SALEM, MA—North Carolina-based Bell Partners Inc. has increased its multifamily portfolio in Greater Boston to five properties totaling approximately 1,100 units.

Bell Partners, which is headquartered in Greensboro, NC, has acquired the 266-unit Jefferson at Salem Station in Salem, MA. The firm did not disclose the purchase price for the property that is located near Downtown Salem. The deal follows its mid September purchase of the Applebriar Apartments, a 164-unit garden-style community in Marlborough, MA. That community has been renamed Bell Marlborough and is managed by Bell Partners. It was approximately 90% occupied at the time of sale.

Its latest acquisition has been renamed the Bell at Salem Station and will also be managed by Bell Partners, which has 70,000 units under management on the East Coast and in the Southwest and Western sections of the United States. The property was completed in 2002.

The purchase of the Bell at Salem Station was the seventh multifamily acquisition for Bell in 2015. With the transaction, Bell has completed more than $565 million in apartment acquisitions this year. In 2014, Bell completed more than $2.6 billion in total apartment transactions.

The company's Greater Boston portfolio also includes Bell Stoughton, a 240-unit community in Stoughton, MA it acquired in June 2014; Bell Watertown, the former Alta at the Estate development in Watertown, a 155 unit community it acquired in January 2015, and Bell Wheeler Hill, a 274-unit community in Marlborough, which it acquired in early 2008.

Nickolay Bochilo, senior vice president of investments for Bell Partners, says the Bell at Salem Station has a great location with river views, convenient access to the train station, and is close by Downtown Salem amenities. "We see an opportunity to enhance the property's value by renovating home interiors and upgrading common area amenities," he adds. "The long term prospects for this investment are further enhanced by the high barriers to new apartment development in the area."

While the company would not divulge the purchase price for the property, Bochilo tells Globest.com that the firm will spend approximately $3 million on property upgrades. He adds that the company continues to look for opportunities Greater Boston that fit its overall investment strategy. However, the company does not expect to close on any further property acquisitions in the region by the end of this year.

The units at the Bell at Salem Station are spread across four-story buildings with elevators and two-story townhouses. Floor plans range from one bedroom /one bath flats to two bedrooms/2.5 bath townhouses, with an average unit size of 1,115 square feet. Apartments feature European-style kitchen cabinets, white on white appliances, ceramic with accent tile bathtub surrounds, crown molding in dining and living rooms, track lighting, oversized windows, as well as patio storage and gas fireplaces in some units. Thirty of the two-bedroom units contain dens. Certain limited upgrades have been made to most units under a program begun in 2011, the company states.

Among the property amenities are a clubhouse with a two-story "great room," leasing office, fitness center with cardio, aerobic and strength training centers, coffee bar, business and conference facilities. Other perks include a heated resort-style pool and Jacuzzi with sun deck, BBQ grills, as well as a media room with theatre seating and surround sound.