Orange County Business Journal – Busy Fall for Buchanan Street Partners

This article originally appeared in the Orange County Business Journal.

December 14, 2020

Deals Include Purchase, Sale, Product Launch

Between a multifamily sale, acquisition and the launch of a new product line, Buchanan Street Partners has had an active fall quarter.

The Newport Beach-based real estate investment management firm recently wrapped $140 million in deals, most recently buying an apartment building in Texas, marking the first buy in several years for the firm in the state.

Prior to that, October was a particularly busy month for the firm, with a sale, construction loan and product launch in the books.

Texas Buy

Last month, Buchanan Street partners bought a 351-unit multifamily community in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Trinsic Residential Group sold Waters Edge at Mansfield, formerly known as Aura 3Fifty-One.

The 12-building property is on 13 acres and was 93% occupied at the time of sale.

“Buchanan Street plans to expand its footprint in the Dallas/Forth Worth region over the coming years given the strong submarket fundamentals and overall economic growth of the region,” the company said in a statement.

October Deals

In October, Buchanan Street sold a 160unit apartment project in Cottonwood Heights, Utah, to Costa Mesa’s Warmington Properties for an undisclosed price.

The deal comes about two years after Buchanan acquired the site.

Ascent in Cottonwood has 13 buildings across 8 acres of land and was 95% occupied at the time of sale.

Buchanan also bolstered its loan-related business that month, providing a $25 million construction loan for The Groves Shopping Center in Whittier. The underdevelopment 16-acre site will include a Stater Bros. Market, In-N-Out, Raising Cane’s, Chipotle, EOS Fitness and a public food market.

The company’s mortgage business tops more than $1 billion.

Self-Storage Expansion

In addition to apartment investments, Buchanan is now expanding into the industrial sector through the launch of a new self storage investment platform.

Feerooz Yacoobi will lead the new product type as Buchanan’s newest vice president.

The company said it plans on deploying $350 million to $500 million over the next five years in both self-storage acquisition and development in major markets throughout the western United States.

“Self-storage’s low correlation to the broader economy makes it an attractive diversifier for Buchanan Street’s investment activities in the office and multifamily sectors,” Buchanan Street CEO and President Tim Ballard said in a statement.

Buchanan turned 21 this year; the company said it has invested more than $6.9 billion in real estate debt and equity investments since it was founded.

The company’s buying and lending spree at the start of the year included its first Orange County acquisition in six years, a two-building office property along Bristol Street in Newport Beach for $11.5 million.