"Both sides got a fair price," says Mark Forrester who represented the seller, Paradise Club LLC, an investor group from Mountainside, NJ. He tells GlobeSt.com that the buyer of 2825 E. Marconi Ave. was particularly attracted to the property's unit mix, which features about 260 two-bedroom, two-bath units. The remaining units are one bedroom, one bath. Apartments range from 900 sf to 1,000 sf.

Forrester says Bank of America's investment arm plans to reposition the property and will invest additional capital to do so although the exact amount has not been determined. The buyer of record for the class B holding was Paradise Urban Investments LLC. The Charlotte, NC-based Bank of America, through a community development fund, has invested or directly developed more than 100,000 units of affordable housing in recent years. As part of the FleetBoston Financial merger, Bank of America is committed to spending $756 billion over a 10-year period on community economic development programs, including affordable housing.

The property, which was about 90% occupied at closing, is performing in line with the overall apartment. According to Marcus & Millichap's Apartment Research Report, vacancy in the Valley is expected to drop to 9.3% by year end. As market fundamentals improve, investment sales activity in 2204 is likely to surpass 2003's level of $1 billion, according to the report.