Lionheart, Natixis Lend $178M on Post Brothers’ Philly Multifamily Portfolio
By Cathy Cunningham June 30, 2021 3:27 pm
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Post Brothers has sealed a $178 million refinance for The Piazza, its 404-unit multifamily portfolio in Philadelphia, Commercial Observer has learned.
Natixis provided a $134.9 million senior mortgage in the deal, while Lionheart Strategic Management — an affiliate of Fisher Brothers — provided a $43.1 million mezzanine loan.
Ackman-Ziff’s Russell Schildkraut negotiated the debt.
“Lionheart and Natixis were a pleasure to deal with and provided us a seamless financing execution, allowing us to unlock further upside in the portfolio over the near and intermediate term,” Matt Pestronk, co-founder of Post Brothers, told CO. “We are excited to work with both of them again on future opportunities.
Natixis officials declined to comment on the senior mortgage, which will soon be securitized, sources said.
Located in Philly’s Northern Liberties submarket — also known as NoLibs — the 392,904-square-foot, 11-building rental portfolio includes residences, commercial space and parking spots. Loan proceeds from the refinance will be used to move the property to stabilization following the implementation of a brand-new amenity package.
Formerly an industrial area, NoLibs is now a happening hotspot for young professionals, students, artists and entrepreneurs. The Piazza sits at the heart of it all, at 1001 North 2nd Street.
“This transaction exemplifies the strategy behind our current vehicle, which is to provide bridge financing to assets that we feel very confident have a near-term upside and strong operations,” Winston Fisher, chairman of Lionheart, said. “The portfolio benefits from existing cash flow and value coverage to our position going in, but given recently completed upgrades, as well as overall market recovery and momentum coming out of COVID, we expect the property’s value to greatly increase in the near-to-medium term.
The mezz financing is being deployed from Lionheart’s current credit vehicle — Lionheart Real Estate Credit Strategies.
“Combined with its excess development rights, strength of sponsorship, competitive positioning and adjacency to other ongoing mixed-use developments in a rapidly improving submarket, we feel strongly that we are well positioned to mitigate downside risk,” Fisher added.
No stranger to Post Brothers, Lionheart also recently provided an $11 million senior bridge loan on an adjacent development site owed by the firm.
And, last October, Natixis also refinanced one of Post Brothers’ New Jersey assets, The Duchess, in a deal that was also arranged by Ackman-Ziff’s Schildkraut.
Ackman-Ziff officials decline to comment.
