News
A joint venture involving Starwood Land has acquired 11 master-planned communities near Houston, Dallas, and Austin for $800 million.
By: Brad Randall, Broadband Communities
Shortly after the securement of nearly $200 million in revenue anticipation improvement and refunding bonds for Starwood Land, a joint venture involving the real-estate investment firm has purchased 11 master-planned communities in Texas.
The acquisition, announced by real estate investment firm Hines last week, involves communities all in the late stages of development.
The portfolio of properties involves “16,000 remaining residential lots and over 600 acres of commercial land, across three of the ten largest U.S. new home markets: Dallas, Houston, and Austin,” according to the April 4 release from Hines.
Developments in the Dallas area included in the acquisition were Wildflower Ranch, Creekside, Aster Park, Northspur, Myrtle Creek, Furst Ranch, and Redden Farms.
Meanwhile, in the Houston area, Brookewater, Creekhaven, and Wildrye were included in the transaction, along with Mirador in the Austin area.
‘A rare opportunity’
Anthony Murphy, a managing partner at Starwood Capital, said the transaction “continues Starwood Capital’s strategy of acquiring well-located master-planned communities in the largest new home markets.”
“It presents a rare opportunity to acquire a large portfolio of mature communities with major infrastructure substantially completed and active lot sales to over 30 homebuilders,” Murphy stated in the announcement.
The acquisition followed the securement of $196 million in revenue anticipation improvement and refunding bonds for Starwood Land.
According to the Texas Infrastructure Project (TIP), which announced the news in March, the transaction is a milestone for municipal utility district (MUD) financing.
“Without such financing structures, new homes would not be as attainable, and homeowners would not see as much high-quality infrastructure or enjoy as many community amenities,” a March release from TIP stated.
The financing will support the Starwood Project, according to TIP’s website.
TIP’s website described the project as “a large-scale project encompassing four Starwood Land communities—Cypress Green, Lago Mar, Sierra Vista, and Sunterra.”
“Spanning multiple municipal utility districts, the project will deliver over 14,000 single-family homes and more than 200 acres of commercial development,” TIP’s website stated, adding that residents will enjoy extensive amenities.
Ray Lawler, a managing director at Hines, said the transaction shows the market’s deep appetite for well-located master-planned communities.
“Single-family housing, and the living sector generally, is a high-conviction investment theme for Hines globally,” Lawler said. “We are delighted with the success of this deal, which enables us to continue to build our market-leading Living portfolio across the world, on behalf of our clients.”
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