SAN DIEGO-Phoenix Realty Group and Property Resources Corp. have closed on a $28-million multifamily buy. The property is a 256-unit apartment complex called the Beacon Hill Gardens in Dobbs Ferry, NY that features 14 garden-style buildings on a 14-acre site 20 miles north of Manhattan and was purchased on behalf of a PRG institutional real estate fund.

Steve Scioscia, PRG senior vice president, says that the property's proximity to New York City and its value-oriented rents fit the firm’s investment strategy of investing in value-add multifamily properties and pursuing joint-venture development of new multifamily units in the Tri-state region and across Southern California. “Beacon Hill Gardens is in a supply-constrained market with a growing need for rental units affordable to working families,” explained Scioscia. He noted that upgrades are under way at the complex, which follows PRG's strategy of "working with a proven development partner to upgrade the apartments to current market standards.”

A total of 1,000 apartment units in the New York metro area were acquired last year by institutional funds managed by PRG. Its partner in the latest acquisition, Property Resources Corp., is an owner and operator of more than 6,000 apartments in the New York metropolitan area that "is one of the select New York real estate development and management firms with the expertise to effectively operate and rehabilitate value-oriented housing," according to a PRG statement regarding the acquisition. Property Resources president Frank Linde says that the company sees "myriad possibilities in today’s market to reposition similar assets, as well as keeping a focus on affordable housing, underperforming condominiums and retail."

PRG's investments in the Tri-state region and across Southern California tap $400 million in institutional fund capital targeted for those areas. In 2010, the firm closed on more than 2,100 apartment units nationally, valued at $250 million. It owns and manages market-rate apartment properties and low-income tax-credit housing in major markets across the US.