LJ Melody & Co.'s local office put up the capital and then sold the loan to Freddie Mac in McLean, VA. The 10-year loan has a sub-5.15% fixed-interest rate and a 75% loan-to-value ratio. The deal was put together by LJ Melody's Paul House, director, and Tom Fish, managing director, both in Houston, and Frank Silcox, a director in Tampa. House tells GlobeSt.com that the seller is locally based Sueba USA Corp., which will continue to manage the asset at 8383 El Mundo St. through affiliate, Southampton Management Inc.

House says the holding never made it to the open market, but rather was a direct connect between buyer, San Melia Acquisitions LP, and seller, Sueba. The seller's parent company, Suba Bau Ag, is headquartered in Hockenheim and one of the largest residential builders in Germany. House says the buyers are long-term holders with a class A portfolio containing 11 other multifamily properties in Houston and seven in Phoenix.

The San Melia community was one of five that Sueba built in 2002. The complex is 93% occupied, with one-bedroom units with 737 sf and two-bedrooms with 1,104 sf. Monthly rents range from $875 to $1,295. San Melia, near the intersection of Texas 288 and Old Spanish Trail, sits in an area dominated by hospitals, medical office buildings, hotels and other class A apartment complexes with a light-rail line connection to the downtown. The eight-acre property is assessed at $16.9 million, according to Harris County Appraisal District.