Represents the largest student housing refinancing in the Southeastern U.S. this year

Berkadia announces it has secured a $70.76 million bridge loan for UnionWest at Creative Village, a trophy 640-bed, mixed-use, high-rise student housing complex located in Downtown Orlando, Florida, serving the UCF/Valencia Downtown Campus. Managing Directors Michael Weinberg and Rebecca Van Reken, along with Associate Director Alec Fox of Berkadia Orlando, secured the financing on behalf of the sponsors: Development Ventures Group, Ustler Development and Halstatt Real Estate Partners.

Bank of America provided the loan which will be used to take out the existing construction loan, which Michael Weinberg arranged in 2017 in tandem with Halstatt Real Estate Partners’ equity investment in the project. The property is over 95 percent leased as of refinancing.

UnionWest at Creative Village was completed in 2019 in conjunction with the opening of the UCF/Valencia Downtown Campus with over 7,000 students.

“UnionWest is one of the most unique, mixed-use buildings in the country. It offers students and faculty a truly special experience in a dense, urban setting. The high level sponsorship and asset performance generated very competitive lender interest,” said Weinberg.

Located at 601 West Livingston Street, UnionWest at Creative Village is a 15-story high-rise representing purpose-built student housing offering four-bedroom floor plans with contemporary finishes, skyline views of Orlando, high-speed WiFi, extended cable TV, and other services. Community amenities include a resident-only Skydeck, study areas, kitchen and laundry services on each floor and the Downtown Campus recreation and wellness center. Both Valencia College and UCF lease education space in the property; Valencia leases 55,000 square feet including their new state-of-the-art Walt Disney World Center for Culinary Arts and Hospitality. UCF leases 46,910 square feet for its academic and student support services. UnionWest is an integral part of the UCF/Valencia Downtown Campus and is located across the street from the new 2.3 acre Luminary Green Park (opening in 2022).

UnionWest includes approximately 12,000 square-feet of ground floor commercial space leased to Subway, Dunkin’, Vera Asian, Qdoba and Addition Financial.  The UnionWest parking garage contains 602 spaces - approximately 300 spaces allocated for residents and the remaining 300 spaces available for public/daily parking.

Located within the Creative Village in Downtown Orlando, UnionWest is in the urban Innovation District that focuses on a live, work, learn and play lifestyle surrounded by higher education, mixed-income residential and student housing, office space, creative studios, hotels and parks. Electronic Arts Orlando Studio, with over 800 professionals, was recently completed at Creative Village.

This is the second high-profile financing that Berkadia’s Orlando-based mortgage banking team has executed in Downtown Orlando since the onset of the pandemic. In September of 2020, the team also secured a $72.9M construction take-out loan on behalf of Lincoln Property Company, Mason Capital Partners, and Pope & Land Enterprises for SunTrust Plaza at Church Street Station, a 209,000-square-foot trophy office tower.

Berkadia announces it has secured $25.25 million in financing for the acquisition of River Walk Savannah, a 220-unit apartment home community in Savannah, Georgia. Senior Managing Director Mitch Sinberg, Director of Operations Jared Hill and Associate Director Matt Robbins of Berkadia Boca Raton arranged the financing on behalf of the buyer, an affiliate of real estate private equity firm Vantage Point Acquisitions.

Bridge Investment Group originated the three-year, full-term interest-only loan with an aggressive floating rate and two one-year extension options. The loan includes $24.75 million in initial funding, with $500,000 in future funding for capital improvements.

“Rising home prices in Savannah, combined with population growth, continue to generate strong apartment demand in the metro area,” said Robbins. “River Walk Savannah offers the new owner considerable room to grow rents following renovations and upgrades.”

“River Walk Savannah represents an excellent opportunity for residents seeking quality affordable living in the Georgetown submarket,” said Andrew Cushman of Vantage Point Acquisitions.

Built in 1989 and located at 101 Saint George Boulevard, the River Walk Savannah offers one- and two-bedroom apartments ranging from 539 square feet to 1,000 square feet. Individual units feature hardwood floors, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, an island kitchen, a fireplace, large bedrooms, vaulted ceilings, walk-in closets and in-unit washer and dryers. Community amenities include a pool, fitness center, clubhouse with Wi-Fi, laundry facilities, a car washing station, pickle ball courts and biking trails.

