ROSSLYN, VA-New York City-based real estate private equity firm Savanna recently sold an $81-million senior note to Apollo Global Real Estate that was secured by three local assets. Interest in the sale—or rather, interest in the stake in the underlying assets, which are part of the local Monday Properties-Goldman Sachs JV-owned portfolio—was very strong, with more than 100 parties expressing interest in the transaction, Tom Farrell, senior associate at Savanna, tells GlobeSt.com.

The sale consisted of Savanna’s senior interest in a $157.7 million note secured by three buildings totaling 1.4 million square feet. Savanna is retaining the $76.7 million junior note. Two of the buildings, at 1000-1100 Wilson Blvd., are interconnected and total 1.1 million square feet. The third property is located at 1101 Wilson Blvd. It is a 19-story, 326,000-square-foot high rise.

Savanna acquired a part of the larger first mortgage at a discount to par value in a direct transaction with an investment bank, which sold the note as part of its balance sheet recapitalization efforts in 2008. Savanna didn’t name the seller, but Lehman Bros., owned a significant stake in the portfolio at that time, finally selling it to Goldman Sachs in 2011.

Nicholas Seidenberg, Collins Ege, Sean McDermott, Clint Frease and Philip McKnight of Eastdil Secured arranged the transaction. Farrell says the deal allows it to pay off the bank seller financing while holding the remaining balance to maturity, thus providing a good return for investors. “Given the high quality of the borrower and the collateral, there was high interest,” he tells GlobeSt.com. “These buildings are ‘best in class’ in Rosslyn, and the JV of Monday Properties and Goldman Sachs provides well-capitalized, knowledgeable and experienced ownership.”