Roberts Closes Strategic Loan with Freddie Mac

ATLANTA-Charles S. Roberts, CEO of locally based Roberts Realty Investors Inc., made $2.1 million for his company with the stroke of a computer key.

He refinanced his firm’s River Oaks apartment community with Freddie Mac for $10.75 million at 5.54% interest. The original loan of $8.5 million carried a 7.15% interest rate.

“The new loan includes an excellent fixed interest rate of 5.54% per annum and a term of 10 years,” Roberts says. The new loan “will improve our return on invested equity in River Oaks and, equally important, decrease the monthly mortgage payment, even though the amount of the loan increased.”

This is Roberts Realty’s fourth loan with Freddie Mac which previously provided long-term permanent financing for the company’s Crestmark, Preston Oaks and Highland Park apartment communities.

Earlier this month, the REIT sold Highland Park for $17.98 million, resulting in a $4-million profit for the company. Roberts Realty has had a difficult first half, Charles Roberts says in financials filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the first and second quarters.

Roberts Realty lost $922,000 in the second quarter and $1.8 million for the first six months of this year. Charles Roberts told shareholders and the SEC he doesn’t see an apartment market improvement until sometime in 2004.