FULLERTON, CA-The Klingbeil Multifamily Fund of Tustin has acquired the 136-unit Lake Apartments from Granite Lake Apartments of Irvine for $23 million, with the buyer planning to spend about $15,000 per unit for restoration and renovations, according to Hendricks & Partners. Partner Robin Ossenbeck in the Los Angeles office of Hendricks & Partners reports that the buyer was looking for value-added investments in Orange County and "was impressed with the one-of-a-kind" property that the Lakes complex is.

Ossenbeck explains that the apartment complex features a 35,000-sf lake that is stocked with fish and is home to ducks and other birds. The property, at 2800 Madison Ave., also features fountains, streams and waterfalls in a setting that Ossenbeck describes as "like an oasis in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Orange County."

Most of the units at the Lake have at least one view of the lake and the property's pool, Ossenbeck points out. She says that the $15,000 per unit that the buyer will spend will include major repairs and renovations to restore the complex to its original condition.

The new owner expects to be able to raise rents by 15% to 20% and to capitalize on its location close to major freeways and to Cal State Fullerton, although the complex is not a student housing property.

The Klingbeil group acquired the property to hold for the long term, Ossenbeck notes. The transaction included the buyer's assuming $14 million of existing fixed-rate debt at 4.26%.