WillMax Ready to Tackle 348-Unit Repositioning

GRAND PRAIRIE, TX-WillMax Capital Inc. has acquired the 348-unit Fairways Apartment Homes in a value-add plan that will pump $5,000 to $6,000 per door into the repositioning. The asset has been sold by a three-year owner for north of $10 million.

Jack Wensinger, principal of the Dallas-based investment group, tells GlobeSt.com that "our plan or intent is to hold three to five years, upgrade it and try to reposition it." WillMax, with equity backing from a New York City investment group, bested 11 other would-be buyers chasing the class B value-add deal for the 1450 N. SH 360 property.

Broad Street Advisors of New York City sold the 92%-leased complex in a 45-day marketing, delivering an equity partner as well. "The play is lease it up in terms of economic occupancy and ride the strength of the market," says Keith Broemmer, executive vice president for Broad Street, who brokered the deal for KWP Fairways LP, a teaming of Kennedy Wilson's Austin operation and Capmark Investments LP.

The listing hit the value-add sweet spot for investors. "The Mid-Cities is considered by the top bidders to be one of the top markets and clearly on the rebound," Broemmer says. The seller's dance card was filled with offers from all over the US.

The 34-building Fairways Apartments, split between Tarrant and Dallas counties, is a garden-style complex with townhouses too. The 15.5-acre complex, developed in 1984, has one- and two-bedroom units from 534 sf to 1,122 sf, factoring out to a 771-sf average. Monthly rents start at $521 and top out at $895.

Wensinger says 50% of the units have views of the Great Southwest Golf Club. That and the value-add opportunity were the chief selling points. He estimates 75% of the cap-ex will be spent on unit interiors. "We feel it's a little tired," he says, "and can be repositioned without going crazy on it."