Roers Companies closed on their $29 million sale of Maven Apartments today. The 137-unit community was the first new apartment development in Burnsville in 14 years, and its novelty proved successful in attracting renters.
Its lease-up timeline was just four months. The community achieved stable occupancy with 95% of the units rented 11 months ahead of the firm’s schedule. When the first residents moved in on April 15, 2020, Maven was already 61% pre-leased.
Leasing Success
Despite opening its doors in the early days of Minnesota’s COVID-19 lockdown, the property saw a steady stream of interest and applications. Prospective renters had multiple options to tour the property once in-person activities were restricted. Some saw the property in 1:1 video calls with the leasing team. Many watched a YouTube walk-through video. Others explored the model apartment using interactive 360-degree virtual tours on the Maven website.
“Our team could not be prouder of Maven’s lease-up. Back in March, we were concerned about the impact COVID-19 would have on the property’s leasing trajectory, but it was clear that building the right product in the right location at the right price put us in a great position for continued success,” said Brian Roers, co-owner of Roers Cos..
In fact, interest in Maven was so high, the property filled at a record pace without any rent concessions and at 10% higher rates than the team had underwritten. It is the fastest market-rate apartment development to achieve stable occupancy in Roers Cos.’ history.
“We made a decision two years ago to focus on developing in the suburbs. We’ve seen rapid leasing at both of the projects we’ve completed so far in Burnsville and Chanhassen. We are hoping to see high levels of interest continue in our upcoming developments in Woodbury, Lakeville, West St. Paul and Fridley,” added Brian Roers.
The stability and success of Maven led the buyer, Sage Properties, to inquire about the possibility of a sale. While Roers Cos. typically prefers to hold its assets for many years, the company’s leadership team and investment partners couldn’t pass up the opportunity to secure an average investor return of 80% cash-on-cash.
“Our team is really proud of what we’ve been able to achieve for our investors,” said Roers Cos. Owner Kent Roers. “We work with private individuals to fund our projects. It’s exciting for our local investors to achieve such an impressive return in a relatively short period of time.”
Property Highlights
Maven’s 137 units include studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments. The community offers heated underground parking, an outdoor courtyard that includes an oversized chess installation and grills, a rooftop deck and lounge, a fitness room, pet washing station, storage lockers, coffee bar, and access to the Burnsville Transit Station just outside the door.
JCorp of Huxley, Iowa served as architect and builder. Core Living — Roers Cos.’ sister company led the lease-up and property management for the community. Ted Abramson of CBRE was the broker for the sale.
This media release was covered by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal (here).