Located in Savannah’s South Side, River Walk Savannah is near the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens and 20 minutes away from the Hilton Head International airport.

The 380-unit LUMA at Miramar, completed in 2019, sold to a REIT for $133 million

Berkadia announces it has arranged the sale of LUMA at Miramar, a new 380-unit, garden-style multifamily community located in Miramar, Florida. Senior Managing Directors Roberto Pesant, Jaret Turkell and Charles Foschini, along with Associate Omar Morales and Senior Analyst Jose Mota of Berkadia Miami, marketed the property on behalf of ANSCA. Avalon Bay Communities acquired the property for $133 million.

LUMA at Miramar was built in 2019 and stabilized in Q1 2020, with occupancy remaining at or above 90 percent throughout 2020 and 2021. The property was fully occupied at the time of sale.

“Luma at Miramar’s excellent location and design provides a significant source of appeal to the surging demand for housing in Broward County,” said Pesant. “A confluence of factors are driving this demand, including a 7,500-unit housing deficit, accelerated post-pandemic migration and relocations to South Florida, as well as a significant increase in single-family home values. In short, LUMA represented a rare opportunity to acquire both immediate-term durable returns and the long-term, compounding growth associated with essential housing in a growing market close to thousands of high-quality jobs.”

Located at 4300 SW 113^th Terrace, LUMA at Miramar consists of three- and four-story elevatored buildings with a contemporary aesthetic. The property offers one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from 818 square feet to 1,355 square feet. Individual units feature insulated impact windows, sleek white shaker cabinets with granite countertops, modern stainless steel appliances, subway tile backsplash, large walk-in closets and private screened balcony or patios. Community amenities include a gated electric entrance, a resort-style swimming pool, a 24-hour fitness center, a yoga room, Zen garden, billiard room with fireplace, a café with complementary self-service Starbucks coffee, an outdoor grilling area, independent attached and detached garages and valet trash service.

LUMA at Miramar is located adjacent to Florida’s Turnpike, offering residents extraordinary access to all of South Florida’s employment nodes. The property is across the street from The Miramar Park of Commerce, which supports 10,000 full-time jobs, and within 15 minutes of four other major business parks. Other major employers within a 20-minute drive include Royal Caribbean Cruises, American Express, Telemundo, Microsoft, Memorial Hospital West/Memorial Hospital Miramar, Hard Rock Stadium, Seminole Hollywood Guitar Hotel, and Broward College-South Campus. The property is less than 30 minutes from downtown Fort Lauderdale and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

ORLANDO (November 2, 2021) – Berkadia announced it has arranged the sale and financing of Patterson Court, a 384-unit, three-story garden-style apartment community, located at the epicenter of Orlando’s world-renowned Tourist Corridor along iconic International Drive. The property, currently master-leased to Walt Disney World Resort, traded for $107.75 million.  

Managing Directors Brett Moss and Matt Wilcox, and Associate Director Tyler Swidler of Berkadia Orlando, along with Senior Managing Director Jaret Turkell of Berkadia Miami, represented the seller, a joint venture between Miami-based Fifteen Group and Meritage Group LP, a private investment firm.

Managing Directors Scott Wadler and Brad Williamson of Berkadia Miami, and Associate Director Wesley Moczul of Berkadia Orlando, secured the acquisition financing on behalf of the buyer, Trion Properties, a private equity firm based in West Hollywood, California.

Pacific Coast Capital Partners, LLC, originated a three-year, floating-rate loan for $85 million. It includes $80 million in initial funding and $5 million in future funding for capital improvements with extension options.

Built in 2008, Patterson Court had historically been utilized by Walt Disney World Resort as housing for participants in the esteemed Disney College Program (DCP), who were recently relocated to Disney's brand-new Flamingo Crossings Village community in nearby Winter Garden. The property has since been re-leased to new renters, not necessarily tied to Disney.

“Patterson Court represented one of the most unique and story-laden value-add multifamily investment opportunities in Central Florida in recent history,” said Moss. “The market’s response to this opportunity was exceptional, and the sale of Patterson Court is emblematic of the strength of the Orlando apartment market and ever-growing investor appeal.”

