A sought-after apartment community in Denver’s University Park neighborhood sold for $46.25 million to a buyer planning to make improvements to the midrise asset.
RedPeak purchased the 269-unit Buchtel Park Apartments, located at 3700 E. Jewell Ave., near the corner of Buchtel Boulevard and Colorado Boulevard.
The community, renamed RedPeak Colorado Station, which spans seven buildings, was constructed in 1963 and 1971 on 9 acres of “parklike” grounds. Its location, coupled with the setting and the valueadd opportunity the property offered, drew a significant amount of interest.
“The amount of showings and offers that were conducted and received in such a short period of time of three weeks blew us away as brokers as well as our seller,” said Michael Krebsbach of Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors LLC. “We expected an incredibly high amount of interest in this asset given its value-add potential and location, however, the sheer aggressiveness of the offers and their willingness to work with our seller’s 1031 exchange timing requirements was what took us a bit by surprise.”
The Mitchell Krebsbach Team, consisting of Krebsbach and Jamie Mitchell, alongside Pinnacle Real Estate’s Edwards Ethington Team of Rob Edwards and Tom Ethington, represented the seller, a local family that purchased the property in 1996 for $10.6 million.
The seller originally acquired the apartment community as part of the low-income housing tax credit program. Shortly after closing, the ownership converted the affordable units to market rate and maintained the property throughout its 21 years of ownership, noted Ethington. The seller opted to sell given the “exceptionally strong market fundamentals” and in order to move its equity into several single-tenant, triple-net retail investment opportunities.
“The owners of Buchtel Park Apartments have had long-term success with the property,” said Ethington. “They made a business decision to convert the equity held in Buchtel to focus on guaranteed, long-term leased, single-tenant assets. This will lock in the value application, diversify their portfolio, increase cash flow and significantly reduce their day-to-day management.”
RedPeak, which was selected as the buyer from a number of interested parties ranging from larger, local private investors to West and East Coast buyers, plans to upgrade the community, which underwent a major renovation in 1981, and maximize the site.
RedPeak Colorado Station, located 1.1 miles east of the University of Denver and 3.9 miles from Cherry Creek Shopping Center, features a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units with 58 percent of the property consisting of one-bedroom apartments. The main building totals five stories while the six surrounding buildings are three and four stories in height.
The community also features a clubhouse, fitness center and swimming pool.
At the time of closing, RedPeak Colorado Station was fully occupied.
“RedPeak will do a great job with the property,” added Ethington.
“The location is incredibly desirable, offering multiple transit options and a great walkability factor. It is also centrally located between Downtown and the Tech Center,” said Mark Windhager, CEO. “Plus, it sits on 9.1 scres, which is difficult to find in the city. We attempted to buy the community 13 years ago, but at that time, the family was not interested in selling. When they finally decided to market the property in the latter part of last year, we were determined to acquire this great asset. This is an exciting acquisition for us that we feel offers tremendous upside.”
RedPeak Colorado Station joins RedPeak’s portfolio of 27 buildings consisting of 2,548 units.
