager Clarion Partners has acquired Atlanta-based Gables Residential. As a result of the transaction, Gables Residential will be converted into a perpetual life vehicle. Gables is a vertically integrated multifamily real estate company with a 32-year history in the management, development, construction, acquisition and disposition of multifamily and mixed-use communities. The Gables brand and its team total more than 1,100 associates. According to multiple media outlets, the deal is valued at $3.2 billion.
“Having worked closely with Gables for nearly 10 years, we’ve enjoyed our longstanding relationship with the company and look forward to the continued growth and success of the platform,” says Stephen Furnary, CEO of Clarion Partners. “We are excited about growth prospects for multifamily residential in the markets where Gables operates.”
“As a management team, we are thrilled to continue our relationship with Clarion Partners,” says Sue Ansel, CEO of Gables Residential. “The new ownership structure is designed to provide increased stability and growth that will facilitate the success of our company going forward.”
King & Spalding and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP acted as legal advisors to Clarion Partners. Hodes Weill & Associates acted as financial advisor to Clarion Partners in the transaction. Eastdil Secured acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Lion Gables Apartment Fund LP. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP acted as legal advisors.
Clarion Partners is headquartered in New York, with offices in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, London, Los Angeles, São Paulo, Seattle and Washington, D.C. as well as a presence in Mexico.
With nearly $35 billion in total assets under management, Clarion Partners offers real estate strategies across the risk/return spectrum to its more than 250 domestic and international institutional investors.
Gables Residential is a privately held REIT which owns, develops and manages communities in markets including Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Houston, South Florida, Southern California and metropolitan Washington, D.C. The company also has third party management operations in the New York, Virginia Beach, Phoenix, Seattle, San Antonio, Charlotte, Central and North Florida markets. Gables manages approximately 35,000 apartment homes and 400,000 square feet of retail space.
— Haisten Willis