The Lynd Co.-GE Capital partnership assumed a $5.9-million Fannie Mae loan and rolled in a second mortgage to close the deal, Jim Hearn in the Houston office of Phoenix-based Hendricks & Partners tells GlobeSt.com. The buyer of record, GEL Boardwalk LP, outbid 10 other investors lining up for the class B asset at 9100 Fondren Rd.

Hearn says the "north of 8%" cap rate helped the buyer clear "its return hurdles" in the acquisition from Boardwalk Houston Investors, a general partnership with Dallas-headquartered Meridian Realty Advisors Inc. as principal. Hearn, who sold Meridian's other property awhile ago, says the turnaround pro for out-of-favor or liquidity-challenged assets simply decided the time was right to exit Houston.

The new owners, eyeing upside in a rent hike, will spend about $200,000 to upgrade the 26-year-old Boardwalk complex, a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units on 7.7 acres. Units average 1,076 sf with the monthly rent resting at $840 without concessions. Occupancy is hanging in the low 90% range.