Two Multifamily Project Sales Total $71M

NAPLES, FL-Two more multifamily rental properties in South Florida have been sold for a total of $70.9 million, in deals brokered by the Florida office of Apartment Realty Advisors.In one transaction, JP Morgan Investment Management Inc., based in New York, paid about $42.9 million for the Reserve at Naples, a 300-unit, luxury garden apartment community here in northern Collier County. The price equates to approximately $142,883 per unit, or $132.92 per sf.Kevin Judd, senior vice president, and Marc deBaptiste, a principal with Apartment Realty Advisors, represented the seller, Equity Resources LLC, in the transaction. The class AA property, located between Downtown and Bonita Springs, was developed in 2002. It consists of 14 two- and three-story apartment buildings surrounded by two lakes. “The Reserve at Naples set the high watermark for both price per unit and price per sf in Southwest Florida,” according to deBaptiste. “With the lack of development pipeline and a significant increase in population, this market is poised for significant rent growth.”"This offering received significant interest from all investor types,” Judd, ARA’s multifamily specialist, adds in a statement. “We are noting more activity on behalf of pension fund advisers in Southwest Florida.”In the other deal, Miami-based BF Group LLC purchased Coral Club, a 293-unit, luxury garden apartment community in Broward County’s Coral Springs, for $28 million, or $95,563 per unit. Avery Klann, vice president, and Richard Donnellan, a principal with Apartment Realty Advisors, represented the seller, Coral Club Apartments Ltd., in the sale.Coral Club consists of two- and three-story apartment buildings and a clubhouse/leasing center. The area surrounding Coral Club is basically built out, with most of the new developments town homes and condominiums.BF Group, a condo converter, also just purchased the Majorca Apartments, a 248-unit, class A-plus property in Fort Myers, for $25 million. The county is expected to continue to see strong interest among condo converters and growth among existing rental properties due to a 36% drop in multifamily permits issued in the first half of this year and a depletion of rental supply this year with more condo conversion activity, according to ARA.

These sales grew transactions of ARA in Florida to more than $1 billion, as the company experiences a record-breaking year. “Continued interest in apartments from traditional investors, combined with the recent surge in demand from condominium converters, is causing transaction volume around the state to hit unprecedented levels,” Donnellan says. “This trend will likely continue through 2005.”