NASHVILLE, TN--(Marketwire - December 21, 2010) - Freeman Webb Investments, Inc., a private, full service real estate investment and management firm, today announced the acquisition of a nine property portfolio in Clarksville for $18.3 million. Freeman Webb acquired the nine properties from Sovereign Bank last week at a $48 million discount to the amount the properties traded for in April of 2007.
The company acquired the 1,171-unit Clarksville portfolio on December 17th from Sovereign Bank for $18.3 million, which includes the following nine properties: Belle Forest, Wallace Glenn, Parkwood, Maple Hills, Shannon Woods, Miller Glen, Riverside, Peachers Mill Pointe and Peachers Mill Hollow.
The transaction was brokered by Steve Massey of the Nashville office of the commercial brokerage firm, C.B Richard Ellis.
These acquisitions come on the heels of six other properties Freeman Webb acquired earlier this year. The company purchased the 276-unit Laurel Ridge Apartments in Chattanooga for $7 million, also on December 17th, from PNC Bank. Freeman Webb purchased the 128-unit Hickory Point complex in Hendersonville on December 12th and the 118-unit Holly Hills complex in Nashville on July 10th. In addition, Freeman Webb acquired the majority of the limited partnership interest in the following three deals: the 116-unit Villages at Cypresswood in Memphis; the 102-unit Lyons Ridge Apartments in Memphis; and the 109-unit Nance Place in Nashville. In total, the company has added 15 apartment properties and 2,020-units for $83.6 million over the last six months.
"Our countercyclical investment approach -- buying properties during down economic markets in order to generate significant return in the future -- is a trademark of our firm for the last 30 years," said Kent Burns, president of Freeman Webb Investments. "We were pleased to acquire the Clarksville properties last week from lenders at pennies on the dollar of their loan amounts. We believe all of these properties we've closed on this year represent tremendous opportunity for our investors and are valuable additions to our total portfolio. We're excited to have our property management team take over and begin improving each of these developments."
The nine Clarksville properties were purchased on an all cash, unleveraged basis while Laurel Ridge Apartments and Holly Hills were purchased on moderate leverage. In total, Freeman Webb put over $30 million of equity into these three transactions.
"There are a lot of people that have access to capital, but what's unique about Freeman Webb is a team that's been assembled over the last 30 years that has the ability to fix others mistakes with the discipline to buy in down markets and properly time the exit strategy," said Burns. "These transactions occurred not because of what's happened last week, but because of the reputation and track record that Freeman Webb has developed over the last 30 years."
Freeman Webb's property management and construction teams will make improvements and upgrades to all properties it has acquired this year, most of which were previously being run by lenders or receivers with out-of-state property management.
Already the largest private owner/manager of apartments in Nashville, this expands Freeman Webb's statewide presence even further with now more than 13,000 multifamily units under management. In December, Freeman Webb was named "Property Management Company of the Year" by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) at the annual Pillars of the Industry Awards. Freeman Webb was also named "Management Company of the Year" the same month by the Greater Nashville Apartment Association (GNAA).
"The confidence we have in our property management division is what allows Freeman Webb Investments to buy mismanaged or undercapitalized real estate and know we have the leadership, ability and resources in place to reposition these assets," added Burns. "Winning the management company of the year on both the national and local level is a testament to the success of our management division."
About Freeman Webb Investments, Inc.
Freeman Webb Investments, Inc. acquires commercial and multi-family residential properties for the company's long-term portfolio and investor clients and is a subsidiary of Freeman Webb, Inc. Founded in 1979 by William H. Freeman and James A. Webb III., Freeman Webb, Inc. is the largest private owner/manager of apartments in Nashville and presently has more than 13,000 multifamily units under management. Freeman Webb also manages more than 1,200,000 square feet of commercial property across the southeast. Nationally, the company manages a total of more than 13,000,000 square feet of residential and commercial property. It specializes in the acquisition, management and renovation of multi-family residential and commercial property in the Southeast, Midwest and Southwest. Freeman Webb Inc. employs over 375 associates. For more information, visit www.freemanwebb.com.