Whitmer, Merin, Bernhaut and Gabriel of Cushman & Wakefield brokers $14 million sale of 183-unit multifamily

Claremont Gardens Apartments, a 183-unit rental property, has sold according to Cushman & Wakefield, Inc. The firm's Metropolitan Area Capital Markets Group brokered the $14 million deal, representing the seller, Claremont Gardens Associates, and procuring the undisclosed buyer. According to Cushman & Wakefield's Brian Whitmer, who handled the assignment with Metro Area Capital Markets Group team members Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut and Gary Gabriel, the team reached out to a limited field of well qualified investors, all of which expressed interest. "Everyone we called wanted a tour; investor demand truly is improving," Whitmer said. "Other properties in the immediate area have vacancies in the low single digits or are fully leased with wait lists. Investors recognized that this asset - with its vacancy rate in the high single digits and its prime location - presented an attractive opportunity." Whitmer said that Claremont Gardens' location is one of its best qualities. The property sits on 11.5 quiet, wooded acres overlooking the Hudson River, within easy commuting distance of Manhattan. Residents at Claremont Gardens can walk to three schools, a grocery store and many additional conveniences. The property is near major regional thoroughfares and multiple train stations, including a Metro North station in the downtown area. Claremont Gardens offers units with up to four bedrooms and Ossining's only apartments larger than 1,000 s/f. "The size of some of the units at Claremont Gardens and the property's proximity to schools makes it an ideal place to raise children," Merin said. "Additionally, Ossining is a middle-class town surrounded by upper-middle-class and upper-class communities; the price of for-sale homes can be a barrier to entry for many families. This property provides an affordable alternative." Cushman & Wakefield's Metropolitan Area Capital Markets Group specializes exclusively in investment sales of office, industrial, multifamily and retail properties throughout New Jersey, New York, Fairfield County, Conn., and Pennsylvania. The team has completed more than $13.8 billion worth of transactions since 2000. Year to date, the group has closed or put under agreement approximately $270 million of multifamily transactions.