TODAY’S DEALS: WRIT Acquires D.C. Apartment Asset for $48.2M

Washington Real Estate Investment Trust buys a 135-unit apartment community in Arlington; The Community Development Trust will obtain $125 million, the largest allocation under an inaugural federal bond program for funding affordable housing; and Beech Street Capital closes $13.6 million for a Maryland asset.

WASHINGTON REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST THE PARAMOUNTArlington, Va.—Washington Real Estate Investment Trust added a recently renovated, 135-unit apartment asset to its portfolio with the acquisition of The Paramount. The transaction carried a $48.2 million purchase price, which equates to approximately $345,000 per unit. A cap rate of 5.2 percent is expected. Built in 1984, the community is currently 94 percent occupied.

“The Paramount is a recently renovated apartment building, with easy access to the area’s major employment centers,” says Ed Murn, managing director and head of the residential division at WRIT. “The property’s close proximity to the metro and the Pentagon align with our long-term strategy of focusing our investments in dense, infill locations with strong access to transportation and solid demographics.”

WRIT funded the acquisition with available capacity on its line of credit.

CDT to obtain $125M, largest allocation under inaugural bond program for funding affordable housing

New York—The Community Development Trust (CDT), the country’s largest private real estate investment trust (REIT) that provides capital for the preservation of affordable housing, announced that it has received a term sheet for $125 million in bonds from the United States Department of the Treasury through its Community Development Financial Institutions Bond Guarantee Program (CDFI Bond Guarantee Program). One of four eligible CDFIs that received approval through the inaugural round of the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program, CDT’s Guarantee Application and term sheet have been approved and signed for the largest portion of the country’s total allocation of $325 million.

As a private real estate investment trust with a social impact mission, CDT operates as a double bottom line organization by utilizing creative financial solutions to provide debt and equity capital to underserved real estate markets while seeking attractive returns for its shareholders. Operating on a national scale, CDT owns more than 5,200 units of affordable housing and also has mortgages on nearly 17,500 units of multifamily rental housing. CDT’s investments in affordable housing make a difference in people’s lives, and in their neighborhoods, for the long-term.

“The CDFI Bond Guarantee Program will allow us to advance our work of preserving and expanding affordable housing nationally through innovative, mission-driven investments,” says Joe Reilly, president and CEO of CDT. “We are proud to have received an inaugural award in this program, and we look forward to using this funding to aid our efforts in expanding and preserving the country’s supply of high-quality, affordable housing.”

The Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF), one of three institutions approved by the CDFI Fund as a Qualified Issuer, will issue the bonds, and CDT will use the proceeds for investments in low-income and distressed communities across the country. CRF is a certified CDFI based in Minneapolis and has been responsible for issuing over 50 structured financial instruments and delivering $1.5 billion in loans nationwide for 25 years.

“CDT is a first in class CDFI,” says Frank Altman, president and CEO of CRF. “We feel privileged to work with them to bring this valuable program and the access to capital it provides to the communities that need it most.”

The CDFI Bond Guarantee Program, enacted by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, provides long-term, low cost capital to support eligible CDFIs that make investments in low-income and rural areas through community or economic development financing activity. CDFIs gain from the scale of the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program, and are able to leverage bond loan proceeds to increase the accessibility to affordable financial products and services among low-income people and communities.

Beech Street closes $13.6M for a Maryland community

Silver Spring, Md.—Beech Street Capital has closed a $13.6 million Freddie Mac CME loan to refinance Metro 710, a 104-unit apartment building in Silver Spring, Md. Brian Sykes, senior vice president at Beech Street’s Boston office, originated the transaction. The borrower was an affiliate of Ross Development & Investment, and had purchased the property in 1998. Overtime, the asset has been repositioned as a Class A-/B+ property.

“Thanks to Beech Street, we are continuing our repositioning program for Metro 710,” says Scott Ross, president of Ross Development & Investment. “This creates an entirely new environment for our residents and significantly increases the value of the property.”

The financing was provided through Freddie Mac.

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