S
pira Equity Partners has acquired a 172-unit apartment complex in Lauderdale Lakes for $20 million, marking continued investment interest in South Florida's affordable housing market. The Woodsdale Oaks property was purchased from Foundation For Affordable Housing, which bought it six months prior for the same price. Spira plans to renovate the complex with an $8.2 million contract and has secured a $22 million senior loan from the Housing Finance Authority of Broward County.

    The deal highlights the resilience of affordable housing in South Florida, where interest rates are high and market-rate units are abundant. Affordable housing is often backed by government or quasi-governmental financing, making it a safer bet for investors. Spira Equity, an investment firm with over 3,100 units and $700 million in assets, has seized on this opportunity.

    The need for affordable housing in South Florida remains pressing, driven by the influx of new residents and a shortage of apartments for low- to moderate-income renters. Developers are responding by building more affordable projects, including Lewis Swezy's proposed eight-story apartment complex in Miami-Dade County and Housing Trust Group's Courtside Apartments II project in Overtown.