National Equity Fund, a Chicago-based nonprofit multifamily and affordable housing real estate investment management firm, has closed on a $444 million investment with partner Guardian Real Estate Services to preserve a 13-property, 2,740-unit portfolio located in the Portland, Ore. and Albuquerque, N.M., metros. It is the largest investment in NEF’s history and most expansive for Guardian, a Portland-based apartment owner, operator and developer.
NEF and Guardian did not disclose all the assets to trade within the portfolio. However, the seller was GSL Properties, according to Yardi Research Data and Newmark, which arranged the financing on behalf of Guardian. Northmarq’s Institutional Equity Advisors team of Sean Swift and Josh Galen secured approximately $160 million in equity for 12 of the properties.
JPMorgan Chase, a longtime NEF partner, is the capital partner behind the investment. In July, Guardian withdrew an undisclosed amount from an approximately $272 million line of credit held by Fannie Mae, according to Yardi Research Data. The same source reported that Wyndhaven, one of the Oregon properties, was acquired by Guardian from GSL Properties for $81.5 million as part of the portfolio transaction.
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The closing represents one of the largest single preservation transactions in the affordable housing industry, according to NEF. The portfolio investment comprises Low Income Housing Tax Credit properties, 93 percent of which will remain affordable. It is the partnership’s first collaborative transaction. Guardian will be the assets’ owner and operator.
According to NEF, the properties in the portfolio included the 396-unit Wyndhaven Apartments, located at 230 SE Edgeway Drive in Hillsboro, Ore., the 151-unit Silver Moon Lodge at 901 Park Ave. SW in Ventana Ranch, N.M., a 288-unit community located at 10400 Universe Blvd. NW in Albuquerque and El Paseo Apartments, a 166-unit property situated at 301 El Pueblo NW in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque.
Northmarq reported that other properties sold in the transaction included Woodridge, a 264-unit community at 11999 SW Tualatin Road in Tualatin, Ore., the 272-unit Westridge Meadows Apartments at 18476 NW Chemeketa Lane in Portland, Gresham Station, a 253-unit property at 1003 NW Shattuck Way in Gresham, Ore., the 224-unit Manzano Mesa at 700 Eubank Blvd. SE in Albuquerque, Enchanted Vista, a 174-unit property situated at 4501 Safelite Blvd. NE in Rio Rancho, N.M, La Cantera a 185-unit property located at 3600 Old Airport Road, NW, in Albuquerque, La Terraza Senior, which comprises 114 units at 3703 Ladera Drive, NW in Albuquerque and Paseo Del Sol, a 124-unit property located at 291 El Pueblo Road, NW in Albuquerque.
Profiles of the properties
The Wyndhaven multifamily community is located on 12.24 acres and is comprised of 11 three- and four-story buildings with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units ranging in size from 658 square feet to 1,188 square feet. Amenities include washers and dryers in all the units, as well as a fitness center, clubhouse, swimming pool and playground. The property, built in 2004, has 800 parking spaces and detached garages available for additional fees.
Image courtesy of Makaela Moya, Aerial Rio Photography
Silver Moon Lodge was built in 2014. The 1.39-acre property has a mix of studios and one-bedroom floorplans in one three- and four-story LEED certified-Silver building. Units range in size from 449 to 636 square feet, with an average of 532 square feet. The apartments have washers and dryers. Community amenities include a fitness center, business center, community room, swimming pool and spa and bicycle maintenance center. The property has 23 parking spaces and more than 2,800 square feet of retail space.
Completed in 2005, Ventana Ranch consists of 14 two- and three-story buildings across 13.45 acres. The property has a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units ranging in size from 650 to 1,150 square feet, with an average of 883 square feet. All apartments have washers and dryers as well as private balconies or patios. Community amenities include a fitness center, clubhouse, swimming pool and spa, alongside a playground and outside storage. There are 530 parking spaces, as well as detached garages that are available for an additional fee.
Other NEF projects
In November 2024, NEF provided financing for BRIDGE Housing to acquire Bethany Meadows, a 340-unit affordable community in the Portland market. The acquisition preserved the units as long-term, low-income housing, saving them from a potential transfer to market rate rents. NEF and Morgan Stanley provided a $250 million revolving credit facility, enabling BRIDGE to move swiftly to acquire the property. According to the stakeholders, the use of private equity and debt cut the time and complexity of securing traditional financing.
Located in Beaverton, Ore., Bethany Meadows is a garden-style community with two- and three-story buildings completed between 1997 and 1998. BRIDGE acquired both phases of the property, which is 98 percent occupied.
NEF said that it recently closed on a preservation equity investment with longtime partner Community HousingWorks and the California Housing Finance Agency, the first preservation of its kind for CalHFA.
In June, NEF and the Colorado Department of Local Affairs provided a $5 million bridge loan to Lincoln Avenue Communities for the acquisition of a site in Arvada, Colo., where the developer intends to build Marshall Pointe Apartments, a 260-unit affordable housing project. The community is slated for completion in late 2026.
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