597 Westport is a 235-unit luxury apartment community located on the Norwalk-Westport border.

NORWALK, CT—Commercial brokerage firm CBRE reports it has brokered the sale of two multifamily properties in Norwalk and Stamford that traded for a combined $173 million.

The largest deal involved the sale of 597 Westport, a 235-unit luxury apartment development on the Norwalk/Westport line for $105.9 million. An affiliate of Hunt Investment Management sold the property at 597 Westport Ave. to a partnership of GDC Properties of Hawthorne, NY through a 1031 exchange.

The deal marks the entrance of the firm into the Norwalk-Westport multifamily market. GDC Properties is headed by co-chairman Samuel and Adam Ginsburg and president William Ingraham.

CBRE Group, Inc.'s Jeffrey Dunne, Gene Pride and Eric Apfel represented the Hunt Investment Management, while CBRE's Debt & Structured Finance team handled negotiations for GDC Properties in the transaction. CBRE's Jim Gunning, Donna Falzarano and Kyle Saviano procured first and mezzanine financing from The Guardian Life Insurance Co. and a pension fund client represented by Quadrant Real Estate Advisors, respectively. The blended rate for the five-year term was very aggressive, CBRE reports. No further financial information in connection with the transaction was released.

The property features a clubroom with a full caterer's kitchen, media lounge and billiards room as well as a fitness center that opens directly to an outdoor saltwater pool with an expansive sundeck, cabanas and outdoor kitchen. There is also a board room/dining room with an additional attached kitchen for private resident events.

“The asset has a unique market position as it is located directly on the Westport/Norwalk border and serves the affluent Westport community by offering ultra-luxury finishes,” CBRE's Dunne says. “The resident base in the property contains a large percentage of second home owners and retirees that appreciate the connection to Westport's highly appealing lifestyle.”

CBRE also reported it represented TH Real Estate, an affiliate of Nuveen, a TIAA company, in the sale of The Wescott, a 261-unit Class-A apartment community in Stamford, to a private New Jersey based investment group for $67 million.

Built in 1986, the property features an indoor/outdoor pool, clubroom with kitchen, media lounge and billiards room, fitness center, tennis courts, basketball court, outdoor courtyard and garage parking. Most units have been renovated with all new kitchens, featuring granite counters, new cabinets, stainless steel appliances, new baths, lighting and fixtures. CBRE also reports there is 8,500 square feet of vacant commercial space that was formerly occupied by medical tenants.

CBRE did not identify the buyer, but noted that the private investment firm has purchased 6,500 residential units in the past 24 months.

“Stamford continues to attract significant interest given the 24/7 live, work, play lifestyle that is also pedestrian and transit centric,” Dunne says. “This is highly appealing to the new residents that continue to move to our market as well as the employers that continue to expand.”

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John Jordan

John Jordan is a veteran journalist with 36 years of print and digital media experience.