AUGUSTA, GA. — A joint venture between BCDC and Novare Group has broken ground on Alexander Heights, a 252-unit apartment community in Augusta. The property will offer one- and two-bedroom floor plans. Communal amenities will include a clubhouse, swimming pool, community pavilion, car care center, walking trails and a pet park. It will be located on Alexander Drive, four miles north of downtown Augusta. Texas Capital Bank provided construction financing for the property, which is slated to open in late 2020.
HAMPTON, VA. — Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital LLC has provided a $22 million Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA) construction loan for Monroe Gates Apartments, a planned 162-unit residential complex in Hampton. The property will offer eight two-story townhomes, four carriage homes and 150 one- and two-bedroom floor plans, 20 percent of which will be priced as affordable housing. The site is located at 200 S. Mallory St., two miles east of downtown Hampton and two miles west of the 409-year-old Fort Monroe. Communal amenities will include a clubhouse, fitness center, media room, conference facilities, dog park and a swimming pool. Kelly Martone of Bellwether originated the 35-year loan on behalf of the borrower, The Whitmore Co.
HOUSTON — The Praedium Group, a New York-based investment firm, has acquired Everly Apartments, a 387-unit multifamily community in West Houston. Built in 2018, the property offers one- and two-bedroom units that range in size from 659 to 1,292 square feet and feature stainless steel appliances, granite or quartz countertops and custom wood cabinetry. Amenities include a pool with cabanas, a fitness center, indoor golf simulator, outdoor beer garden and a Wi-Fi lounge with private conference rooms. The seller was not disclosed.
IRVING, TEXAS — New York City-based bank CIT Group Inc. has provided a $56 million loan for the acquisition and renovation of Bel Air Las Colinas, a 515-unit multifamily complex in Irving. The garden-style property consists of 28 three-story buildings that feature studio, one- and two-bedroom floor plans. Amenities include a pool and a resident clubhouse. A portion of the proceeds will be used to fund capital improvements to the unit interiors, landscaping and amenity spaces. The borrower was Western Wealth Capital, an investment firm based in British Columbia.
PEARLAND, TEXAS — Greystone has provided a $37 million Fannie Mae loan for the refinancing of Watercrest at Shadow Creek Ranch, an independent living community in Pearland, a southern suburb of Houston. The property was constructed in 2017 and features 222 units. The borrower was Integrated Real Estate Group and its affiliated operator, Integrated Senior Lifestyles. Cary Tremper of Greystone structured the 10-year senior mortgage.
CINCINNATI — NorthMarq has arranged $18.2 million of construction debt and $5.5 million of equity for Airy Hills at North Bend Crossing, a seniors housing property in Cincinnati. The 82-unit community will be located at 5150 N. Bend Crossing. The unit mix will include 31 assisted living units, 32 memory care units and 19 rehabilitation units. Noah Juran of NorthMarq arranged the three-year financing with a regional bank. General contractor The Douglas Co. expects to begin construction immediately. Completion is slated for the fourth quarter of 2020 or early 2021.
DALLAS — It’s no secret that today’s students spend a lot of time on their phones, perusing social media and scanning the internet. With such a high level of importance placed on digital content, what people are saying about your community through online reviews is becoming more powerful than ever. As an owner or operator, it’s imperative to handle negative reviews quickly and efficiently, and to bolster the amount of positive reviews left about your community. A panel of reputation management strategists weighed in on best online reputation practices during the session, “Review and Reputation Management: Who Should be Managing Your Reputation? What are Best Practices? And Creating an Effective & Efficient Strategy for your Teams,” at the second annual LeaseCon: A Social Media, Digital & Traditional Marketing Boot Camp, held at The Westin Galleria in Dallas in September. “There is a direct correlation between online reputation and how well your assets are performing,” says John Hinckley, CEO of Modern Message. “Building the right strategy around reputation management is key. It’s been interesting to watch over the last eight years and see the industry change from turning a blind eye to reputation to incorporating it as an important component of …
The joint effects of heavy supply additions, rising construction costs and the possibility of an looming recession have multifamily lenders in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) exercising caution and restraint on new construction financing, even as jobs and people continue to flow into the metroplex and fuel demand for housing. The sector’s fundamentals are very encouraging. According to data from CoStar Group, the metroplex has added approximately 23,000 new units over the past 12 months. At just over 25,000 units, absorption during that period has more than adequate. Vacancy currently sits at 7.5 percent. In addition to the market adding 80,000-plus jobs and 100,000-plus people for several consecutive years, strong demand for Class B properties with value-add potential has kept rent growth moving forward. Concessions have begun to sprout up in a handful of submarkets that have seen particularly concentrated levels of new supply, but the metroplex still posted overall rent growth of 2.9 percent over the last 12 months, according to CoStar. In addition, lenders are keenly aware of the construction industry’s ongoing challenge to add skilled labor. Labor stress is creating longer construction timelines and stabilization periods. “Two years ago, we had subcontractors walking off our job sites because they …
SAN ANTONIO — Berkadia has arranged an undisclosed amount of financing for The Vistana, a 17-story mixed-use property in downtown San Antonio. Built in 2009, the Vistana consists of 247 multifamily units in one-, two- and three-bedroom formats and more than 30,000 square feet of retail space. Brad Williamson of Berkadia arranged the five-year loan, which carried a 3.11 percent fixed interest rate, through a national bank on behalf of the borrower, a joint venture between Duncan Hillsley Capital and Rincon Real Estate Investments.
AMARILLO, TEXAS — AWF Fund I LLC has acquired Lambie Lane and Park Lane, two apartment complexes totaling 217 units in Amarillo. The market-rate properties were built in 1976 and 1982, respectively, on contiguous parcels. Dougherty Mortgage arranged $7.3 million in Fannie Mae Green Rewards acquisition financing on behalf of the fund. The loan, which was secured through a partnership with Old Capital Lending, carries a 12-year term and a 30-year amortization schedule.