Two of the class B complexes, Northpark Village and Woodland Park, are located in Phoenix while the third complex, Stonegate Apartments, is in Mesa. Orion Residential acquired the properties through an equity joint venture with GE Real Estate Partners Group. The Washington, DC office of Reilly Mortgage Group Inc. arranged financing for the transaction through Freddie Mac.

Seattle-based Orion Residential's president and CEO Brian Ward says $6.5 million will be spent on upgrades for the complexes, which were more than 93% leased at sale time. "We think there is a neat opportunity to buy affordable communities in the Valley and make quality of life improvements so we can deliver a super-safe, high-quality level of housing to the affordable end of the market," he tells GlobeSt.com. "It's a great niche and that's our general strategy for these deals." He says the value-add plan is tied to concession burn-offs and rent hikes.

The 320-unit Northpark Village at 17625 N. 7th St. is part of the Deer Valley submarket. Built in 1983, the asset has 56 one-bedroom units of 710 sf; 184 two-bedroom apartments ranging from 1,000 sf to 1,225 sf; and 80 three-bedroom designs with 1140 sf. The average rent is $685 per month.