Colorado Springs Affordable Project Lands $22M Freddie Mac Loan
Bellwether Enterprise brokered the financing package for the 201-unit housing development.
Academy Heights Apartments. Image courtesy of Bellwether Enterprise
DBG Properties has secured a $22 million loan for Academy Heights Apartments, a 201-unit affordable housing development in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Bellwether Enterprise originated the Freddie Mac Forward Commitment Tax-Exempt Loan. The financing features a 36-month forward commitment, a 15-year term, a 35-year amortization period and a fixed interest rate with a one-year interest-only period.
Academy Heights Apartments is expected to come online in March 2023.
The community will take shape at 1340 Inverness Drive on a more than 6-acre site. Academy Heights Apartments will comprise three four-story buildings with units in one-, two- and three-bedroom configurations.
Planned amenities include a clubhouse, community room, fitness center, picnic area, swimming pool as well as a dog run. The community will also offer 330 surface parking spots available to residents.
The property is situated roughly 5 miles southeast of downtown Colorado Springs and less than 6 miles from the Colorado Springs Airport, with easy access to Interstate 25. The South Academy Boulevard retail corridor, which offers several shopping and dining options, is less than 2 miles south.
Additional funding, restrictions
Additional financing for the project includes 4 percent Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, which restrict the rents at the property for 30 years.
The property will be fully affordable, with 11 units available for residents earning 30 percent of Area Median Income; 157 apartments set aside for those earning 60 percent AMI, and 33 units serving those who make 70 percent AMI.
The developer also secured construction financing from The El Paso County Housing Authority as well as the Colorado Housing Investment Fund. The latter funded a $3 million mortgage.
Anthea Martin, senior vice president of Bellwether Enterprise, worked on behalf of the borrower to secure the financing.
Bellwether Enterprise provides financing packages covering multiple asset classes. Recently, the mortgage banking company arranged a $178 million refinancing for a nationwide manufactured housing portfolio.
