We are very happy to announce that CalTier Fund 1, LP has made another participating investment into a multi-family asset with our new partner Ritz Banc Group (RBG).
RBG represents another solid partner on the East Coast, specifically in the Virginia/Washington DC region. They have years of experience in Multifamily and know that market extremely well.
Check the whole video and learn more about our joint venture with RBG and this extraordinary asset located in Newport News, Virginia.
Asset: Hickory Point Apartments
Location: Newport News, VA
Number of Units: 175
Real Estate Partner: Ritz Banc Group
Interviewees:
- Nasr El Hage – Managing Director
- Ted Stevens – Vice President, Acquisitions
Brief Description:
Hickory Point Apartments, a 175-unit multifamily community, is located in Newport News, Virginia. Hickory Point is CalTier’s latest multi-family investment and its first with our partner Ritz Banc Group (“RBG”). Hickory Point represents RBG’s sixth multi-family acquisition in the Hampton Roads market and fits perfectly into RBG’s continued investment focus on value-add multi-family opportunities across the Southeast.and into the dynamic Richmond market.
“Newport News is one of the best performing submarkets in the Hampton Roads region” said Nasr El Hage, Managing Director at RBG. “Given that the demand for apartments continues to severely outweigh current supply across this region, we will continue to focus on acquiring quality assets that we can renovate and reposition to fill this void.”
Hickory Point is a uniquely desirable asset, comprised entirely of 2- & 3-bedroom floorplans across 175 townhomes. Units at Hickory Point average over 1,000 SF, which makes the community feel much more like single family living. RBG and CalTier like the townhomes’ appeal to families as they feel more like single family style living. Hickory Point is proximate to other RBG owned assets and is well positioned less than 1 mile from the Fort Eustis station gate. Fort Eustis provides primary support to over 50,000 active-duty soldiers, national guard, and reserves.
“Hickory Point is exactly the type of high-quality asset with proven renovation upside and synergistic operational efficiencies that we target for our multifamily portfolio,” said Amro Nahas, Managing Director at RBG. “We look forward to executing on our business plan and integrating Hickory Point with our other assets in the region to create value for our investors.”
Investment Strategy:
Value-Add Upside: 56 units at the Property (32%) have been lightly renovated and are achieving a $200-$400 rental premium. The plan is to renovate all remaining classic units and add granite countertops and stainless-steel appliances to the currently renovated units. The $15,000 per unit interior renovation scope will allow for a $255 rent premium across all units (~20% ROI). There is also significant upside associated with converting the remaining 17 of the 2×1.5+Den floorplan units to 3×1.5 floorplans.
Strong Rent Growth and Housing Demand: Limited supply has pushed Newport News vacancy levels to records lows of ~4%. This supply/demand imbalance has driven significant rent growth. Over the past three years the submarket averaged annual rent growth over 8.9%, well above the national average. Year-to-date Newport News has seen 12%+ rent growth and over the next three years it is projected to average ~4% rent growth, dramatically outpacing many other markets.
Prime Location with Townhome Units: Hickory Point sits in an ideal location in Newport News proximate to major employment drivers and walkable to retail and dining options. The Property sits in an infill location at the front gate of Fort Eustis and less than 1 mile away from the Newport News International Airport. This location, coupled with the townhome layouts, caters to a wide variety of potential renters including families and young professionals – two ideal tenants for this asset class.
Hampton Roads Market Overview:
Driven by a variety of industries and strong trends/fundamentals, the Hampton Roads region is one of the fastest growing and strongest economic centers in the Mid-Atlantic. Primarily recognized as a shipping and military hub, Hampton Roads’ burgeoning economy is more diverse, driven not only by a strong shipping/logistics sector and major military presence, but also by a robust healthcare sector and multiple colleges and universities including Christopher Newport and Virginia Wesleyan.
Property Location:
Hickory Point is a townhome style community in Newport News, Virginia, a highly occupied, workforce housing dominated submarket within the greater Hampton Roads region. The Property is well positioned less than 1 mile from the Fort Eustis station gate accessible via a 3-minute drive or a 15 min walk. Fort Eustis provides primary support to over 50,000 active-
duty soldiers, national guard, and reserves. Also nearby is the Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (~450k passengers), located 5 miles away and easily accessible via I-64. Additionally, the Property is walkable to shopping/dining options including Merry Oaks Shopping Center and Patrick Henry Mall. The entire neighborhood is extremely infill surrounded by water and single-family homes creating a safe and attractive atmosphere highly desirable for tenants.
Value-Add Overview:
▪ The Property is comprised of two-bedroom and three-bedroom townhome
units, which are unique in the market and attractive to a diverse set of
potential residents.
▪ Prior ownership has kept the Property well maintained and has invested
capital to cure deferred maintenance items including common area
upgrades (pool and patio), parking lot repairs, and curb appeal
improvements. RBG will cure any additional items at the Property to
position it for sale to an institutional buyer.
▪ Current ownership’s renovation program has demonstrated the demand
and premium for upgraded units. RBG will continue the high-ROI interior
unit renovations on all classic units and upgrade previously renovated units
with granite countertops and stainless-steel appliances to generate $255
rent premiums across all unit types (~20% ROI).
▪ Concurrent with the renovation program, 17, 2-Bedroom with Den units
can be converted to 3-Bedroom units by adding closets and shelving to
den areas. Incorporating 3-bedroom units into the unit mix will increase the
Property’s renter pool and drive rental upside.
▪ Renovation scope includes $15,000 per unit interior upgrades and
$400,000 in common area / deferred maintenance.
Strong Fundamentals and Demand:
➢ Over the past three years Newport News has averaged annual rent growth of 8.9%, which is well above the national average; through Q3 Newport News has seen 12%+ rent growth and over the next three years it is projected to average ~4% rent growth, significantly outpacing many other markets.
➢ Since 2017, only one market rate property delivered in Newport News – a Class A new development. No Class B supply has been delivered since 2011, further exacerbating a severe supply/demand imbalance.
➢ The Newport News economy is driven by military, shipping/logistics, and healthcare which tend to be recession resistant and produce blue-collar jobs, creating strong demand for workforce housing.
We are looking forward to developing this relationship with such a great growing team and finding more assets like these in areas with strong economic drivers.
If you have yet to make your investment into CalTier, start here.
