Dick Obenhaus, partner in the Austin office of The Apartment Group and the broker who represented the owner, says Drever was one of five potential buyers to make a bid for the property. He describes Gracy Farms as one of the last luxury apartment complexes to be built in Northwest Austin, and says there is no available land left for a new apartment development.

"Internally we wrestled hard on making the decision to buy because we feel Austin will see further price deterioration," says Joe Gillespie, director of acquisitions for CAM. "However, we realized the property's great location and fixable problems are value-adding opportunities we could capitalize on."

Odland tells GlobeSt.com that the Drever Fund already has about 1,000 units in Austin and is looking to acquire another 2,000 units there in the next 12 to 24 months, but only if the price is right. "We're looking at deals every week," says Odland, "but it's hard finding sellers who have realistic expectations of making a transaction happen."

Greystar Management in Austin has been appointed property managers for the Village at Gracy Farms, which is located across from IBM's main campus and near North Austin Medical Center and Austin Community College. Gracy Farms is the third Austin apartment complex acquired by a Drever fund. Last October, the 512-unit Limestone Ranch was acquired in North Austin near the Dell campus. Earlier, a Drever fund purchased the 102-unit Hamilton in South Austin.