Outside the Region: Hunt Real Estate Capital refinances student housing community

Winston-Salem, NC Hunt Real Estate Capital provided a $18.8 million Fannie Mae conventional loan to refinance a student housing property. The loan features a 10-year term with an initial three years of interest-only followed by seven years of amortization. Yield maintenance will apply during the first 114 months with a 1% prepayment, open thereafter. The borrower is Wake Forest Student Housing Associates, LLC.

Villages at Wake Forest is a purpose-built, rent-by-the-bed student housing property containing 270 bedrooms and a total 69 units, each with three or four bedrooms within 58, one- and two-story cottage-style multifamily buildings.

“The borrowers purchased Villages at Wake Forest in April of 2018 when the property consisted of 250 beds located within 64 units,” said Zach Casale, director at Hunt. “Since acquisition, the borrower constructed an additional five buildings that each contain four-bedroom units for a total of 20 additional beds that were added in January 2019.”

The property is near Wake Forest University and is fully occupied by students. Wake Forest has a three-year live-on campus requirement. Students who study abroad during the Fall semester can petition the school to allow them to live off-campus, which many of the subject’s residents take part in. 

“Wake Forest currently does not have the capacity to accommodate seniors on-campus, making this property a much desired alternative for upperclassmen,” said Casale.

Property amenities include a pond, outdoor lounge area, and fire pit.

“The borrower is a repeat Hunt Real Estate Capital client as we completed a student housing deal with them in 2015. We were pleased to structure this loan to enable this repeat client to provide Wake Forest students with a quality, affordable housing option,” said Casale.