Montgomery County Multifamily Proves Popular

GAITHERSBURG, MD-The local multifamily market continues to make the grade among investors, as evidenced by the recent sale of two local apartment communities for a total of $63.5 million. Transwestern Commercial Services’ Institutional Multifamily Group brokered the dispositions on behalf of Englewood, CO-headquartered REIT Archstone-Smith and one of its affiliates, Ameriton Properties Inc. “Consistent with Archstone-Smith’s capital recycling strategy, the company took advantage of very attractive private market pricing for apartments to sell non-core assets,” Archstone officials note in a statement from its second quarter 2003 earnings release.

Among the two properties Archstone and affiliate decided to let go from their holdings is the 252-unit Archstone Saybrooke. Formerly known as the Camden at Saybrooke, the property was developed in 1990 and sits at 100 Old MacDonald Rd. Alliance Holdings took the apartment community off Archstone’s hands for $37.5 million. And Archstone affiliate Ameriton sold Alliance Holdings the 186-unit apartment community known as the Verandahs, which carries the address of 9308 Willow Creek Dr. The 14-year-old property brought in $26 million. “Both of these assets were highly sought after because there is only one new community under construction in the Gaithersburg submarket,” notes Transwestern agent Scott Melnick.