An Atlanta apartment community that was foreclosed on twice—first by the local government and then by the federal government—has been purchased by The Radco Companies for $39.6 million.
The Park at Briarcliff, now rebranded as Ashford Druid Hills, is a 982-unit apartment complex located in Dekalb County. The 48 buildings spread across the 74-acre complex have one-, two- and three- bedroom floor plans as well as townhome residences.
Community amenities within the apartment complex include two swimming pools, a fitness center and two tennis courts. There is also a lake, jogging trail, children’s playground and a dog park. Radco said it plans to invest an additional $10 million to renovate and improve the property, amenities and the apartments.
What makes this property unique is that Dekalb County originally issued development bonds that were credit enhanced by Fannie Mae. In 2007, the property was foreclosed on by the County after the borrower defaulted on the bonds, which led Fannie Mae to subsequently foreclose on Dekalb County in May 2010.
“The government actually foreclosed on the government! That’s why The Park at Briarcliff is the quintessential distressed property,” said Norman Radow, founder and CEO of The Radco Companies, which is based in Atlanta.
The real estate development company that focuses on acquiring distressed multifamily units has purchased 22 residential assets in less than two years, with the Atlanta metropolitan area accounting for 17 of these acquisitions.
With this acquisition, Radco’s current multifamily portfolio is over 5,500 units. To date, Radco has raised $80 million of private equity to fund its acquisitions.
“We are intimately familiar with the Atlanta marketplace and have invested a significant amount of capital into the community,” Radow stated. “This is our third transaction in Dekalb County, which is enjoying an improving job market and has seen rental rates soar 8.6% for apartments like those of Ashford Druid Hills.”
