Urban American has refinanced a 1,400-unit, $275 million workforce housing portfolio with private equity firm Madison International Realty.
The properties are located in prime New York neighborhoods, including Astoria, Washington Heights, Westchester, and Brooklyn.
Ronald M. Dickerman, founder and president of Madison International Realty, said, “Despite the changing regulatory environment, there continues to be a shortage of quality affordable housing in the greater New York area. The densely-populated neighborhoods allow the portfolio to benefit from stable occupancy and offers a strong, consistent cash flow.
“The portfolio previously was a piece of an Urban American closed end fund that was nearing the end of its life, and Madison provided the underlying limited partners with liquidity.
“Madison is pleased to be partnering with a best-in-class, vertically integrated operator with a proven track record and expertise in socially responsible management,” said Ronald M. Dickerman, Madison International Realty Founder and President.
Urban American will continue as day-to-day operator and manager of the portfolio, which consists of studios, one, two, and three-bedroom apartments and ground floor retail, across 15 buildings.
The recapitalization will allow Urban American to continue with its business plan of implementing strategic energy initiatives and building upgrades throughout the portfolio.
Once one of the city’s biggest multifamily owners, Urban American has sold off a large swathe of assets in recent years.
Last summer, along with JV partner Brookfield, it some a $1.2 billion portfolio of 1,900 market rate rentals in East Harlem and Roosevelt Island
L+M Development Partners and Invesco Real Estate bought the apartments with a plan to converted them to affordable units in the wake of the introduction of New York’s tough new rent regulations.
