Bridge Investment Group Closes Record Multifamily Fund at Nearly $2.3B

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Real estate investment manager Bridge Investment Group has closed its Bridge Multifamily V with $2.26 billion in equity commitments, the largest dedicated multifamily fund ever raised.

The fund surpassed the previous record, the $2.2 billion Lennar Multifamily Venture raised by Lennar Corp. in 2014 and its own Bridge Multifamily Fund IV, which closed at $1.6 billion in 2018, according to the Pere website. Pere reported the equity commitments in Multifamily Fund V came from institutional clients and high-net worth capital, with 30 percent of the funds raised coming from new investors and more than 44 percent from non-U.S. investors. Salt Lake City-based Bridge has already deployed between 25 and 50 percent of the capital raised.

Multifamily Fund V focuses primarily on value-add, Class B multifamily housing properties in high-growth markets with strong macroeconomic prospects.

Market demand for affordable multifamily housing is projected to outpace supply, despite high unit deliveries expected over the next two years, Colin Apple, co-chief investment officer for Bridge’s multifamily strategy, said in a statement.

The closing of Multifamily Fund V comes several months after Bridge completed fundraising for Bridge Workforce and Affordable Housing Fund II with $1.74 billion in equity commitments, surpassing its goal of $1.5 billion. The fund focuses on building, preserving and rehabilitating primarily non-government subsidized housing where a minimum of 51 percent of residents earn less than 80 percent of Area Mean Income.

Value-Add Strategies

With approximately $44 billion of assets under management, Bridge invests in various commercial real estate sectors including residential, office, logistics, net lease, development, solar infrastructure real estate-backed credit and proptech. When investing in multifamily properties, Bridge focuses on value-added renovations to individual units, as well as offering competitive amenities, which often include a health facility, a business center and recreational areas, coupled with social and community programs such as after-school homework programs for school-aged children as well as movie nights, ice cream socials and other events.

In October, Bridge acquired Monterra, a 344-unit apartment community in Las Vegas for $73.3 million. The property is located 6 miles from downtown Las Vegas. During the summer, Bridge acquired Hilands, an 826-unit garden-style community in Tucson, Ariz., for $178 million. Hilands is 11 miles from downtown Tucson.