California Real Estate Firm Acquires Lower Manhattan-Based Investment Firm for $175M
By Rachel Butt September 23, 2015 5:52 pm
reprints
First Capital Real Estate, a Sacramento, Calif.-based real estate investment firm, has acquired New York City-based United Realty Advisors in a $175 million deal, the company announced today.
The deal marks First Capital’s first move into New York, and company executives said the purchase underscores its plans to broaden its fundraising network from institutional and high-net worth investors.
United Realty Advisors is part of a publicly non-traded real estate investment trust, United Realty Trust Incorporated (URTI), led by Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Jacob Frydman. The REIT has a net asset value of $12.51 per share as of this January, the company announced earlier this year.
United Realty Advisors, a privately held real estate investment and advisory firm based in Lower Manhattan, focuses on commercial properties including retail, office, hospitality and multifamily.
Its portfolio includes Tilden Hall in the East Flatbush area of Brooklyn, 7 Carnegie Plaza, a medical office in Cherry Hill, N.J., and a medical office in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Commercial Observer has previously reported on the sale of Tilden Hall, a nine-story multi-family residence that provides transitional housing for families in need.
“We are excited to use this platform to expand our asset base,” First Capital CEO and Chairman Suneet Singal told CO. “First Capital experienced year-to-year growth and United Realty has a similar investment strategy that aligned well with First Capital.”
The deal closed on Sept. 15 and was registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday afternoon.
Prior to the deal, First Capital and its affiliates have agreed to transfer 28 properties as well as the rights to acquire 13 additional hotels and more than 1,000 multi-family units to UTRI. Those properties span from hotels to self-storage properties.
Mr. Singal, now the CEO and chairman of the board of URTI and United Realty Advisors, said the firm has aggressive expansion plans going forward.
“Our plan is to grow the advisory as well as expand our real estate platform for additional acquisitions,” he said. “There might be some opportunities in East Coast or in markets that we are [currently] in, so long as those assets fit our underlying metrics.”
First Capital primarily holds assets on the West Coast and the Midwest.
