The property purchase will allow for a value-add redevelopment plan in the desirable Raleigh/Durham market
NEW YORK/Durham, NC – June 5, 2018 – Phoenix Realty Group (PRG), a national multifamily real estate fund manager, investor and operator, purchased Beech Lake Apartments through an affiliated entity. The property, a 345-unit Class B multifamily apartment community, is located at 4800 University Drive in Durham, North Carolina. PRG will operate the rental community and plans to renovate, upgrade and modernize the property to offer an attractive option for tenants in the area. The property is expected to be rebranded Alvista Durham, utilizing PRG’s proprietary brand Alvista Communities.
“We are excited to expand our presence in North Carolina,” said Ron Orgel, managing director of acquisitions for PRG’s eastern United States region. “Durham is attractive to renters of all ages due to its affordability, location and moderate climate.”
Completed in 1987, the property comprises 30, 3-story walk-up buildings with open-air breezeways spread across a 37-acre site. The community offers amenities including a swimming pool and sundeck, clubhouse with fitness center, two tennis courts, lakeside gazebo and lake walking/running trail. PRG plans to continue with an improved interior unit renovation program, in addition to completing a number of common area capital improvements. Planned unit upgrades include faux wood flooring in all common areas, new laminate countertops, new kitchen cabinet doors and hardware and faux stainless appliances. Planned common area capital improvements include enhancing the existing amenity package by adding a dog park and dog wash station, outdoor kitchen and fire pit adjacent to the pool area, upgrading the pool area with new furniture and cabanas and converting the lakeside trail to an outdoor fitness trail. The repositioning plan is aimed at creating a contemporary standard for units and the amenities that meet today’s renters’ needs.
The property is located in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill combined statistical area (CSA) with convenient access to I-40 and U.S. Route 15. It is nearby major employers (including Research Triangle Park, a high-tech hub that is home to more than 200 companies such as IBM, GlaxoSmithKline plc and Cisco Systems, Inc.), many universities (including the highly ranked
Duke University and University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill) and retail and restaurants. In addition, the headquarters of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, totaling 650,000 square feet of office space and 4,000 employees, is directly across the street.
“The property’s location complements PRG’s strategy of purchasing larger assets that have the capacity for competitive amenity offerings,” said J. Michael Fried, PRG’s CEO. “It is located in a growth corridor proximate to prestigious universities and one of the east coast’s predominant technology hubs.”
The city of Durham is in Durham County, the Durham-Chapel metropolitan statistical area (MSA), and the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill CSA. The Durham-Chapel Hill MSA has enjoyed continued economic and employment growth, with job growth of 2.4 percent over the last 12 months (through November), an unemployment rate of 3.9 percent and population growth of 2 percent per year since 2010.
The Raleigh/Durham metro area offers a thriving economy with many skilled and highly educated workers. Durham, in particular, has experienced a revitalization in recent years with new bars, coffee shops, restaurants and start-ups.
About Phoenix Realty Group
Phoenix Realty Group LLC (www.phoenixrg.com) is an 18-year old firm focused on multifamily residential properties in higher barrier-to-entry and infill markets. The firm is headquartered in New York with personnel in California and Florida. The firm has three business lines: value-added, new construction and affordable housing. In its value-added strategy, PRG’s goal is to acquire, renovate and reposition Class B urban and suburban multifamily properties in primary and secondary metropolitan areas to increase both ongoing cash flows and overall property appreciation. As of December 31, 2017, PRG manages approximately $1.4 billion in gross real estate assets under management and over 8,000 apartment units across the U.S. PRG’s senior executives have on average nearly 30 years of successful experience in multiple investment cycles and a track record of more than $12 billion of assets, over 1,000 properties and 130,000 multifamily rental units.