Bluerock Residential Growth REIT Acquires 252-Unit Arium Palms at World Gateway in Orlando, FL
NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Bluerock Residential Growth REIT, Inc. (NYSE MKT: BRG) ("BRG" or the "Company") announced today that it has acquired a 252-unit Class A apartment community in Orlando, Florida, known as Arium Palms at World Gateway ("Arium Palms"). The property, which the Company acquired through a joint venture for $37 million, is located in the prestigious Celebration submarket, one of Orlando's most affluent, and minutes from the main entrance to Disney World.
Arium Palms is projected to yield a pro forma stabilized cap rate of approximately 6.8%. This compares favorably to cap rates of 5.25% to 5.50% for assets of similar quality in the market. The Company sourced the transaction off-market through its operating partner, Carroll Organization ("Carroll").
BRG invested 95% of the venture's equity requirement, or approximately $13 million, with an affiliate of Carroll funding the balance for a 5% stake in the venture. The joint venture further capitalized the property with an acquisition loan of approximately $25.3 million.
Built in 2007, Arium Palms is a Class-A multifamily community featuring one-, two- and three-bedroom unit layouts averaging a 1,074 square feet. BRG plans to refresh the eight-year-old complex by upgrading and activating amenities to enhance the property's live/work/play environment and while also upgrading unit interiors to bring rents into line with comparable luxury properties in the area.
"We are tremendously optimistic about this opportunity. The grounds are beautiful, the location is in demand, the market is growing, and vacancy rates are low. In addition, Carroll has an excellent ability to understand the local market and a proven track record of maximizing property rent rolls," said Ramin Kamfar, Chairman and CEO of BRG.
The Arium Palms community features multiple amenities including controlled access gates, a resort style pool, a sand volleyball court, fully equipped fitness center, gazebo, dog park, auto detailing center, and business and media centers. The property also features 140 units with attached garages with direct unit access, otherwise unavailable in the local market.
Arium Palms sits within the upscale Celebration sub-market, home to two award-winning public schools, multiple Class A office parks, Celebration Health hospital, several sports/recreation complexes, a public library, community parks, and an 18-hole championship golf course. The community's Orlando MSA is robust and growing, supported by job growth that has outpaced the averages for Florida and the US overall since 2003 and population growth in excess of 9.1% over the past five years. The area benefits from significant strength in healthcare, technology and tourism, with several major hospital groups expanding aggressively to meet the needs of the area's growing population. Orlando is also home to 2,600 companies in the technology industry, employing over 42,000 people and, as a top tourist destination for both domestic and international travelers, the area's economy benefits from a globally-recognized tourism industry that delivers an economic impact of more than $50 billion.
Vacancy in Orlando in 2014 was at a multi-year low. The continued expansion of payrolls, coupled with a relatively young rental-oriented demographic, is expected to contribute to continued tight vacancy and good rent growth in the coming year.
Arium Palms will mark BRG's fourth investment in Orlando.
About Bluerock Residential Growth REIT, Inc.
Bluerock Residential Growth REIT, Inc. (NYSE MKT: BRG) is a real estate investment trust that focuses on acquiring a diversified portfolio of Class A institutional-quality apartment properties in demographically attractive growth markets to appeal to the renter by choice. The Company's objective is to generate value through off-market/relationship-based transactions and, at the asset level, through improvements to operations and properties. BRG generally invests with strategic regional partners, including some of the best-regarded, private owner-operators in the United States, making it possible to operate as a local sharpshooter in each of its markets while enhancing off-market sourcing capabilities. The Company is listed on the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 Indexes. BRG has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT) for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
For more information, please visit our website at: www.bluerockresidential.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical, including statements regarding management's intentions, beliefs, expectations, representations, plans or predictions of the future, and are typically identified by such words as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "may," "will," "should" and "could." Because such statements include risks, uncertainties and contingencies, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on BRG's present expectations, but these statements are not guaranteed to occur. Furthermore, BRG disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect changes in underlying assumptions or factors, of new information, data or methods, future events or other changes. Investors should not place undue reliance upon forward-looking statements. For further discussion of the factors that could affect outcomes, please refer to the risk factors set forth in Item 1A of BRG's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed by BRG with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on March 4, 2015, and subsequent filings by BRG with the SEC. We claim the safe harbor protection for forward looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
SOURCE Bluerock Residential Growth REIT, Inc.
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