West Shore, a Boston-based multifamily investment and management firm, has acquired the Palm Beach Gardens Apartments, a 542-unit complex in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, for $117.9 million. The purchase comes as multifamily investment sales in South Florida show signs of increasing activity.
According to property records and data from Vizzda, West Shore bought the complex at 4120 Union Square Boulevard from Advenir, an Aventura-based developer and manager led by David Vecchitto. The acquisition was financed with a $550 million loan from Citybank that is cross-collateralized with other properties in Pinellas County and outside Florida. The Florida assets make up about 25 percent of the total collateral for the loan, which is set to mature in 2030.
Palm Beach Gardens Apartments consists of 34 two-story rental buildings along with a storage building and clubhouse on a 21.5-acre site. The development was completed in 1970 and 1971. According to its website, the complex offers one- to three-bedroom apartments with monthly rents ranging from $1,842 to more than $2,855.
Advenir purchased the property for $97.3 million in 2018 and obtained an $80 million loan that year to renovate it. Since its founding in 1996, Advenir has owned and managed over 30,000 units and currently oversees a portfolio valued at $2.9 billion.
West Shore’s current portfolio includes more than 18,500 units across 54 properties with a total value exceeding $4.5 billion. The company is led by Lee E. Rosenthal.
South Florida’s multifamily market has seen an oversupply after significant construction activity in recent years. In the previous year alone, developers completed about 18,600 new apartments while net new leases totaled roughly 15,000 according to CoStar Group data (https://www.costargroup.com/). This imbalance has resulted in slower lease-ups for new projects, increased concessions offered by landlords, and a modest decline in average asking rents across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.
Despite higher interest rates making financing more challenging for some buyers, there has been an uptick in multifamily investment transactions recently. Many buyers are focusing on value-add opportunities or using alternative financing sources such as Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae loans or insurance company debt; others assume existing loans or use discretionary funds.
Recent notable deals include Morgan Properties’ $69.95 million purchase of Visions at Willow Pond near West Palm Beach; Tishman Speyer’s acquisition of Bell at Broken Sound Apartments in Boca Raton for $124.5 million; and TA Realty’s purchase of San Merano at Mirasol Apartments for $193 million.
Developers continue to build new projects amid expectations that demand will catch up with supply once construction slows down.
