Belveron Closes Its Largest Affordable Fund at $354M
The company expanded its capital base, adding new investors to its latest fund.
Belveron Partners has closed its Flagship Fund VII at $354 million, representing the largest fund raised by the company to date. The firm focuses on providing affordable housing.
The fund outperformed its target of $350 million, despite difficulties of raising capital and uncertainty in the market over the past two years, Paul Odland, founder & managing partner at Belveron, told Multi-Housing News.
The company’s latest investment vehicle garnered an influx of new investors. Fund VII included some new players, such as a sovereign wealth fund, a pension fund, as well as university endowment, family offices and outsourced CIOs.
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Fund VII will pursue the creation, preservation and revitalization of affordable housing units, Josh Plattner, CIO at Belveron, said in prepared statements. The investment management firm has already committed some $120 million in equity to nine affordable housing communities in Texas and California through Fund VII.
Fund VII’s affordable housing investments
In May, Belveron’s Odland and Plattner worked with the Austin Affordable Housing Corp.—their 19th collaboration—to acquire the 354-unit Bridge at Arella Apartments, an affordable community in Cedar Park, Texas. The asset traded for $84.2 million.
What’s more, Belveron earmarked $20 million for future capital expenditure. At the time, plans called for partially restricting the units for residents earning between 60 and 80 percent of the area median income.
Eight months prior to that deal, Belveron teamed up with the Austin Housing Authority to acquire Bridge at Waters Park Apartments, a 442-unit garden-style asset in Austin. The property received a 100 percent tax exemption and in return, 40 percent of the units became income-restricted for individuals earning between 60 and 80 percent of AMI.
Belveron’s efforts to provide affordable housing
Since its foundation in 2006, Belveron has gathered an affordable housing portfolio of more than 30,000 units across 14 states and the District of Columbia. Its strategy revolves around underwriting each asset with a focus on long-term affordability, ensuring that business plans at the investment level do not rely on removing units from affordable regulatory programs.
The predecessor of Fund VII closed at $280 million in equity four years ago. Across all seven investment vehicles, as well as several joint ventures, the company has raised capital commitments upward of $1.2 billion.
To date, Belveron has deployed over $1 billion in equity to help stem the housing crisis, according to Odland. In addition to acquiring affordable assets, Belveron focuses on affordable ground-up developments. Through Fund VI, the company invested in Conifer Realty—a firm with development, construction, management and ownership capabilities—which held a pipeline of 25 affordable projects underway as of November.
