In December 2019, we invested roughly $43.3 million in the acquisition of EVO Apartments, along with roughly $3.2 million in equity investment by Interwest Capital, our partner on the project, and $60.6 million in financing. The apartment community is located in Las Vegas, Nevada, and consists of 376 luxury garden-style units with community amenities. At the time of our acquisition, the property was nearly fully occupied, and we planned to hold and manage the property for roughly ten years before exploring potential exit opportunities.
Since acquisition, rent collections, a key indicator of an apartment property's health, have remained consistently strong. Moreover, the occupancy levels have remained consistently above 90%. Currently, the property's occupancy rate is roughly 5% higher than the region’s average market occupancy rate.
Today, we’re pleased to share that with strong rent collections, the property value has increased significantly, to approximately $123.98 million according to a recent appraisal, representing a 19% increase from the original property purchase price of $104.5 million. To capitalize on this increased value, we’ve secured a supplemental loan of approximately $9.09 million, and the fund received a cash distribution, which it now has the ability to redeploy, either in this project or elsewhere.
Like our other apartment communities in Sunbelt cities, we view the performance of EVO Apartments, both generally and through the pandemic, as a reinforcement of our conviction that affordable real estate in growing areas is always in demand.
Investor FAQ: How does this project impact your portfolio?
This investment is structured as equity, which means we are the owners of the property and entitled to our share of rental income, plus any future increase in the value of the property. As an investor, you can expect to see this impact your return in two ways. Any additional rental income would contribute to quarterly dividends, while any increase in the property value would be captured in adjustments to the Growth eREIT and Heartland eREIT’s net asset value (NAV) per share.
As always, if you have any questions or feedback, please visit our help center or reach out to us at investments@fundrise.com.
