S3 Capital Lends $30M for South Carolina Apartment Build

Clear Mountain Properties has sealed $29.75 million of construction financing to develop a multifamily community in upstate South Carolina, Commercial Observer has learned.

S3 Capital supplied the loan for Clear Mountain’s planned 152-unit Liva Travelers Rest project in Travelers Rest, S.C. The deal, which closed late Feb. 13, marks the first loan executed by Manhattan-based S3 in South Carolina as the lender seeks to grow its footprint in the Southern U.S. 

“This transaction represents an important step in our continued nationwide expansion into high-demand U.S. markets and the Sun Belt states,” Steven Jemal, managing director of origination at S3 Capital, said in a statement. “While this marks our first loan in South Carolina, Travelers Rest sits just across the border from North Carolina and within the broader Charlotte orbit, a market where we’ve been active and continue to see compelling multifamily fundamentals.”

Located at 208 Tubbs Mountain Road 10 miles north of Greenville, S.C., and 103 miles west of Charlotte, N.C., the project will consist of 120 apartments and 32 townhomes offering one- to three-bedroom units. Community amenities will include a pool, clubhouse, fitness center, fire pit and dog park.

The city of Travelers Rest has seen population grow roughly 15 percent between 2020 and 2025 with rents also rising, driven by an influx of higher-income residents, according to S3. The lender also noted Clear Mountain’s local expertise developing more than 1,000 multifamily units across the Carolinas made the deal attractive from a lending perspective. 

“We highly value working with sponsors who are deeply rooted within the markets they transact,” Joshua Crane, co-founder and principal of S3 Capital, said in a statement. “That kind of local expertise allows our borrowers to effectively complete their business plans and allows S3 to feel confident that our underwriting will match reality.”

Chris Rizzo, principal at Clear Mountain Properties, said demand for housing in Traveler Rest already exceeds inventory, with a shortfall of more than 2,000 units projected over the next five years. The developer is scheduled to break ground in March, with the project slated for delivery in late 2027.

“The area continues to benefit from steady in-migration driven by job growth, quality of life, and connectivity to the Swamp Rabbit Trail and downtown corridor,” Rizzo said in a statement. “We believe that combination of lifestyle appeal and employment opportunities will drive sustained demand for well-located, high-quality rental housing like Liva.”

Cooper Horowitz’s Michael Horowitz negotiated the financing. 

Horowitz said in a statement the transaction “reflects both the strength of the sponsorship” and S3’s construction lending experience “in high-growth markets like Travelers Rest.”

Andrew Coen can be reached at acoen@commercialobserver.com.