Located at 8151 Patterson Woods Drive, Patterson Court offers one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from 772 square feet to 1,301 square feet. The gated community’s amenities include a fitness center, a resort-style swimming pool with a large sundeck, an expansive resident clubhouse, on-site laundry facilities, a car wash center and a cabana with billiards.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (October 28, 2021) — Berkadia Institutional Solutions today announced the sale of Windward at the Villages, The Royal St. George and Village Place, three multifamily assets with a combined 622 units located in West Palm Beach, Florida. Senior Managing Director Jaret Turkell along with Senior Managing Director Roberto Pesant, Associate Omar Morales and Senior Analyst Jose Mota of Berkadia Miami completed the $132.5 million sale on behalf of the seller, Massachusetts-based Northland Investment Corporation. The buyer was Pennsylvania-based Morgan Properties.

The deal was financed with a bridge loan secured by Director TJ Piper of Berkadia Philadelphia.  

“An unprecedented wave of corporate relocations to West Palm Beach in the last year, combined with a shortage of rental housing in Palm Beach County, has produced a very tight apartment market with strong rent growth drivers,” said Turkell. “As a result, investor appetite for well-located multifamily assets has been extremely strong and is projected to remain that way for the foreseeable future.”

Windward at the Villages is located at 1441 Brandywine Road. The 196-unit property features one- and two-bedroom floor plans with air conditioning, a private balcony and in-unit washers and dryers. Community amenities include a swimming pool, a fitness center, a tennis court and a playground.

The Royal St. George is a 224-unit property located at 1651 Brandywine Road. The property features one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans with air conditioning, in-unit washers and dryers, walk-in closets and a private patio or balcony. Community amenities include a swimming pool, a fitness center, a picnic area and a dog park.

Village Place is located at 2111 Brandywine Road. The 202-unit property features one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans with air conditioning, in-unit washers and dryers, walk-in closets and a private patio or balcony. Community amenities include a swimming pool, a hot tub, a fitness center and a picnic area.

The properties afford residents convenient access to Palm Beach International Airport, the Palm Beach Outlets, Interstate 95 and West Palm Beach.

LOS ANGELES (November 1, 2021) – Berkadia today announced that it has secured a joint venture partner for the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE: TOL), through its Toll Brothers Apartment Living® rental subsidiary, to develop “Rafferty,” a new 218-unit multifamily rental community located in a Qualified Opportunity Zone (QOZ) in Santa Ana, Calif. Chinmay Bhatt, Noam Franklin and Cody Kirkpatrick of Berkadia JV Equity & Structured Capital identified the joint venture partner – EJF Capital LLC of Arlington, Va. – and helped structure the deal.

The project is being financed through $31.7 million in joint venture equity from EJF Capital, along with a $66 million loan facility from Santander Bank, N.A., arranged by Toll Brothers’ in-house Finance Department. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2024.

“Berkadia JV Equity & Structured Capital Group has a lot of experience with QOZ projects and after touring the area we were very confident that we would be able to find Toll Brothers the optimal capital partner for this exciting project,” said Bhatt. “We were delighted to work with such an experienced developer and look forward to assisting them on their future pipeline.”

Charles Elliott, President of Toll Brothers Apartment Living, stated: “We are excited to continue our expansion in Orange County and bring our elevated offerings to historic Santa Ana. We look forward to becoming an active partner in this vibrant community.”

Rafferty is located in the heart of historic, walkable downtown Santa Ana, in the center of restaurants, retail and other entertainment including the 4th Street Market, McFadden Public Market food halls, and the independent Frida Cinema. The centralized location in Orange County, including the addition of the OC Streetcar at the property’s front door, offers a commute of under an hour to downtown Los Angeles by car or rail. The property is a short drive to John Wayne Airport and Orange County’s leading employment centers, such as South Coast Metro, Newport Center, the Irvine Business Complex and Irvine Spectrum.

Rafferty will consist of 218 rental apartments in two, five-story and seven-story buildings with 328 parking spaces. The apartment units will feature high-end luxury finishes and a best-in-class amenity package, including a state-of-the-art fitness center, resident lounge, maker’s room, jam room, speakeasy, co-working space, and sky lounge with outdoor terrace. Outdoor amenities include a resort-style pool, seating with grills and fire pit, and outdoor fitness equipment. Rafferty will also offer 12,350 square feet of ground-floor commercial space along Main and 4th Streets. This space is projected to include opportunities for restaurant, fitness, service, and retail uses.