Rivergate Partners Buys Orlando Apartments for Nearly $10M

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Orlando, Fla.—Miami-based Rivergate Partners, a joint venture between real estate investors Jay Massirman (Rivergate Cos. president) and Oscar Vila (PSMG managing partner) has acquired Beacon Hill, an apartment community in Orlando, Fla. The partners paid just under $10 million for the property.

Beacon Hill has 192 units and is located in northwest Orlando, about six miles from the CBD. Built in 1999, the property was 96 percent occupied at the time of sale.

Featuring a mix of two- and three-bedroom floor plans averaging 1,134 square feet, the apartments were constructed under the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program. The original housing bonds have been paid off, but the extended land use restrictions (LURA) will stay in place for an additional 15 years.

According to Rivergate Partners, it acquired the asset at about 50 percent of replacement cost, and plans to achieve economies of scale shared through another recent nearby acquisition. The partners anticipate considerable opportunity for growth in the Orlando market, which has been one of the more robust multifamily markets in the country in recent years.

“We believe that Orlando is a very dynamic market,” Massirman, Rivergate Partners managing partner, tells MHN. “With its strong technology and health care sectors, and in conjunction with the perennial tourism drivers, we’re bullish on the long-term prospects, population and job growth in central Florida.”