TORONTO-Avison Young says Drew Koivu has joined the firm, coming from BMO Capital Markets Real Estate Group, and will help direct AY's U.S. Apartment Fund.

Effective immediately, Koivu joins Avison Young as a principal and managing director of Avison Young's U.S. Apartment Fund. Based in Avison Young's Toronto office, Koivu will team with Amy Erixon, Avison Young principal and architect of the U.S. Apartment Fund strategy. Koivu will manage U.S. Apartment Fund transactions, oversee the fund's day-to-day operations and assist investors with their multi-residential property acquisitions and dispositions. He will also serve as a member of the firm's National Apartment Team, collaborating with colleagues and clients on multi-residential property transactions across North America.

The Avison Young U.S. Apartment Fund acquires very high-quality apartment communities at a significant discount to replacement cost in secondary U.S. cities, primarily located in the Southeast U.S. The Fund targets locations with diversified economies that are experiencing high-quality job growth, and it looks to avoid locations with disproportionate single-family foreclosure issues. Through active management and the use of non-recourse, assumable fixed-rate debt, the fund focuses on appreciation and positive cash flow as markets improve.