Starwood Asset Management, Barry Sternlicht's company, has acquired two additional properties in the affordable housing segment in Miami-Dade County. These recent transactions follow two purchases already made the previous week. The total investment now amounts to US$115.4 million for 570 residential units.
The investment firm first secured the remaining portion of the Lafayette residential complex in Miami's Little River neighbourhood for US$27 million, according to property records. This property, known as Lafayette Plaza, comprises 136 apartments across 201,446 square feet and is located at 155 Northeast 78th Street. The 14-storey building was completed in 2008 on a 1.1-hectare plot. CBRE Capital Markets provided a Freddie Mac-backed loan of US$18.9 million for this acquisition. Lafayette Plaza is adjacent to the 160-unit Lafayette Square building, which Starwood had already acquired the previous week for just under US$30 million.
Further acquisitions in Little River and Naranja
In a second transaction this week, the Miami Beach-based company acquired another property in Little River, Emerald Terrace, for US$24.6 million. Here too, CBRE Capital Markets provided the financing, in the form of a Freddie Mac-backed loan of US$17.2 million. The complex, built in 2009, is located opposite railway tracks and offers 124 apartments and a 24,718-square-foot car park at 244 and 290 Northwest 72nd Terrace. The location is near the neighbourhood's retail centre, home to popular restaurants such as Sunny’s Steakhouse.
The fourth acquisition, already completed last week, involved the purchase of the Magnolia Landing Apartments with 150 residential units for US$34 million. This 4.8-hectare complex, completed in 2011, consists of 20 three-storey buildings and is located in the Naranja neighbourhood, near the southern end of the County. The Gatehouse Group, based in Mansfield, Massachusetts, developed and sold all four properties. Brokers Tim Flint, Jim Flinn, and Jon Romano of CBRE brokered all of these recent sales and financings. A Starwood representative confirmed the transactions.
Strengthening presence in the affordable housing segment
Through these strategic acquisitions, Starwood Asset Management is significantly expanding its presence in the growing affordable housing market segment in the Miami-Dade metropolitan area. The investments underscore the continued attractiveness of this sector for institutional investors.
- —Lafayette Plaza: 136 units, US$27 million
- —Lafayette Square: 160 units, under US$30 million
- —Emerald Terrace: 124 units, US$24.6 million
- —Magnolia Landing Apartments: 150 units, US$34 million
