Bank-Owned Clearwater Multifamily Sees Bidding Wars

CLEARWATER, FL-Coral Cove Apartments fetched $9.5 million during its 35 days on the market. The 156,400-square-foot asset attracted 17 offers in the midst of an Internet and e-mail marketing campaign targeting private capital firms that focus on acquiring and repositioning properties.

“Even with the marketing efforts reaching a large number of prospects, it really helps to know the active buyers in the market,” Colliers International Tampa Bay’s John Stone said in a statement. “A targeted marketing approach outweighs traditional real estate listings.”

Stone and his colleague, Jason Stanton, represented the seller, NW-Coral Cove, LLC. A lender foreclosed on the multifamily property in February and owned the asset.

The lender told Colliers to list the apartment community without a sales price so it could be sold to the highest bidder. The buyer, WRH The Palms of Clearwater, offered $47,500 per unit.

Located at 25 N. Belcher Rd. in Clearwater, Coral Cove Apartments was built in 1985 and sold with 114 out of the 200 units already renovated. The buyer has plans to complete renovations to add value and bring the property to the next level of quality. Stone says Coral Cove represented an opportunity to acquire a property with a high profit potential for well below replacement cost.

Patrick Dufour, a senior vice president at ARA, tells GlobeSt.com he’s seeing strong
momentum in multifamily real estate transactions for year end 2011—and he expects it to continue through 2012. In fact, he predicts many acquisitions groups will meet or exceed their investment goals for 2011 and will have new allocations and fresh capital to put to work in 2012.  

“We should continue to experience improving fundamentals across the major markets in Florida and significant demand for multifamily investment product throughout the state,” Dufour says. “As long as interest rates hold relatively consistent, we should continue to see increased transaction activity in 2012.”