ORLANDO, FL - An Investcorp-TruAmerica Multifamily joint venture has acquired a 708-unit, two-property apartment portfolio in Orlando, FL for $98 million. The purchase of the 360-unit Montevista at Windermere and the 348-unit Highpoint Club marks TruAmerica’s entry into the Southeast property markets.
Los Angeles-based TruAmerica, one of the 50 largest multifamily owners in the United States only four years after its founding, has been actively seeking investment opportunities in Florida since establishing an East Coast office in the Fall of last year, according to Eastern U.S. Director of Acquisitions Matthew Ferrari.
“Investment sales in Florida have been much slower in the first half of the year which has created a frenetic and competitive market for quality assets,” said Ferrari, who leads TruAmerica’s East Coast operations out of its Arlington, VA-based office. “We were able to leverage our successful track record and relationships to acquire these properties in what was a very intense competition.”
Both Montevista and Highpoint are institutional quality assets each located in desirable neighborhoods with great schools less than 10 miles from Downtown Orlando. Each community features a mix of one-and two-bedroom floor plans and amenities including a resort-style pool, resident clubhouse, dog park and fitness center.
The joint venture plans an extensive value-add renovation program across the portfolio that will include faux wood vinyl flooring, upgraded countertops and backsplashes, new cabinet fronts, light fixtures and microwaves. Improvements also will include upgrades to the fitness centers, clubhouses, signage, landscaping and new paint on all building exteriors. When completed, each community will be better suited to meet the growing demand for quality apartment living by the thousands of people that continue to move to Orlando each year.
More than 60,000 people moved to Orlando last year and the population is expected to grow by 7.7% through 2021, providing a steady flow of potential new renters to the region, according to CBRE Econometric Advisors.
“The Orlando economy has diversified well beyond tourism and is now home to new jobs from a broad group of employment sectors including healthcare, telecom, bio tech, and high technology,” added Brian Kelley, Managing Director with Investcorp’s Real Estate Group, which has now partnered with TruAmerica on eight multifamily investments throughout the United States. “These sectors have fueled the Orlando job engine, which is leading the rest of the nation in employment growth.”
The investment will benefit from seven-year floating rate agency debt financing arranged by Richard Jordan’s Atlanta-based CBRE team.
The Orlando-based team of Shelton Granade, Luke Wickham and Justin Basquill, also with CBRE, marketed the property on behalf of the seller.