A fund managed by DRA Advisors and Marquette Companies has sold Woodlands of Crest Hill, located in the southwest Chicago suburb of Crest Hill, Ill., near Joliet. JLL Capital Markets brokered the $95 million.
Located at 1615 Arbor Lane, Woodlands of Crest Hill features 730 apartments. The property, which was built in 1972, has benefitted from several renovations over the past five years, though additional opportunities for value-add upgrades remain. The unit mix includes studio units, as well as one- and two-bedroom apartments. Units average 649 square feet. Features include dark wood cabinetry, large windows, double stainless-steel sinks and walk-in closets.
Strong demand in Chicago area
A volatile interest rate environment was the leading challenge JLL faced in closing the deal, but the asset and metro offered various benefits. “The property and the Chicago market are performing exceptionally well, with strong rent growth, little supply and healthy rent-to-income ratios, offering investors attractive risk-adjusted returns,” JLL Managing Director Kevin Girard told Multi-Housing News. Girard, along with Managing Director Mark Stern and Director Zach Kaufman, led the JLL Capital Markets Investment Sales Advisory team.
Woodlands of Crest Hill is situated 33 miles from downtown Chicago, near Plainfield Road, the primary traffic artery through Chicago’s southwest suburbs. A short distance away is the I-55 job corridor, with more than 99 million square feet of industrial space. A number of retail venues are also located proximate to the apartment community. They include Louis Joliet Mall and The Promenade Bolingbrook, with Harrah’s Joliet Casino also close. Two months ago, Joliet helped propel the overall Chicago market to the top spot in a Top 10 ranking of self-storage markets for deliveries in the U.S.
