A partnership between nonprofit Foundation Housing and Pennant Housing Group has purchased Redwood Gardens Apartments, a 169-unit senior housing community in Berkeley, California. The property sold for $72.1 million, according to officials.
The development is a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-subsidized property, benefiting from a Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment contract.
Greysteel, a national commercial real estate investment services firm, brokered the sale and secured the acquisition financing. Managing director John Mullen, senior director Henry Mathies, and president and CEO Ari Firoozabadi of Greysteel’s National Affordable Housing Group exclusively represented the seller, CSI Support & Development, a national nonprofit affordable housing developer headquartered in Warren, Michigan. Greysteel also procured the buyer.
“This transaction was heavily nuanced and required constant, transparent communication between all parties to navigate the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and obtain approvals from the city of Berkeley, University of California at Berkeley, and HUD. The professionalism and efficiency exhibited by the seller and buyer were exemplary,” said Mullen.
The site on which Redwood Gardens was developed has historical significance. It features a historic structure built for the California School for the Deaf and Blind in 1922. In 1984, additional living space was developed at Redwood Gardens in three-story buildings adjacent to that historic structure on the community’s 3.5-acre property in the Claremont District of the city. Redwood Gardens serves residents 62 and older as well as mobility-impaired, low-income residents. This community will continue to operate as such in perpetuity per regulatory agreements.
“Foundation Housing is excited to partner yet again with Pennant Housing Group in Berkeley to ensure the expansion of affordable living opportunities during these challenging times,” said Todd Travis, president and chief operating officer of Foundation Housing, a nonprofit in North Bethesda, Maryland. “The purchase of Redwood Gardens aligns with our goal of expanding our portfolio in California, where the housing crunch has made the preservation of affordable living opportunities especially important to the health of our country.”
Foundation Housing and Pennant Housing previously teamed up in Berkeley in 2018 to purchase Harriet Tubman Terrace Apartments. The 91-unit mid-rise was built in 1976. Occupancy at Tubman is restricted to households 62 and older or the disabled 18 and older.
“At Pennant, we demonstrate how strong collaboration plus strategic capital can translate into the growth of affordable communities,” said Andrew Agetstein, principal at Pennant Housing Group, an owner, operator, and developer of affordable housing headquartered in Washington, D.C. “We take tremendous pride in this opportunity to bring together dynamic partners to ensure Redwood Gardens remains an affordable housing community.”
