IPA Brokers Sale of 344-Unit Luxury Apartment Complex in Austin

By Scott Baltic, Contributing Editor 

Institutional Property Advisors, a division of Marcus & Millichap, has arranged the sale of The Remington, a 344-unit gated, resort-style multi-family community along Texas Highway 45 in northwestern metro Austin, IPA announced Tuesday. The terms of the sale were not disclosed.

The seller, Koontz McCombs, of San Antonio, was advised by IPA executive director Will Balthrope, associate director Drew Kile and director Scott Lamontagne. Koontz McCombs is a development, construction, leasing and property management firm with varied properties in San Antonio, Houston and Austin, including office, health care, institutional, multi-family and retail.

The buyer is a private investor from the Pacific Northwest who was involved in a 1031 exchange. As part of the exchange, the buyer sold a non-multi-family property in the Pacific Northwest, an IPA spokesperson told Commercial Property Executive.

The Remington sits on 17.4 acres about three miles west of Round Rock, with easy access to I-35 and Texas Highway 183. The complex was developed by Koontz McCombs in 2007 and is currently 94 percent occupied, according to IPA.

The average unit size is 1,012 square feet. Units feature nine- and 10-foot ceilings, designer refrigerators with ice makers, microwaves, dishwashers, disposals, custom cherry cabinetry, built-in library desks, decorator carpets, garden-style tubs, oversized walk-in closets and full-size washers and dryers.

The complex’s amenities include controlled access gates; a clubhouse with executive business center, clubroom and game room; a 24-hour fitness center; an Internet café with coffee bar; a swimming pool with a cabana; and attached garages with extra storage.

“In spite of the recent construction spike, the Austin apartment market is still tight,” Balthrope said. “With strengthening job creation and other demographic trends working in the buyer’s favor, rents are set to rise, giving this exceedingly stable investment superior upside potential.”

Institutional Property Advisors is a multi-family brokerage division of Marcus & Millichap, serving the needs of institutional and major private investors.

A fourth-quarter Marcus & Millichap report on the Austin multi-family market highlights the metro area’s substantial job growth, 3.6 percent (29,000 jobs) this year.

Apartment construction, which had averaged 5,000 units a year, slumped to just 256 units completed in 2011, but is on track to hit 2,200 units by year’s end.

Multi-family vacancy is expected to fall to 4 percent by the end of the year, on net absorption of 3,600 units. Asking and effective rents, meanwhile, are slated to climb by 3.6 percent and 4.6 percent, respectively.