WEST DES MOINES, IA - Four Mile Capital, a privately-held real estate investment firm based in Louisville, CO, in a joint-venture with MLG Capitaland BH Equities, has acquired the 222-unit, class-A Aspire Townhomes in West Des Moines, IA. The 332,180sf Aspire Townhomes, completed in June 2018, consists of twenty-six buildings and a clubhouse, and is currently in lease up at 76% occupied. BH Management has been awarded the management contract.
The off-market transaction closed December 14, 2018, for a price of $40,250,000, or $181,306 per unit, and FMC intends to spend about $500,000 on additional cosmetic improvements to the clubhouse and pool area. This is MLG’s second investment, and BHE’s first, with Four Mile Capital, and the partnership took out a new 70% LTV Freddie Mac mortgage through Prudential (“PGIM”) as part of their acquisition.
“After over a year-long pursuit of Aspire, we are thrilled to close on our first Des Moines acquisition,” said Eric Mallon, one of FMC’s principals. “We had been drawn to the market for its economic strength and diversity, but the unrivaled physical product is what ultimately sold us on this deal. Aspire consists of large 2 and 3-bedroom floorplans, all with private entrances, 2-car attached garages, and upscale condo-quality finishes.” The new owners will continue the property’s lease-up and expect to stabilize occupancy at 95% within the next year. “We are fortunate to have such a strong operating partner in BH, a trusted equity partner in MLG Capital, and an efficient debt partner in PGIM. This was a highly complex acquisition that our teams navigated with aplomb,” said Mallon.
The Aspire Townhomes are located 20 minutes from downtown Des Moines, directly across the street from Wells Fargo’s residential mortgage corporate headquarters and minutes from the 1.3M SF Jordan Creek Town Center, one of the Midwest’s largest shopping complexes. “This might be the most well-located project of any that we own,” said Chris Geer, another FMC principal. “Our residents live at the doorstep of a huge variety of retail, dining, and employment opportunities, and Aspire represents a unique and meaningful housing option for this booming submarket.” Des Moines is consistently named to Best Places to Live and Work lists and was recently described as the fastest growing city in the Midwest.
Four Mile Capital continues to pursue additional investment opportunities throughout the U.S, with a specific focus on Colorado, Virginia, Atlanta, Iowa, Wisconsin and Salt Lake City. They employ an opportunistic strategy in acquiring off-market properties that fall below the radar of its institutional peers, targeting investments with a total capitalization between $20MM and $100MM, and between $5MM and $35MM of equity.