Orlando Sees Mega Multifamily Deal

ORLANDO—It's one of the largest multifamily complex sales in Greater Orlando this year. Sun Key Apartment in Winter Park, FL just traded for $57.7 million.

CBRE's Shelton Granade, Luke Wickham, and Justin Basquill represented the seller, a controlled affiliate of Starwood Capital Group, a leading global private investment firm that purchased the property in September 2010. BC Property Investments acquired the 596-unit luxury apartment community in the Orlando suburb.

“As one of the year's largest such transactions in Orlando, this acquisition exemplifies the strength of Central Florida's multifamily market,” says Granade, executive vice president of CBRE Capital Markets, Multifamily. “Rents are on the upswing in this high-barrier-to-entry location, and this desirable entry point property is likely to generate additional returns through modest property enhancements and further market improvement.”

The multifamily community was built in 1987 but has seen $12 million in capital upgrades in recent years. Located 15 minutes from Downtown Orlando and just a few minutes from upscale shopping and dining in Winter Park's “Rodeo Drive,” the Park Avenue district, the complex is 94% occupied.

“Multifamily housing is really hot for a variety of reasons,” Mike Cohn, regional president and co-founder of Lennar Commercial, tells GlobSt.com. “Baby Boomers are downsizing and choosing to live in 'in-town' and Millennials are bucking the old American dream of moving to the suburbs and buying a house. They want the flexibility and added social benefits of multifamily.”