TAMPA, FL-Berkshire Income Realty Inc. has closed its $27.5-million deal with SCP Apartments LLC and Madison-Clinton-Tampa LLC for the three-year-old, 264-unit Savannah at Citrus Park Apartments, as GlobeSt.com reported Aug. 17.

At the closing, the Boston-based REIT took on $15.72 million of debt and paid out $11.8 million cash for a per-unit cost of about $104,242, says Berkshire president and CFO David Quade.

"The acquisition of Savannah affords the company the opportunity to enter a new submarket in Florida with the purchase of a quality asset," Quade says in a prepared statement. "Savannah is a relatively new asset located in what we believe is a strong and desirable rental market with convenient access to extensive retail shopping outlets and major highways, while offering its tenants an attractive amenities package, including detached garages."

Quade hints the property could be converted to condos in the near future. "Savannah fits nicely into the company's acquisition strategy and represents a candidate for a successful repositioning, based on modes renovations planned for the property."

Berkshire owns 23 multifamily apartment communities in the Baltimore-Washington, DC corridor; Virginia; Houston; Dallas; Austin, TX; Chicago; Fort Lauderdale; and Charlotte, NC.