Bluerock Sells Newly Built Fort Lauderdale Rental for $195M
By Julia Echikson March 25, 2022 2:22 pm
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Bluerock offloaded a new apartment building in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for $195 million, property records show.
Motif Apartments holds 385 units, ranging from studios to three-bedroom pads, as well as ground-floor retail. The 606,213-square-foot property, completed last year, cost an estimated $78 million to build, according to records. The Atlanta-based developer had bought the site for $3 million in 2015.
Located at 500 N Andrews Avenue, the seven-story building sits adjacent to NE 5th Street within the trendy Flagler Village neighborhood. Because of its murals, art galleries, cafes and restaurants, the district often draws comparisons to Miami’s Wynwood.
The California-based buyer, Thomas Tomanek & Associates, nabbed a $90 million loan from Voya Investment Management. The sale equates to $506,500 per apartment.
Thomas Tomanek & Associates could not be reached for comment, while a representative for Bluerock did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Motif Apartments sale is yet another sign of Fort Lauderdale’s — and the region’s — booming multifamily investment market thanks to skyrocketing rents. Over the past year, rates in Fort Lauderdale have risen by 25.7 percent, according to a report by ApartmentList. The median monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment there now stands at $1,406 and at $1,688 for a two-bedroom.
Fort Lauderdale is seeing a rush of development too. Just across the street from Motif Apartments, development giant Hines bought a 5-acre vacant site for $57 million last year with plans to build a mixed-use project called FAT Village.
Less than a mile from Flagler Village near the city’s Brightline station, Kushner Companies and Aimco, in a joint venture, are planning to construct four residential towers that will cost an estimated $700 million.
Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.
