Jim McKenzie of the Tustin office of Greenwood & Son, which provided a variety of investment advisory services for the buyer, tells GlobeSt.com that the acquisition has increased the buyer's portfolio to in excess of 1,100 units in Central Orange County. McKenzie and Carl Greenwood, also of Greenwood's Tustin office, advised the buyer on due diligence, financing, and other matters in connection with the purchase. The sale was brokered by Joe Leon of the Newport Beach office of Hendricks & Partners, the listing agent for the property.

The Amberway complex covers more than nine acres at the southeast corner of Lincoln Avenue and the 57 Freeway. It consists of 29 buildings of two-story, wood frame and wood siding of Cape Cod design in a landscaped setting. Its 272 units include 114 one-bedrooms measuring 691 sf, 96 two-bedroom units of 891 and 941 sf, and 62 studios of 595 sf. Rents average about $1.35 per sf throughout the complex, which was 95% occupied at the time of the sale. The property, which real estate investment trust AvalonBay had owned since 1997, includes a pool, a fitness center and barbecue areas.

Greenwood & Son, a full service real estate and asset management firm, will handle the management duties for the buyer. McKenzie notes that a team headed by Kathy Cole of the Berkshire Mortgage Finance office in Irvine orchestrated fast track financing with a new first trust deed in excess of $24 million, funded through Fannie Mae. He says the quick financing helped to complete what was a complicated transaction within 45 days from contract to close. The acquisition marks the buyer's second purchase of more than 270 units in the Anaheim area in less than two years, according to McKenzie, who says the same buyer bought the 282-unit Arbor Park project in the fourth quarter of 2001.