The Five Largest Apartment Transactions in 2nd Quarter

While investors are still favoring apartments, the volume of multifamily property purchased came down quite a bit in 2nd quarter. Nearly $9 billion changed hands in roughly 530 transactions in 2nd quarter, according to Real Capital Analytics. That activity was down notably from the $30.4 billion in transactions seen in 1st quarter, with much of that decline attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic. While buying activity in 2nd quarter was spread out across the U.S., the Northeast region failed to capture any of the five largest transactions.

Here are the five largest individual transactions from April through June:

Hardware Apartments

In early May, a partnership between Newport Beach, CA-based KBS and Salt Lake City-based Salt Development sold their recently completed 453-unit Hardware Apartments in Salt Lake City to Sacramento-based Oakmont Properties for $178.0 million or roughly $393,000 per door. The mid-rise property sits off West 200 North in the Downtown Salt Lake City/University submarket within Hardware Village and is adjacent to the historic Salt Lake Hardware Building, a five-story office building constructed in 1909. The community was built in two phases. The first phase, completed in 2018, was Hardware West with 267 units. Hardware East, the second phase with 186 units, completed shortly before the sale. Hardware Apartments offers a mix of penthouses, lofts, studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments, townhomes and brownstone row houses. Amenities include a fitness center, yoga room, climbing wall, resident library, mediation garden, game room, conference room and rooftop lounge with infinity pool.

Cityfront Place

A joint venture between locally based Strategic Properties of North America and South Korea-based Mirae Asset Daewoo acquired the 480-unit Cityfront Place apartment building in Chicago in early April. The seller was DWS Group Americas, a unit of Deutsche Bank. The purchase price was approximately $154 million, translating to $321,000 per unit. The building previously traded hands in 2011 for $107 million. The 39-story development is just off the Magnificent Mile on North McClurg Court along the Chicago River and a few blocks from Lake Michigan in the Streeterville/River North submarket. The property was built in 1991 and renovated in 2011. The building features a fitness center, yoga studio, indoor lap pool, bike storage, landscaped roof deck and residents’ lounge with a pool table and coffee bar. The buyers plan to renovate the property.

Champions Park

Charleston, SC-based Greystar purchased the 480-unit Champions Park apartment community in the Denver suburb of Thornton from Boston-based Eaton Vance Real Estate in June. The sale price of the complex, rebranded Avana Thornton Station, garnered $120.3 million, or roughly $251,000 per door. The property previously traded hands in 2012 for $68.3 million. The garden-style community, which was built in 2002, is on East 104th Avenue in the Thornton/Northglenn submarket, near the Thornton Crossroads and 104th light rail station. Amenities include an updated clubhouse, heated swimming pool and spa, game room with pool, shuffleboard and giant Scrabble, 24-hour fitness center, package room, tennis court, basketball court, sand volleyball court, playground, cyber lounge and full-service kitchen.

Skyline Terrace

Chicago-based Equity Residential sold the 138-unit Skyline Terrace Apartments in the San Mateo, CA suburb of Burlingame to Palo Alto, CA-based Pacific Urban Residential in late April. The $108 million purchase price equated to about $783,000 per unit. Equity Residential paid $52.3 million for the community in 2010. The four-building, three-story community is on Frontera Way in San Francisco’s North San Mateo County submarket. The property was built in 1967 and renovated in 1987. Community amenities include a heated swimming pool, spa, barbecue area, fitness center, dog park, clubhouse, extra onsite storage, parcel lockers and a recycling center.

The Parkway at Hunter’s Creek

In early April, West Palm Beach-based Priderock Capital Partners purchased The Parkway at Hunter’s Creek in Orlando from Dallas-based The Milestone Group. The property consists of 35, two-story buildings on Colonial Grand Boulevard in the South Orange County submarket, accounting for 496 units. The $104.5 million purchase price garnered about $211,000 per unit. Built in 1997 and renovated in 2015, The Parkway at Hunter’s Creek previously traded hands for $78.2 million in 2016. The property has two swimming pools, a fitness center, package concierge service, car care center, playground, grilling area and clubhouse with kitchen and WiFi.