Southern Land Co. Lands $145M Refi for Philly Luxury Tower
The property came online in October 2024.
Image courtesy of Southern Land Co.
Southern Land Co. has secured a $145 million refinancing loan for Josephine, a 255-unit luxury tower in downtown Philadelphia. Affinius Capital issued the note, in a deal brokered by Newmark.
The refinancing will retire a four-year, $112 million construction loan issued by RBC Bank in 2022, according to Yardi Matrix information. The developer broke ground that same year, topped the tower in 2023 and opened Josephine in October 2024.
Newmark Co-President Jordan Roeschlaub, Vice Chairman Nick Scribani and Senior Associate Samuel Speciale arranged the deal on behalf of the ownership. The firm ranked first on Multi-Housing News‘ top multifamily lenders list, with commercial real estate loans amounting to $72.4 billion during the 12 months ending in September 2025, and $26.9 billion for multifamily properties.
A downtown upscale community
The 27-story multifamily property encompasses two studios, 137 one-bedroom, 111 two-bedroom and five three-bedroom residences, ranging in size from 554 to 2,748 square feet. All three-bedroom apartments and some of the two-bedroom units have penthouse layouts with private terraces.
Shared amenities include resident lounges, a rooftop pool deck, subterranean parking with EV charging stations and a spa. The property also features 5,600 square feet of street-level retail space and another 14,600 square feet of designated restaurant space on the second floor.
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Located at 1620 Sansom St., the high-rise is equidistant between the Rittenhouse Square park and the Philadelphia City Hall. The Amtrak Philadelphia Train Station is 1 mile northwest. The community is also within two blocks of several subway stations.
Josephine is one of Southern Land Co.’s three upscale communities in downtown Philadelphia. The other two—dubbed 1909 Rittenhouse and The Laurel Rittenhouse Square—are located one block west of the residential tower, at 1909 and 1911 Walnut St. Opened in 2023, The Laurel is a 48-story property and the tallest residential building in Philadelphia, featuring condominiums, as well as upscale rental units. Situated beneath the condos at The Laurel, the 2022-completed 1909 Rittenhouse comprises 184 units across 22 floors.
Philly multifamily sector looks up
Philadelphia’s average advertised asking rent reached $1,840, after a 0.1 percent uptick on a trailing three-month basis through October 2025, according to a Yardi Matrix metro report. On a year-over-year basis, the metro’s rents posted a 2.2 percent increase, securing the spot for Philadelphia as the best-performing market in the Mid-Atlantic region and ranking sixth nationwide among the top 30 markets tracked by Yardi Matrix.
After two years of significant supply growth, the metro’s average occupancy stood at 95.6 percent in September 2025, remaining flat year-over-year. More specifically, Philadelphia’s Lifestyle rates registered a 20-basis-point drop to 95.0 percent, while occupancy in working-class, Renter-by-Necessity properties rose 10 basis points to 95.9 percent.
