EAST ORANGE, NJ-Gebroe-Hammer has been selling multi-family buildings in Essex County at record-setting pace, completing eight recent transactions totaling $20 million, GlobeSt.com has learned.
“Essex County has historically been, and continues to be, one of the strongest and most desirable markets for multi-family investments in New Jersey,” says inner-city expert David Oropeza, a G-H managing director. “The area offers a wide variety of property types and classes, ranging from urban walk-up buildings to suburban garden apartment-style complexes.
“Many of the county's urban markets also are in the midst of extensive redevelopment efforts, further expanding investment and rent appreciation potential,” he notes
In East Orange, Oropeza represented the sellers in five separate transactions. They included the $4.5 million sale of a three-story, 46-unit brick apartment building at 255 and 284 Prospect St., where Debbie Pomerantz, an assistant vice-president with G-H, identified the buyer; 49 units sold for $2.275 million at 162 Park Ave., where David Jarvis, the company's executive vice-president, procured the buyer; the $2.025 million trade of 4 Chestnut St., comprised of 41 apartments; the $1.18 million sale of 34 units at 115 South Clinton Ave.; and the $1.3 million sale of 27 one- and two-bedroom units at 300-306 North Oraton Parkway.
East Orange's direct train link to Manhattan is a key to the high desirability of its multi-family housing, says Oropeza.
“The city is really making a comeback,” he adds, “thanks to an emphasis on public safety and many citywide improvements designed to help attract new investors and residents.”
Oropeza and Jarvis also exclusively represented the owner and identified the buyer in the $8.925 million trade of 156 units at 196-246 Roseville Ave. in Newark. The building, located in the city's North Ward, offers a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units.
It is set in the Roseville section, which bordered by Bloomfield and East Orange, and has the Newark City Subway and Branch Brook Park running along its eastern boundary.
“The North Ward's rental strength and tenant pool just keep getting stronger,” Jarvis says, and Roseville is one of the city's signature suburban-style enclaves.
“The rents in this building at the time of sale were significantly below market value,” he says. “The buyer, who recognizes the asset's potential, plans to undertake a number of renovations in order to render the property more competitive.”
Another transaction involved the $550,000 sale of 32 one-bedroom apartment units at 1305 Clinton Ave. in Irvington, which was also arranged by Oropeza and Jarvis. The four-story brick building has one ground-floor retail unit and is close to shopping, the Garden State Parkway and Route 280.
Jarvis says he sees investors competing vigorously for buildings in all of Essex County's urban communities, because the properties provide excellent returns.
Gebroe-Hammer Associates specializes in both suburban and urban high-rise, mid-rise and garden-apartment properties throughout New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia. The firm also markets office and retail properties on behalf of long-term clients.
Besides the multi-family sales, Jarvis and Vice President Stephen Tragash recently arranged the $1.39 million sale of five retail and nine office units at 640-642 Eagle Rock Ave. in West Orange. The property, set at a busy intersection near West Orange High School, has The Bagel Box as a tenant.
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