Original Article from the Business Real Estate Weekly of Arizona.
MARICOPA COUNTY – A venture formed by Everest Holdings in Scottsdale (Joe Blackbourn, principal) paid just under $15.70 million ($68,652 per unit) to acquire 230 units within the 280-unit San Riva multi-family project at 2155 E. Liberty Lane in Phoenix. The seller was San Riva Madison Ownership Co. LLC in Dallas, Tex. That company is controlled by Hunt Realty Investments (Ray Hunt, principal). The transaction was negotiated through Steve Nicoluzakis and Dave Fogler of Cassidy Turley BRE Commercial in Phoenix. The buyer acquired the property with a $11 million loan from NXT Capital LLC in Chicago, Ill. Financing was arranged by Lucas Donahue of NorthMarq Capital LLC in Phoenix. John Cunningham of ARC Southwest will manage the property, which will be operated as a rental community.
In July 2005, a company formed by Madison Development Group of Centennial, Colo. (Mark Kline, principal) paid $32.2 million to buy all 280 units at San Riva. Hunt Realty was a financial partner with Madison Development in the acquisition of the apartment rental community. Madison Development converted the former apartment development to condominiums and sold 50 of the units before the housing market collapsed. The Hunt Realty entity took full ownership of the remaining units after the investment turned upside down.
The multi-family purchase is the first for Everest Holdings in the Phoenix area. Blackbourn says the company is interested in buying additional multi-family properties in the Valley and is pursuing a portfolio of apartment projects. In recent months BREW has reported companies formed by Everest Holdings buying residential land in the Valley, but the company also has been a player in the Phoenix area hospitality market. Companies formed by Blackbourn have acquired 2,000 home sites in Arizona and Nevada. Blackbourn says his company has a $125 million land opportunity fund targeted for buying residential dirt in the Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and California markets.