Investor Buys Distressed Tucson Multifamily Property
Variant Commercial Real Estate has acquired Pebble Creek, an apartment community in Tucson, Ariz. The purchase was made through a successful involuntary bankruptcy plan.
By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor
Tucson, Ariz.—Variant Commercial Real Estate LLC, a private real estate investment firm, has acquired Pebble Creek, an apartment community in Tucson, Ariz. The purchase was made through a successful involuntary bankruptcy plan.
Pebble Creek is located in southeastern metro Tuscon, close to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. The property consists of 107 units on 4.43 acres.
According to Variant, the property has value-add potential. With renovations in progress and new property management in place, Pebble Creek is already experiencing strong lease-up and rent lifts, the company notes. Variant plans to continue capital improvements as the property approaches stabilization.
The Tucson market has regained some of its strength since the late 2000s downturn. During 2012, a net of 465 units were absorbed market-wide, according to Cushman & Wakefield Picor. Average rents dropped a bit between the end of 2011 and 2012, however, from about $630 a month to $629. The company predicts that new development will add to metro Tucson’s inventory in 2013, but that there will also be more jobs created in the area.
Variant is a specialist in finding and acquiring distressed assets, including multifamily, self-storage, hospitality assets and office, and then investing in them to generate higher returns. The company is currently working on similar involuntary-bankruptcy strategies involving about 3,000 multifamily units in a number of states.