Steadfast Acquires Indy Community for $24M

FT. WAYNE, IN—Steadfast Income REIT, Inc. officials have said they concentrate their purchases in the central corridor of the US because that's where the jobs are being created. And the company just acquired Oak Crossing, a 222-unit apartment community in Fort Wayne, IN, another small US city that has begun to see significant development activity, for $24.23 million. This brings the Orange County-based REIT's total portfolio to 67 communities in 11 Midwestern and Southern states.

"This is a high-quality property located within a mile from the newly built, highly acclaimed Parkview Regional Medical Center,” said Ella Shaw Neyland, president of Steadfast. "We believe the market's long-term apartment performance outlook looks promising and bright.”

As reported earlier this week in GlobeSt.com, Ash Brokerage has just launched a $98 million mixed-use project that promises to help transform the city's downtown. The firm will build an eight-story, 95,000-square-foot, $29 million headquarters building, and, as part of the project, Hanning & Bean Enterprises plans to develop a $30 million, 17-story residential tower of 100 townhomes, apartments and condos.

Oak Crossing is a class A community completed in 2013 that has 12 garden-style buildings with one-, two-, and three-bedroom units that average 1,000-square-feet. Average in-place rents are $952. Residents currently occupy 94% of Oak Crossing, which sits along the city's Dupont corridor—close to shopping and dining areas. Nearly 5,000 businesses are located within a five-mile radius, Steadfast officials say, including major employers such as Steel Dynamics, General Motors Truck and Bus Group, Lincoln Financial Group and BF Goodrich.

The REIT now owns three apartment communities in the state.  It also bought the 268-unit Lodge at Trails Edge in Indianapolis and the 250-unit Sycamore Terrace in Terre Haute.