Top 10 Portland Apartment Owners

By Razvan Cimpean

Benefiting from significant population growth, housing demand is on the rise in Portland again, following three years of increased development. Rent growth continues to slow and is now on par with the national average. To increase the amount of affordable housing developed in the metro, the Portland City Council last month approved the first three developments to receive tax credits under the Inclusionary Housing Program. 

This list highlights the metro’s top 10 private, REIT and institutional investor apartment owners, based on unit counts, according to Yardi Matrix data. The total number includes units within projects that are completed, under construction, planned and prospective.

10. Simpson Housing

Simpson Housing is the biggest company nationwide on this list, with 18,962 units, but owns only five multifamily properties in Portland totaling 2,032 apartments. The largest one is the fully affordable, 711-unit Quatama Crossing, located at 20700 N.W. Trailwalk Drive in Beaverton, Ore. The 24-building property was completed in 1999, and consists of one-, two- and three-bedroom units ranging from 706 to 1,220 square feet. Community amenities include a fitness center, business center, clubhouse, swimming pool and 900 parking spaces. In 2010, the Denver-based firm completed The Matisse, a 293-unit, LEED-certified community. The two-building asset offers studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments averaging 739 square feet. Rents at The Matisse start at $1,301 and go up to $2,327, as of August, when the property was 99 percent occupied.

9. NFN Investments

NFN Investments owns 2,140 units in the metro, 316 of which are in the planning or redevelopment stages. The company’s largest community is the 296-unit Mint Urban RiverPlace, located at 2083 S.W. River Drive. The firm acquired the 11-building asset in 2015 from Cardigan Group Investments for some $97 million. The sale was subject to an $80 million loan provided by Colony NorthStar. The two-phase asset features studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from 460 to 1,820 square feet. Community amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center and more than 350 parking spaces.

8. Prime Group

Having only five communities in Portland, Prime Group owns and manages 2,324 units in the metro. Acquired in 2015 from DHIJ Management for $91.1 million, Sterling Pointe is the Los Angeles-based company’s largest Portland multifamily asset. The 108-building community is located at 14437 S.W. Teal Blvd., in Beaverton. The asset consists of one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging 912 square feet. Community amenities include a fitness center, three swimming pools, six spas, eight laundry facilities and 1,000 parking spaces. Another large community owned by DHIJ Management in Portland is the 596-unit Wimbledon Square and Gardens, located at 2837 S.E. Colt Drive. Prime Group is also a top Los Angeles apartment owner.

7. Holland Partners

With 2,481 units in Portland, Holland Partners is currently developing a 243-unit, partially affordable community scheduled for completion by August 2018. Additionally, the firm announced plans for another market-rate multifamily project at 1331 N.W. 17th Ave. Since 2014, the company completed four of its nine properties. Holland Partners’ largest multifamily asset is the 567-unit LaSalle, located at 15021 S.W. Millikan Way in Beaverton. The project was finalized in two phases, in 1997 and in 2015. The 28-building property features studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments averaging 1,060 square feet. Community amenities include a fitness center, clubhouse, two swimming pools, two spas and 1,000 parking spaces. The firm acquired the asset late last year from Waterton for $141.8 million. The sale was subject to a $101.7 million Fannie Mae loan.

6. Guardian Real Estate Services

Second on this list in terms of properties owned in Portland, with 22 communities, is Guardian Real Estate Services. However, the firm operates mostly small-sized communities and has 2,618 apartments in the area. Q21, a 162-unit multifamily asset located at 2112 N.W. Quimby St., is scheduled for completion by the end of the month. Less than five miles away, at 4949 S.W. Landing Drive, Guardian finalized last year a 166-unit property, Oxbow 49. The largest community owned by the Portland-based company is the 266-apartment Berkshire Court, completed in 1996. The asset features one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from 720 to 1,110 square feet. Situated at 29252 S.W. Tami Loop in Wilsonville, the 24-building property offers easy access to Interstate 5 and to multiple schools, including Learning Tree Day School, Boeckman Creek Primary School and Wilsonville High School. Community amenities at Berkshire Court include a fitness center, clubhouse, swimming pool, spa and 300 parking spaces.

