Wood Partners Plans Townhomes in Delay Beach

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Delray Beach, Fla.—Multifamily specialists Wood Partners has finalized plans to build Midtown Delray, a $26.9 million development consisting of 116 three-story rental townhomes near downtown Delray Beach. Construction on the new property, which will be spread across 17 buildings totaling nearly 192,000 square feet, is scheduled to begin on in the summer and finish in 2013.

The unit interiors will feature amenities such as ceramic flooring in kitchens, entries and baths, ceramic tub surrounds, and 9-foot 4-inch ceilings throughout. The kitchens will have all black appliances and 42-inch cabinets with granite tops. The property will also feature a clubhouse, swimming pool and tot lot.

David Thompson, director for Wood Partners in Florida, tells MHN that the property ought to be able to attract some of that coveted category of tenants, renters-by-choice, since it features some things that that demographic wants. For instance, the units are unusually large for rental property—about 1,780 square feet for a three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath. Usually only for-sale properties sport that kind of space, he says.

Not only that, the climate is good for renting in the area. “The Palm Beach County apartment market has seen positive absorption in the wake of the housing bust, as the shift from homeownership to rental continues,” Thompson continues. “While absorption will taper off from the strong bump seen immediately following the recession, it should remain at a healthy pace for years to come.”

Thompson stresses that the development is expected to generate more than $400,000 in annual property tax revenue for Delray Beach once construction is complete and leasing begins. Also, the construction phase is projected to pump more than $10 million into the local economy, based on a formula developed by the National Association of Home Builders to estimate local impact of new rental units.