HOUSTON-An Austin developer has begun moving dirt on the 374-unit Falls at Copper Lakes Apartments in the far northwest submarket. The $35-million, class A apartment complex has a scheduled delivery date of mid-2008.
Situated on 21.8 acres, Falls at Copper Lakes is going up at the intersection of Texas 6 and Huffmeister Road. It is Duval Copperfield Partners Ltd.'s first project in the submarket.
James Kirkpatrick, vice president with Live Oak Capital Ltd. says the area is active with a great deal of multifamily construction. "But at the end of the day, lenders loved it because the market, even with all that new construction, is absorbing units," Kirkpatrick tells GlobeSt.com. He and Live Oak principal James Richards arranged financing for site acquisition and development. "Concessions are starting to drop. It's nice to see the market performing so well," Kirkpatrick adds.
Kirkpatrick says Falls at Copper Lake is being developed with slightly larger than average apartment sizes. There will be 48 three-bedroom units with 1,282 sf to 1,426 sf. In addition, the complex will have two-bedroom units, measuring 1,082 sf, and one-bedroom units with 856-sf floor plans.
Kirkpatrick acknowledges the number of three-bedroom units is higher than usual, but the market is poised to support it. "The developer's thought was that with more jobs being created and more people moving to town, this should be an interim stop for a family relocating before buying a house," Kirkpatrick says. "He wanted more three bedrooms and attached garages to all units."
Blazer Residential Inc. of Houston is the general contractor. Falls at Copper Lake's architect was Mucasey & Associates, also from Houston.
Kirkpatrick says Duval Copperfield Partners most likely will sell the development at completion due to leverage and loan structures. The borrower secured $33.43 million at a 94% loan to cost. Amegy Bank of Texas provided $28.48 million of the total funding in a three-year senior loan at a variable rate of 200 basis points above Libor. KeyBank Real Estate Capital supplied the $4.95-million balance in a three-year mezzanine piece.
Houston-based Blazer Residential Inc. is the general contractor. The project was designed by Mucasey & Associates, also in Houston.
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