PEMBROKE PINES, FL-Scully Co. has acquired Pembroke Cove Apartments, a 302-unit complex in Southwest Broward County for $38.1 million, or $126,160 per unit. The property, located at 13401 NW 5th St., was sold by a South Florida-based private real estate development company. The transaction includes Freddie Mac financing.

Pembroke Cove is currently 94% occupied with rental rates averaging $1.27 per square foot per month, says Rosendo Caveiro, senior director of apartment brokerage services for Cushman & Wakefield in Miami, who brokered the transaction. The complex, which was built in 1998 by Miami-based American Land Housing Group, features 31 two-story buildings on 23.4 acres with amenities including a clubhouse/leasing center, fitness room, indoor racquetball court, billiards room, lakefront pool, spa and two tennis courts.

"There were 12 offers on the table for the property, including 10 national/institutional apartment investors," says Caveiro. "This rental submarket in Southwest Broward is one of the strongest in the tri-county area."

Great schools, proximity to Miami and Fort Lauderdale and a strong demographic base all contribute to the continued success of the local apartment, he adds. According to research by Reinhold P. Wolff Economic Research Inc., Broward County has an average vacancy rate of 5.5% with an average monthly rental rate of $1,220.

Jenkintown, PA-based Scully Co. owns 22 apartment communities in Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Three of those properties are located in Broward County.