5. Sequoia Equities

Sequoia Equities owns and manages eight Portland multifamily properties totaling some 2,700 units. In 2016, the firm acquired the LEED-certified Eddyline Bridgeport, a 367-unit community at 18049 S.W. Lower Boones Ferry Road in Tigard. This year, Sequoia expanded its portfolio with the purchase of the 480-unit Centro, located at 3009 N.W. Overlook Drive in Hillsboro, in the vicinity of the Tanasbourne Town Center shopping center. Completed in 2015, the 20-building asset consists of one- and two-bedroom apartments averaging 918 square feet. Community amenities include a business center, fitness center, basketball court, spa and 650 parking spaces. Rents at Centro start at $1,320 and go as high as $1,708, as of August, when the asset was 97.1 percent occupied. Earlier this year, Sequoia Equities also acquired Paragon at Old Town, a 163-unit Monrovia, Calif., luxury community.

4. GSL Properties

Coming in at No.4 is GSL Properties, with a multifamily portfolio in Portland consisting of 11 properties and 2,911 apartments. Since last year, the firm completed two communities in downtown Vancouver, the 120-unit 15 West and the 92-unit 13 West. They were the first projects developed by GSL since 2013, when the company finalized the fourth phase of The Yards at Union Station. Located at 815 N.W. Naito Pkwy., the 615-unit community is the largest asset in the area owned by the Portland-based firm. The seven-building multifamily property features studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments ranging from 384 to 1,223 square feet. The asset sits next to the Willamette River and offers convenient access to downtown Portland and interstates 5 and 405.

3. Tandem Property Management

Tandem Property Management operates nine properties totaling 2,935 units, all of them in Portland. The company is planning to develop a 244-unit asset at 6400 S.W. Canyon Court. In 2015, the firm acquired the 406-apartment Commons at Redwood Creek, located at 12015 S.W. Walden Lane in Beaverton. The largest community owned by Tandem is the 608-unit Commons at Timber Creek in Cedar Mill, located at 12450 N.W. Barnes Road. Tandem purchased the 48-building property from Bean Investment Real Estate in 2007 for $34.5 million. The asset offers one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments averaging 920 square feet. Completed in 1968, Commons at Timber Creek in Cedar Mill features a tennis court, basketball court, six swimming pools, three spas and 1,200 parking spaces.

2. Randall Group

With double the number of communities and 45 percent more units compared to the company in the third place, Randall Group owns 4,276 apartments in Portland. In 2014, the company acquired The Landing, a 302-unit, market-rate property in Oregon City, from J.T. Smith Cos. for $52.5 million. Randall Group’s largest Portland community is King’s Court, located at 16300 S.W. Estuary Drive in Beaverton. The company completed the 460-unit asset in 1995. King’s Court features one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from 619 to 1,019 square feet. Community amenities include 460 parking spaces, two swimming pools, two spas and a fitness center. Less than a mile away, at 1248 S.W. Kiley Way, the firm also owns the 144-unit Elmonica Court.

1. Home Forward

The non-profit organization owns 32 fully affordable multifamily properties in Portland, totaling 4,560 units. Home Forward has plans for two new developments totaling 300 units. In 2010, the housing authority completed three properties: the 108-unit Martha Washington; the 130-unit Bud Clark Commons; and the 122-apartment Stephens Creek Crossing. The  firm’s largest multifamily asset  is New Columbia, a 554-apartment property at 4605 N. Trenton St. Finalized in 2005, the nine-building property features one- to six-bedroom units, ranging from 473 to nearly 2,000 square feet. Community amenities include a fitness center, business center, clubhouse and more than 650 parking spaces.

Images courtesy of Yardi Matrix