CHARLESTON, SC - Greystar Real Estate Partners, a global leader in the investment, development, and management of rental housing properties, announced that Greystar Equity Partners VII has agreed to sell a 32-property, 10,399-unit multifamily portfolio to Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII for $2.0 billion, or approximately $192,000 per unit. With the sale, Greystar has successfully monetized its investments in GEP VII.
“We worked diligently to assemble a high-quality portfolio of well-located apartment communities in major institutional markets,” said Bob Faith, Chairman and CEO of Greystar. “We are very pleased with the outcome of the transaction and believe the level of interest this portfolio generated is a testament to our core competency of sourcing underperforming assets and creating value through operational improvements and comprehensive capital renovation strategies.”
Comprising a mix of mid-rise, high-rise and garden-style apartment buildings, the portfolio is nationally-diversified with assets located in high-barrier-to-entry markets, including Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, South Florida, New York, and Boston metros.
GEP VII was formed as part of Greystar’s flagship value-add acquisition fund series with a focus on buying well-located, institutional quality apartment communities in major markets throughout the U.S. that present significant upside potential through operational improvements and capital renovations. A $600 million commingled fund, GEP VII held its final close in 2011 with commitments from a diverse group of global institutional investors. In June 2014, Greystar announced the final close of Greystar Equity Partners VIII, an $800 million successor fund that is now fully invested.
Mr. Faith continued, “We continue to believe in the long-term fundamentals of the multifamily industry given strong secular demand trends and barriers against widespread overdevelopment. We will continue to leverage our proprietary insight, local market expertise, and deep industry relationships to identify additional attractive value-add investments.”
The transaction was competitively bid with Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. (HFF) acting on behalf of Greystar. Per the terms of the transaction agreement, Greystar will continue to serve as property manager.