Morgan Properties Wraps 18,000-Unit Portfolio Buy

North Ponds Apartments in Webster, N.Y. Image courtesy of Morgan Properties

Morgan Properties has closed a massive deal to acquire an 80-property multifamily portfolio consisting of 15,000 units across eight states from seller Morgan Communities, a similarly named but unrelated company. An additional agreement following the deal with the same owner adds 3,000 more units. The firm declined to disclose a sale price.

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Morgan Properties’ purchase of the 80-property portfolio comes months after Morgan Communities’ founder & CEO Bob Morgan was indicted on federal fraud and money laundering charges in May of this year, according to a report from The Buffalo News, a daily newspaper in Upstate New York that has been closely following the case. The deal was structured as a joint venture, though financial terms and ownership stakes were not disclosed by the two companies.

A Morgan Properties spokesperson told Multi-Housing News that the transaction “was structured to best stabilize the portfolio, ensure reasonable protections and ensure best in class service to all residents.”

The purchase equates to about half of Morgan’s entire real estate portfolio, which at its peak, totaled 180 properties and 36,000 units. The new owner took over management of the properties in July, when the agreement between the two firms was first made.  At the same time, the company also brought on 750 employees from Morgan Communities to its team.

One of the largest owners

With the portfolio buy, King of Prussia, Pa.-based Morgan Properties, an owner and operator of multifamily properties, expands its portfolio to more than 75,000 units in 15 states across the U.S., making it one of the top five multifamily owners in the country, according to the firm.

The apartment communities included in the portfolio are in the Upstate New York markets of Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse and Buffalo, and in the Pennsylvania submarkets of Pittsburgh and Harrisburg. Other markets where assets in the portfolio are located include Memphis, Tenn.; Chicago; Huntsville, Ala.; and Cleveland, all of which are new markets for the firm.

“We believe we were well positioned for this opportunity and geographically, these are areas (where) we are excited to expand our footprint,” a spokesperson for Morgan Properties told Multi-Housing News. So far this year, the firm has acquired more than $3 billion in total volume, marking its our biggest year since its founding in 1985.