The sellers acquired the apartment communities approximatelythree years ago, renovating the buildings and improved themanagement, occupancy, reputation and rents for the properties,Harris says. The properties are now two of the most desirablestudent housing communities in Macomb, he says. Both complexesreceived new fitness centers, business centers, leasing offices andon-site laundry centers as part of the renovations. Units wereremodeled with new carpeting and fixtures, and the landscaping wasupgraded at both apartment communities. "Both properties were 100%leased for the school year," Harris says.

Rabil was represented by Gary Witten, a senior investmentassociate in Marcus & Millichap's New Haven, CT office. Harrisrepresented the sellers. The two apartment communities are adjacentto Western Illinois University and are within one mile of eachother. Campus Pointe has 185 units with a mixture of efficiency,studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units and an average unit sizeof 769 sf. Campus Pointe has a total of 18 buildings constructedbetween 1970 and 1974 on a nearly 7.6-acre parcel. Campus Manor has175 units with a mixture of efficiency, one and two-bedroom unitsand an average unit size of 722 sf. Campus Manor has a total of 13buildings constructed between 1972 and 1984 on a 7.2-acre parcel.The average rental rate for Campus Manor is $753 and the averagerent for Campus Pointe is $783, Harris tells GlobeSt.com.

Harris says Rabil is able to obtain a higher cap rate and returnin buying student housing communities at Western IllinoisUniversity, which is considered a "second-tier" university, asopposed to a "prime Big 10 university" such as the University ofIllinois or the University of Michigan. "This is a type of propertythat presents a good opportunity for an investor," he says.