Two Orlando Student Housing Properties Change Hands

ORLANDO, FL—Two major student housing properties here involving a total of 1,230 student beds have been sold. Both properties are located near and house students from the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

Recently, TH Real Estate acquired the 336-unit Arden Villas student housing complex from Atlanta-based Pollack Shores Real Estate Group. Also, the 894-bed Retreat at Orlando student housing complex was sold by a subsidiary of Inland Private Capital on behalf of one of its 1031 investment programs to Preferred Apartment Communities of Atlanta. PAC acquired the property through its wholly-owned subsidiary Preferred Campus Communities, LLC. Firms involved in both transactions did not release any financing details on the deals.

Chicago-based TH Real Estate is an affiliate of Nuveen (the asset management arm of TIAA).

Originally acquired by Pollack Shores in 2014, Arden Villas recently underwent a substantial capital improvement project that delivered an array of new and modern amenities, including an upgraded pool area with outdoor lounge and grilling stations, clubhouse with an entertainment bar, indoor game room, bocce ball court and a full-size basketball court.

Arden Villas is currently 95% occupied. Pollack Shores said the sale fits within the firm’s broader divestment strategy across the Sunbelt, with Arden Villas and several other assets recently hitting key benchmarks.

“Strong market dynamics and healthy investor demand resulting from our capital improvements prompted Pollack Shores to position Arden Villas for sale,” says Steven Shores, CEO of Pollack Shores. “We are pleased to announce the closing of this transaction alongside Dome Equities, continuing our commitment to build long-term value for our investment partners through timely acquisitions, strategic renovations and a highly focused management approach.”

Scott Ramey, Patrick Dufour and Ryan Lang of ARA Newmark represented Pollack Shores in the transaction. Dome Equities served as Pollack Shores’ equity partner. No financial terms of the sale were released.

“Arden Villas will become an addition to our student housing portfolio, taking advantage of its close proximity to the University of Central Florida, the largest public university in the country,” said Carlos Burneo, director at TH Real Estate and lead for multifamily in Florida in a prepared statement.

Located approximately two miles southwest of the University of Central Florida campus and 11 miles northeast of Orlando’s central business district, the 427,657-square-foot Retreats at Orlando property is located at 11037 Retreat Ave. in Orlando.

Constructed in 2014, the Retreat at Orlando community consists of 143 apartment buildings with 964 parking spaces. There are 33 cottage-style floor plans that range from a two- to six-bedroom design with private bedrooms and bathrooms, gourmet kitchens, spacious closets, nine-foot ceilings, a full-size washer and dryer and a front porch or back patio with private access.

The property also features a resort-style, multi-tiered swimming pool with cabanas and hammocks, a 24-hour fitness center, an 11,000-square-foot clubhouse with a catering kitchen, computer lab, pool tables, lounge area and golf simulator, a sand volleyball court, tennis court, a picnic area with barbecue grills and shuttle service to the UCF campus. At of the date of the sale, the property was 99.55% leased.

“The Orlando Student Housing DST marks our company’s first full-cycle transaction on our student housing platform for IPC’s investors,” says Keith Lampi, president and COO of IPC. “We purchased the property in 2015, and it provided consistent income and a substantial profit on sale, resulting in a 10.48% average annualized return to investors.”

Citing public records, the Orlando Business Journal reported in 2015 that Inland acquired the Retreat at Orlando for $72.5 million.