Castle Lanterra Expands Presence in Denver Market with Purchase of 257-Unit Apartment Community — Castle Lanterra Properties
Mountain Vista Front
LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Oct. 3, 2017 – PRLog — Castle Lanterra Properties (CLP) has announced the acquisition of its second property in the metro Denver area at 474 South Wright Street in Lakewood. The New York based owner/operator expanded its Denver portfolio to the Lakewood North submarket with the purchase of the 257-unit Mountain Vista Apartments.
Located within a twenty minutes drive of downtown Denver, the apartment community features an array of amenities including a resident clubhouse, business center, fitness center, two outdoor swimming pools, picnic areas with barbeque grills, dog park, abundant parking, and laundry rooms in each of its seven buildings. Individual units are outfitted with private entrances, gas heating, air conditioning, all electric kitchens, dining room ceiling fans, and free Wi-Fi.
The complex consists of 201 one-bedroom units, 55 two-bedroom units and one three-bedroom unit. The property’s units are compact and efficiently laid out, keeping expenses low and allowing the most affordable unit rents in the submarket while achieving a high rent per square foot. Of the 257 units, approximately 85 percent have been renovated since original construction.
“Having already invested in the Denver MSA, we are obviously big believers in the long term outlook of this vibrant city,” said CEO Elie Rieder. “We were particularly attracted to this submarket for its positive supply/demand dynamics, thriving local economy, and high standard of living. We feel this property occupies a unique niche in that it offers a quality product at an affordable price-point for value-conscious residents. The previous owner invested extensively in maintaining and improving this property with the introduction of new amenities. We believe there is an opportunity to solidify the property’s competitive positioning within this submarket with a targeted and focused renovation program, along with increased operational efficiencies.”
CLP was attracted to the supply constraints in the submarket. “In the City of Lakewood, there have only been three properties delivered and one under construction within a three-mile radius of the property in the last 15 years,” said Austin Alexander, CLP managing director. “A number of factors, including lack of available land and an onerous zoning and permitting process for new construction, have resulted in an average vacancy rate of below 4 percent for the past four quarters and a year-over-year rent increase of 7.5 percent as of the end of Q1 2017.”
The multifamily property offers excellent access to mountain ski areas and is situated only blocks from the RTD Federal Center Light Rail Station wfv (one of the hubs in a comprehensive transit system providing residents traffic-free access to the Jefferson County Government Center), The Belmar Redevelopment, downtown Denver, and the Southeast Business Corridor. RTD Fast Tracks continues to expand its light rail, commuter rail and bus systems to serve the more than 3 million people in the Metro Denver area.
Mountain Vista is less than five minutes from the bustling business corridor of Union Boulevard, adjacent to 6th Avenue in Lakewood. Located within a mile of the property and home to over 2.3 million square feet of office space, the Union Boulevard Corridor offers employment to over 16,900 people with notable tenants in the banking, energy, housing, title, investment, security services and restaurant industries among others. The community’s residents have easy access via the RTD West Rail Line to the Denver Federal Center, another major employment pool of some 13,000 people with the largest concentration of Federal agencies outside of Washington, D.C. Over 60 percent of employment in all of Colorado is located within the seven-county metro region.
Less than 10 minutes from Lakewood is Belmar, an award-winning urban redevelopment and one of the most renowned mixed-use districts in the country. The 104-acre site offers a downtown experience in a country setting, including major entertainment, noted big box retailers, Class A office space and hotels, and 10 acres of open space and parks. Belmar’s central plaza doubles as a venue for summer concerts and events and as an ice skating rink in winter.
The apartment community is also in proximity to major shopping malls with name manufacturers and retail outlets, popular restaurants, a world-renowned brewery, numerous bike and hiking trails, rafting and kayaking, and the famous Red Rocks Amphitheatre in the city of Golden. Golden is also home to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the United States’ primary laboratory for renewable energy with international staff, and The Colorado School of Mines, a public research university dedicated to engineering and applied science with curriculum and research geared towards responsible stewardship of the earth and its resources.
Forbes ranked Denver as number one on its “Best Places for Business and Careers” list for two years in a row last year, and U.S. News and World Report placed Denver first in its “Best Places to Live” rankings in 2016. The Metro Denver area is poised to increase its population by 30 percent over the next 25 years to 4 million people. With a strong economy and influx of young residents, rents continue to climb and the metro-wide absorption rate remains positive.
Formed in 2009, Castle Lanterra Properties is a privately held real estate investment company focused on the acquisition and management of quality income producing multifamily properties within strategic growth markets throughout the United States. Through a rigorous value-enhancement program that includes thoughtful renovations, operational improvements and ancillary income development, CLP aims to reposition each asset with the goal of maximizing NOI, elevating its competitive position within the market, and providing attractive risk-adjusted returns for its investment partners. Castle Lanterra Properties currently owns and manages a portfolio comprised of over 9,000 units and a value in excess of $2.0 billion.
About Castle Lanterra Properties (http://www.caryl.com/
