Ginkgo Residential Buys Back Durham Property

501 Towns

Newmark Knight Frank has brokered the sale of 501 Towns, a 236-unit community in downtown Durham, N.C. Ginkgo Residential bought back the asset from Brookline Investment Group for $37 million, through its recently formed REIT.

NKF Senior Managing Director Alex Okulski, Managing Directors Jason Kon and John Munroe, together with Vice Chairmen Sean Wood, John Heimburger and Dean Smith, assisted the seller in the deal. 

Yardi Matrix data shows Ginkgo previously owned the community from 2010 to 2014 and sold it to Brookline for $23.6 million. The current sale was subject to a $28.3 million Fannie Mae loan from Regions Bank.

Located at 2029 Bedford St., the community sits just north of Durham-Chapel Hill Boulevard in the Hope Valley submarket, within walking distance from two shopping centers. The property is roughly 3 miles southwest of the city center and 2 miles south of Duke University. There are three bus stations on the premises and Highway 147 is 2.2 miles east.

Completed in 1969 on nearly 24 acres, 501 Towns consists of 30 two-story buildings. The unit mix features two- and three-bedroom floorplans ranging from 1,200 to 2,200 square feet. Common-area amenities include a pool with poolside Wi-Fi, dog park and nature trails. During its previous ownership, Ginkgo completely renovated the property that was 96.2 percent occupied as of October, per Yardi Matrix.

In October, the NKF team worked on behalf of Bell Partners in the sale of a 360-unit community in Raleigh, N.C. The Class A property traded for $70.6 million.

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