Located on the Atlantic side of the island, Ocean Walk is close to the beach, restaurants, retail, entertainment hubs in downtown and the Key West International Airport. The multifamily property features a variety of amenities, including a clubhouse, swimming pool with a sundeck, tennis courts, and a basketball court.

“Key West is without a doubt one of the highest barriers to entry markets in the entire country with relatively no remaining development sites, extremely limited competition and a highly-mandated growth ordinance,” says Gills. There are only two other competing apartment communities on the island, both of which have demonstrated consistently above-average occupancy rates and explosive year-over-year rent growth.

“This is an asset that will continue to perform over time and one that we plan to hold long-term,” says Gillis. “Our strategic approach is to continue a series of capital improvements to upgrade the property, further positioning it for long-term growth.”

During prior ownership, the seller extensively upgraded the majority of the unit interiors with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and new cabinetry and flooring, in addition to completing considerable exterior improvements. Passco plans to renovate and update the remaining 10% of the 297 units that were not updated during prior ownership.

The apartment community is located at 3900 South Roosevelt Boulevard. Hampton Beebe with ARA Newmark represented the seller, a partnership between Mast Capital and Rockpoint Group, and the buyer. Chris Black and Caleb Marten of KeyBank Real Estate Capital's Commercial Mortgage Group arranged acquisition financing for Passco Companies through Fannie Mae.

“Ocean Walk is truly a one-of-a-kind asset that will continue to benefit from the market's demand drivers,” Beebe says. “The Key West market has experienced strong population gains, record rent growth, and is greatly under supplied. This, coupled with the recent renovations completed at the property, provides exceptional value potential for Passco.”

Passco has been extremely active in the Florida market. The firm has acquired more than eight properties in Florida in the last two years. Passco has also remained extremely active in multiple markets across the US, acquiring four additional properties thus far in 2017, totaling more than $350 million, with several more that are planned to close over the next few months.

“Ocean Walk, along with the additional assets in our acquisition pipeline, is putting us on track to reach our $1 billion goal in commercial real estate assets this year,” says Gillis. “We recently surpassed $2 billion in assets under management, and we plan to continue this momentum, growing our portfolio with high-quality, well-located assets across the country.”

MIAMI—Ocean Walk Apartments, a 297-unit multifamily community in Key West, FL, has traded hands. The sale price: $101.5 million. Passco Companies acquired the multifamily asset. The deal marks the largest single-asset transaction in the firm's history.

According to Colin Gillis, vice president of acquisitions for the Southeast at Passco, Ocean Walk is an extremely rare find. Indeed, the apartment community is one of only three professionally-managed multifamily communities in Key West, representing nearly half of the multifamily supply on the entire island.

(Will Florida Keys hotels continue their hot streak? Sound off.)

“We are one of the most active buyers in Florida and immediately recognized the true value potential of this asset,” Gillis tells GlobeSt.com. “It is truly a one-of-a kind property that will continue to perform for many years to come. We plan to implement a series of upgrades to the property that will allow us to further capitalize on the strong demand and rent growth on the island.”

Located on the Atlantic side of the island, Ocean Walk is close to the beach, restaurants, retail, entertainment hubs in downtown and the Key West International Airport. The multifamily property features a variety of amenities, including a clubhouse, swimming pool with a sundeck, tennis courts, and a basketball court.

“Key West is without a doubt one of the highest barriers to entry markets in the entire country with relatively no remaining development sites, extremely limited competition and a highly-mandated growth ordinance,” says Gills. There are only two other competing apartment communities on the island, both of which have demonstrated consistently above-average occupancy rates and explosive year-over-year rent growth.

“This is an asset that will continue to perform over time and one that we plan to hold long-term,” says Gillis. “Our strategic approach is to continue a series of capital improvements to upgrade the property, further positioning it for long-term growth.”

During prior ownership, the seller extensively upgraded the majority of the unit interiors with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and new cabinetry and flooring, in addition to completing considerable exterior improvements. Passco plans to renovate and update the remaining 10% of the 297 units that were not updated during prior ownership.

The apartment community is located at 3900 South Roosevelt Boulevard. Hampton Beebe with ARA Newmark represented the seller, a partnership between Mast Capital and Rockpoint Group, and the buyer. Chris Black and Caleb Marten of KeyBank Real Estate Capital's Commercial Mortgage Group arranged acquisition financing for Passco Companies through Fannie Mae.

“Ocean Walk is truly a one-of-a-kind asset that will continue to benefit from the market's demand drivers,” Beebe says. “The Key West market has experienced strong population gains, record rent growth, and is greatly under supplied. This, coupled with the recent renovations completed at the property, provides exceptional value potential for Passco.”

Passco has been extremely active in the Florida market. The firm has acquired more than eight properties in Florida in the last two years. Passco has also remained extremely active in multiple markets across the US, acquiring four additional properties thus far in 2017, totaling more than $350 million, with several more that are planned to close over the next few months.

“Ocean Walk, along with the additional assets in our acquisition pipeline, is putting us on track to reach our $1 billion goal in commercial real estate assets this year,” says Gillis. “We recently surpassed $2 billion in assets under management, and we plan to continue this momentum, growing our portfolio with high-quality, well-located assets across the country.”