Greensboro, N.C.–based Bell Partners sold eight properties in a $140 million transaction, the company announced Tuesday.
The properties include 1,679 units and were sold to Hudson Capital Acquisitions, Somerset Partners, and Summit Multifamily Group.
Bell will continue to manage the three properties purchased by Hudson Capital Acquisitions, which are located in North Carolina. The four communities sold to New York–based Somerset Partners, which are in Little Rock, Ark., will be managed by Somerset Apartment Management. The last property in the transaction, Watergate, also in Little Rock and purchased by St. Louis–based Summit Multifamily Group, will be managed by Trinity Multifamily.
This transaction will continue to fuel Bell's acquisition activity. So far, the company has purchased three new communities in Austin, Texas; Raleigh, N.C.; and Denver, for a total of $356 million. The push for acquisitions in larger markets is part of the company’s strategy to focus its investment portfolio in specific markets, Jon Bell, president of Bell Partners, said in a news release.
“We target 11 key markets for acquisition for our current fund, Bell Apartment Fund V, those being Boston, the D.C. area, Raleigh, Charlotte, Nashville, Atlanta, Central Florida, Southeast Florida, Austin, Dallas, and Denver,” Bell said in an e-mail. “This strategy is driven by solid demographics, diverse economies, sound investment research, our broad Bell market expertise, and the overall investment opportunity.”
Bell acquired the eight properties in this most recent transaction between 2006 and 2007 and renovated them in various degrees over the years.
“We had completed our business plan and felt now was an opportune time to sell, and in the best interest to maximize the return for our investors,” Bell says.
