JV's Follow-Up Deal Takes 216 Units for $21M

The one-year-old Auberry at 705 Bray Central Dr. is the second property in a week to pass from the Stockton, CA-based A.G. Spanos to the joint venture. The strategy for the second piece is like the first--a three- to five-year hold with upside from rent hikes as the market improves, explains Benjamin Friedman, president of the New York City-based Abacus.

Friedman tells GlobeSt.com that the 92%-leased Auberry has immediate upside due to concessions. "We'll burn off concessions and then start moving rents on select units," he says. "We believe there's some upside in the existing rent structure and we believe the market in Allen will be strong in the future." The mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units average 993 sf, with the average rent ringing up $984 per month.

The nine-building complex, positioned on 12.6 acres, is a low-density design with 12 attached and 48 detached garages in addition to carport parking. "It's a very graceful property," Friedman says. "It has a nice feel."

Friedman says the Auberry's positioning was a chief selling point since it's in a higher end, growing area with a limited supply of rental properties. "The fundamentals are very favorable for continued rent and occupancy gains," he points out.

To make the close on the Auberry, Friedman says the JV with Birmingham, AL-based Colonial Properties has secured a $17-million Freddie Mac loan. Mona Carlton, senior managing director in Dallas for Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP, arranged the 10-year, fixed-rate interest financing.

Abacus, planning to spend $300 million this year on multifamily properties, is scouring the region for more assets to buy. At the end of February, it bought the 240-unit Fairmont at Fossil Creek at 3701 Fossil Creek Blvd. from Spanos.