MANSFIELD, TX-NNN Apartment REIT Inc. has paid $16.6 million for the 268-unit Towne Crossing Apartments, the second pick-up this summer from a Utah-based limited liability company. The buyer has shaved $5.9 million from the original price since the contract went down in February, based on SEC filings.

The 96%-leased Towne Crossing Apartments, situated on 17.3 acres at 1601 Towne Crossing Blvd., was bought from Parkwood Management Co. of Fountain Green, which was represented by Evan Jacobson of Thompson Realty in Dallas. According to the buyer's press release, the deal required a Freddie Mac assumption. In mid-June, NNN paid $15 million for the 248-unit Park at Northgate at 26325 Northgate Crossing Blvd. in Spring, TX near Houston.

The Richmond, VA-based subsidiary of NNN Realty Advisors Inc. in Santa Ana, CA couldn't be reached prior to deadline to comment on the deal, which closed in recent days. The city's fast-paced growth in the retail and residential sectors set the hook for the NNN buy. "The population growth and economic vitality of the city of Mansfield makes it an ideal market for an investment by NNN Apartment REIT," Gus Remppies, executive vice president and chief investment officer of NNN Apartment REIT, says in a press release. The city's average annual income is $91,878.

The 12-building Towne Crossing Apartments is a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units, ranging from 659 sf to 1,292 sf. The three-year-old complex has all the usual bells and whistles of a class A complex, including 58 units with attached garages and the balance supported by carport parking. Web-based apartment sites put rents at $685 to $1,285 per month.