Miami-based AHS Residential is ramping up its multifamily development activities in Florida, Georgia, and Texas to help meet the demand for value-centered rental housing in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The vertically integrated real estate company has a production goal of 5,000 units annually across the Sun Belt between 2022 and 2025.
“America is facing one of the worst housing shortages in decades, and, if we can, we have an obligation to help solve it,” said Ernesto Lopes, CEO of AHS Residential, a division of MRV, Brazil’s largest home builder. “We have the technology and expertise to build at a pace and price point that no other multifamily developer can, so we committed to scale up quickly and bring our product to new markets and communities where the need is greatest.”
According to the company, by using a groundbreaking concrete form construction technology, it is able to build apartments in eight to 12 months—roughly half the time required with traditional building.
“Our construction method allows AHS Residential to build quickly and achieve cost savings that are passed on to our customers,” said Lopes. “Our goal is to help residents balance their immediate need for high-quality rental housing with long-term goals for financial health and stability—we believe both are possible.”
AHS Residential controls and operates 11 multifamily communities with more than 2,500 units in Florida.
It entered the Atlanta market this year and will break ground this month on a 433-unit gated multifamily community called AHS Tributary in the suburb of Douglasville. In Texas, the company plans to start construction on a 336-unit apartment community in Dallas-Fort Worth in the fall. Plans call for at least three new developments to be underway in both of these markets by the end of 2022.
In South Florida, AHS Residential has five multifamily communities with over 1,200 units slated for delivery over the next 12 months in Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Martin, and St. Lucie counties.
The company recently closed on the financing for two of those properties: AHS Harbor Grove, a 324-unit community in Stuart, and AHS Tradition, a 372-unit community in Port St. Lucie. Ocean Bank of Miami provided a $37.9 million construction loan for AHS Harbor Grove, and Regions Bank of Miami provided a $43.5 million loan for AHS Tradition.
Both communities on Florida’s Treasure Coast will offer one- and two-bedroom apartments with open floor plans, in-unit washers and dryers, and a private balcony or patio. Amenities at the pet-friendly communities will feature a multipurpose clubhouse, a 24-hour fitness center, a swimming pool, and a children’s play area. AHS Residential properties also offer special pricing for first responders as well as health care and education professionals.
