Ortsac Capital Group has acquired Ventura Pointe, a 206-unit apartment complex in Pembroke Pines, for $52.5 million. The purchase represents a 5.6 percent decrease from the price paid six years ago.
The sale comes at a time when South Florida’s multifamily market is slowing down after several years of rapid growth following the pandemic. Higher interest rates and increased supply have contributed to this trend.
Bobby and Sofia Castro, who lead Ortsac Capital Group, bought the property from Lloyd Jones, a Dallas-based real estate firm. According to records and Vizzda, the transaction price averages $254,854 per unit. Ortsac assumed an existing $38.6 million loan from MetLife Real Estate Lending and refinanced it as a Fannie Mae loan, increasing the total debt to $45 million.
Ventura Pointe was completed in 2018 on nearly 10 acres and includes two five-story buildings and two four-story buildings. Eastwind Development built the complex. Lloyd Jones purchased Ventura Pointe for $55.6 million in 2019.
Lloyd Jones has developed, owned, and managed about $1.2 billion in multifamily properties since 1990.
Ortsac Capital Group is based in Fort Lauderdale and operates as a private family office involving members of the Castro family across generations. Its portfolio includes more than $700 million in multifamily assets under management along with other commercial real estate investments. Bobby and Sofia Castro previously founded Bankers Healthcare Group before selling it; they also run Stack and Rack, a three-day bootcamp focused on multifamily investment.
In recent years, Ortsac sold two large apartment complexes: Lakeview Flats in Tamarac for $69 million and Golfview Flats in Sunrise for $15 million.
After experiencing significant rent growth due to an influx of new residents post-pandemic, South Florida saw record construction activity with approximately 18,600 new units completed last year as demand began to slow. This led to slower lease-ups and declining rents; Realtor.com reported that median asking rents in the tri-county area fell by 3 percent year-over-year in October.
Although the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark rate four times over this year and last year, it had raised rates aggressively during 2022 and 2023. Some landlords are now finding it difficult to refinance loans or meet obligations on floating-rate debt as lenders become more cautious.
Discounted sales have become more common recently in South Florida’s multifamily sector. In September, Waterton Residential sold Solena West Miami—a 427-unit complex—for $111 million at a discount compared to its previous purchase price (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2024/09/28/waterton-sells-west-miami-multifamily-at-discount-amid-market-slowdown/). Last year, Rreef Property Trust sold Marela—a 368-unit property—for $110 million or nine percent less than what it paid in 2021 (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2023/12/20/rreef-sells-pembroke-pines-apartments-at-9-discount-as-multifamily-market-slows/).
