California-based real estate firm Passco Cos. has acquired Asheville Exchange, a 312-unit, Class A community in Asheville, N.C., for $56.6 million. Asheville Exchange marks the company’s first multifamily acquisition in Asheville and its first North Carolina acquisition in nearly five years.
The firm was drawn to the Asheville market for its “strong and sustained population growth across age demographics and high quality of living,” according to Colin Gillis, vice president of acquisitions, Southeast at Passco. Asheville has experienced a 20% increase in job growth over the past six years and now hosts more craft breweries per capital than almost any other U.S. city.
“Asheville’s picturesque environment and near-perfect climate has made it an attractive vacation destination for several years, while the resident population has grown as well,” says Gillis. “The recent population surge has been driven primarily by the in-migration of both retirees and millennials, with more than 30,000 people moving to the area within the past five years.”
Gillis also notes that Asheville has one of the lowest vacancy rates in the country, owing to high barriers to entry. “The Asheville market has been on our radar for some time due to its unique attributes, high occupancy rates, and above-average population growth trends, with a shortage of luxury-rental options,” Gillis says. “The shortage of luxury multifamily housing in the market has allowed for properties like Asheville Exchange to experience near–record setting absorption rates and positions the property for continued growth.”
Completed in December 2017, Asheville Exchange sits in a recently developed area surrounded by new retail, residential, and infrastructure improvements. The community’s units range from one- to three-bedrooms, and its unit interiors include energy-efficient appliances, granite kitchen countertops, modern cabinetry, wine racks, and full-sized washer/dryers in select units.
Community amenities include bike and kayak storage, a dog park and pet care station, a clubhouse with Wi-Fi, a car care center, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a game room with billiards, an outdoor lounge, a tanning salon and massage room, a saline swimming pool, and valet trash service.
Passco currently has $2.6 billion in assets under management, with 52 holdings in 18 states.
