Blackstone Takes AIR Communities Private in $10B Deal

Blackstone is taking private Apartment Income REIT, otherwise known as AIR Communities, private in a $10 billion deal, marking Blackstone’s largest transaction in the multifamily market.

The REIT owns 76 rental housing communities and Blackstone plans to invest another $400 million to improve these properties.

The investment by Blackstone comes as the private equity giant is ramping up its acquisition activity, spurred on by what it sees as the bottom of the market and an ideal time to invest. Kathleen McCarthy, its global co-head of real estate, has said that a lot of its capital is invested in logistics and rental housing, categories where new starts are down 30% to 75%, depending on the market.

“We think that sets up for long-term performance on the back of good supply demand.”

In another transaction earlier this year, Blackstone took private Tricon Residential for $3.5 billion, which focused on high-quality residential development and management in North America.

“This is the kind of environment when we do some of our best work,” McCarthy said. “We can combine this capital with the expertise and experience of our team.”

Blackstone Real Estate Partners X is acquiring all outstanding common shares of AIR Communities for $39.12 per share in an all-cash transaction that includes the assumption of debt.

The purchase price represents a premium of 25% to AIR Communities’ closing share price on the NYSE on April 5, 2024, the last trading day prior to the announcement of the transaction, and a 25% premium to the volume weighted average share price on the NYSE over the previous 30 days.

Multifamily Spring:

Multifamily Spring is coming to New York City this April 18. This year’s program will bring together the industry’s most influential and knowledgeable real estate executives from the multifamily sector for 5 hours of face-to-face networking and over 5.5 hours of can’t miss sessions. Learn more or register here.