Berger Rentals, Lancaster, PA Mainstay, Acquires 261-Unit MF Portfolio

by Steve Lubetkin, Globest.com
Berger Rentals acquired 261 residential units in a portfolio consisting of two multifamily properties—Quail Run Apartments and Stone Mill Station Apartments—for $25.5 million.

Each property was sold by two related entities that are all owned by the same investors. For Quail Run, they were Quail Run Holdings and OW Quail Run Holdings, and for Stone Mill Station, the owners were Stone Mill Holdings and OW Stone Mill Holdings.

All those entities appear to be owned by the same joint venture between Oscar Wercberger and Asher Handler, which acquired Quail Run for around $10.7 million and Stone Mill for $9.9 million, both in December 2015.

According to Real Capital Analytics, a proprietary research database, the joint venture for each apartment complex shares a mailing address in Lakewood, Ocean County, NJ. Handler is a managing partner of Redstone Equities, a real estate investment company that describes itself as focusing on “residential garden-style apartments, low- and mid-rise apartment buildings, several million square feet of industrial space, student housing and single family residential houses and townhomes,” in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The two properties appear on the Redstone Equities website’s portfolio page.

Both properties were refinanced in August 2017 through Fannie Mae, with Quail Run getting a $10.6 million first mortgage at a fixed 4.2 percent interest rate, and Stone Mill getting a $10.4 million mortgage at the same rate, according to Real Capital Analytics.

“The deal represented a value-add opportunity for the purchaser to obtain higher rents by upgrading kitchens and baths. This was the fifth time Kislak sold these properties, with the sale price higher each time as the rent roll has grown.”

Uniquely, the Quail Run Apartments at 1424-B Passey Lane in Lancaster, and Stone Mill Station Apartments at 250 Stone Mill Road in Manor Township, include 136 and 125 residential units, respectively, and were at 95-percent occupancy at time of sale. Both complexes are garden-style apartments consisting of 17 two-story and 11 three-story buildings, respectively, and are well-maintained and beautifully landscaped.

The unit mix for both properties is approximately 55-percent two- and three-bedroom units and 45-percent one-bedroom units.  Approximately 80 percent of the kitchens and baths have been upgraded with additional improvements to windows, roofs, hallways and stairs. Large spacious floor plans, walk-in closets, balconies/terraces or patios and individually-controlled HVAC are among the many features of the units.

The properties, within a half-mile of each other, are located in fast-growing Lancaster County with a population of more than 600,000 residents and centrally located with easy access to major Pennsylvania thoroughfares. Near major shopping centers, houses of worship and excellent public schools and many universities, the properties offer resident amenities such as off-street parking, private entrances, fitness center, on-site leasing office, playground and laundry facilities.

“Berger Rentals owns properties in the Lancaster market and these two are close by, increasing their presence in the market. The loan amount was approximately $21 million; the purchaser paid $4.5 million above the existing loan.” Freddie Mac financing was assumed by Greystone.
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