TODAY’S DEALS: Bascom Continues Phoenix Buying Spree

Madera Point Apartments

Phoenix—Bascom Arizona Ventures has continued its recent buying spree with its third and fourth Phoenix acquisitions within the past two months. The group today announced the purchase of Brookstone at the Foothills, a 528-unit asset located in Phoenix, and Madera Point, a 256-unit community located in Mesa, Ariz. Brookstone was acquired for $35.6 million and Madera was picked up for $14.4 million. George Smith Partners worked to arrange financing for the transactions.

Brookstone is a Class B asset situated on 23.5 acres with an 894-square-foot average unit size. Amenities include two swimming pools and spas, gated access, a fitness center, and a business center.

Brookstone at the Foothills

Madera Point, another Class B asset, is situated on 9.5 acres with an average unit size of 753 square feet. Community amenities include a swimming pool and spa, gated access, a clubhouse, basketball court, and reserved covered parking.

“These properties are your classic example of distressed sales with potential for value add and growth,” says Mark Brotherton, asset manager for Bascom Arizona Ventures. “With our extensive renovation scope and budget, Brookstone at the Foothills and Madera Point will have amenity packages that will enable the properties to excel in their submarkets.”

Bascom Arizona recently closed two other deals in the Phoenix metro area, Coldwater Springs Apartments and Estates on Maryland Apartments.

Centerline Capital finances Colorado acquisition

Aurora, Co.—Centerline Capital Group has provided an $8.5 million Fannie Mae market rate loan for BMC’s acquisition of Lexington Park Apartments, a 201-unit asset located in Aurora, Co. The community is comprised of eight three-story residential buildings and a single-story leasing office building.

“The Denver market has continued to show its strength and stability over the past year and BMC’s team has done an excellent job of finding strong assets with turnaround and growth potential,” says Suzanne Cope, senior vice president of Debt Originations at Centerline. “The borrower is an active investor in the local market with a solid track record for closing very quickly on deals and completing extensive improvements to the asset in a matter of weeks. These factors gave us great confidence in this deal.”

This is the second transaction Centerline closed this year with BMC Investments, a multifamily real estate investment company focused on acquiring and repositioning apartment assets in the Denver metropolitan area. Earlier this year, Centerline provided a $3.9 million Fannie Mae loan to refinance Amherst Apartments, a multifamily property located in Denver.

Commercial Mortgage Capital closes $46.5M in financing in August

Livingston, N.J.—Mark Scott’s Commercial Mortgage Capital (CMC), which provides permanent, construction and mezzanine loans for a range of commercial properties including multifamily, office, retail, industrial and healthcare facilities primarily in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, announced that it has closed $47.5 million worth in loans for August.

“We are pleased to announce our latest Commercial Mortgage Capital transactions, which support our strategy of arranging financing for multifamily real estate projects in the Tri-State region,” says Scott, founder and principal of CMC. “These loans speak to our ability to facilitate the proper financing structure in an expedited manner. We understand the competitive marketplace and offer quick turnaround as well as responsive and professional guidance throughout the entire loan process.”

CMC secured a $27-million loan to finance the second phase of construction at Sterling Parc, a multifamily complex located in Middletown, N.Y. The financing, obtained through PNC Bank, allows for the construction of an additional 120 units and 17,652-square feet of retail space at the Sterling Properties of New Jersey-owned property, which will consist of 192 units when completed. The 72-unit phase one has already experienced rapid lease-up, and construction on phase two of Sterling Parc is underway, with units expected to deliver over the next 18 months.

The company also arranged a $17.5-million loan for 152,000 square feet of prime office space in Yonkers, N.Y., which is currently experiencing a multi-billion dollar revitalization program. The area offers convenient access to Metro-North, Amtrak, Westchester County’s Bee-Line Bus System, the New York State Thruway and two major parkways—the Cross County Parkway and Saw Mill River Parkway.

Rounding out the August activity was a $3-million first mortgage refinance of a 109-unit high-rise apartment building located on Broad Street in Elizabeth, N.J. The well-maintained property consists of 12 studio apartments, 73 one-bedrooms and 24 two-bedroom units. The financing was obtained through AEGON USA Realty Advisors.

This year, CMC closed $88.9 million worth of permanent and construction loans in the first six months alone. Scott attributes this to the historically low interest rate environment. “Currently, multifamily borrowers are seeing some of the lowest fixed rates in history for lower loan-to-value transactions, locking in 10-year rates that begin at three percent, and with one-month LIBOR holding at less than 30 basis points since May 2009, floating rate borrowers are seeing equally low level,” he notes.