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UPPER MARLBORO, MD-In a transaction valued at $34 million, an unnamed investor based in Colorado has acquired the Village of Churchill's Choice. According to Prince George's County real estate records, the complex and the nearly seven-acre parcel it occupies have a combined current assessed value of $17.7 million.

A Baltimore-headquartered developer operating under the name Sterling Property Associates II , relied on the assistance of Ideal Realty Group to orchestrate the sale of the 192-unit apartment complex. Churchill's Choice was developed in 2001 and located at 4530 Lords Landing Rd. next to the Marlborough Golf and Country Club and not far from the Capital Beltway. Despite a demand for condominium developments and a strong propensity for conversions in the area, the new owner plans to maintain Churchill's Choice as a rental community. As per Delta Associates' Year-End 2005 Mid-Atlantic Class A Apartment & Washington Area Condominium Market Report, of the approximately 3,000 units planned or under construction in the Prince George's County/Anne Arundel County/Howard County area, about one-third have already been sold and "compared to 2004, condo conversions played an even larger role in condo sales in 2005." However, the report also notes that the vacancy rate among class A garden-style apartments in Prince George's County is 1.8%.

According to officials at IRG, both condos and rentals are valuable assets in the market. "For the past 10 to 20 years, Fairfax and Montgomery have been the darling counties of the Washington metro area," says IRG president Allen Manesh. "While these countries are still good investments, the best values for the multifamily market are in Prince George's County. This is attributed to growing populations, increasing demographics and steady job growth."