Tampa Apartment Communities Attract New Owners

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Investor interest in Tampa’s multifamily sector seems to be heating up, with a number of recent apartment community purchases. The Sienna Bay apartment community is now owned by a Harbour Group International L.L.C. affiliate, which acquired the 276 units for $19.5 million. The property, completed in two phases—the first in 1974, the second in 1985—features one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans with an average size of 946 square feet. Currently 90 percent occupied, the property features amenities such as lakefront views, a lakeside dock, a clubhouse, a fitness center, two swimming pools, lighted tennis courts, a playground and even a picnic area.

The private real estate investment and management firm is now proud owner of four important Florida properties, having also acquired Village Green Apartments in Orlando and two office buildings, at 555 Congress Ave. and 1801 Alton Road in Miami, all in the course of a year.

Following the same pattern, the Canterbury Lane Apartments have traded hands for $4.1 million. Plano-based Jasmine Investments purchased the property from First Market Properties, which had held the property for just three months—according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal, First Market took possession of the property by means of a deed in lieu of foreclosure. According to the same source, First Market reported at the time of the purchase that it had acquired the distressed mortgage for a little more than half of its $8.5 million balance. Notably, in 2002, the previous owner had paid $5 million for the Canterbury Lane development. The 320-unit garden apartment community at 1250 Skipper Road, near Interstate 275, is 38 years old.