MIAMI—Remember all the distressed multifamily deals on the market some years ago? Savvy investors are starting to see the payoff.

The North Tampa portfolio, which includes Casita Bella, Pleasant Oaks, University Area, and Villa Amor, has traded for $3.75 million. The sales price represents $26,786 per unit and $39.75 per square foot.

That's more than twice what the investor originally paid. Kevin Kelleher, Darron Kattan, Robert Goldfinger, and Zach Ames, all of Franklin Street, represented the seller, Avesta Communities.

“This portfolio was roughly 95% occupied at the time of the sale,” says Kelleher. “However, when each property was previously purchased out of foreclosure over the last two years, they had significant deferred maintenance and overall occupancy was at 50 percent or less.”

The North Tampa Portfolio's multifamily assets are located within the University of South Florida area, the third largest university in Florida and eighth largest in the United States. All the properties are located just north of Fletcher Avenue, a major east-west thoroughfare.

“The seller renovated each property, working hard to stabilize operations prior to the sale,” says Kelleher. “Through that process, the seller was able to sell the portfolio for more than twice the purchase price. We see this trend increasing through 2014 as the market stabilization continues and investors look to take profits.”

The largest of the multifamily assets is Villa Amor. It offers 13 one and two-story buildings that were built between 1971 and 1974. Built in 1972, the second-largest, University Area, is a garden style multifamily community made up of a total of 34 multifamily units, including 17 one-story buildings.

Pleasant Oaks includes three two-story multifamily buildings built in 1965 and one one-story, duplex-style building built in 1986. Casita Bella is the smallest multifamily property in this portfolio, comprised of eight one-story duplexes built in 1969 equaling 16 apartments.