The mixed-used apartment building that kicked off major redevelopment in downtown Sandy Springs in 2014 was sold this week.
One of the sellers, Kaplan Residential, said the firm is focused on building townhome rental communities.
Square One midrise apartment building located at the corner of Roswell Road and Hammond Drive was sold Wednesday for $59.2 million, developer Nathan Kaplan said.
Audubon, a Peachtree Corners-based real estate management company and Angelo Gordon, an international investment firm based in New York City partnered for the purchase, he said.
Audubon Chief Investment Officer, Myles Cunningham, said the property has been renamed The Margo.
“We thought it was a great acquisition,” Cunningham said. “We love the downtown area and City Springs (campus). We love the walkability and we want to be a part of the community long term.”
Angelo Gordon declined to comment to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Kaplan Residential and George S. Morgan Development Company purchased the two-acre Sandy Springs property for $5.6 million in 2014 when Sandy Springs was in its early stages redevelopment, a Kaplan Residential statement said.
Nathan Kaplan didn’t disclose the additional cost of development.
Located across from Whole Foods, Square One apartment building opened in 2016 with 203 apartment units and 10,000 square feet of retail space on the building’s ground floor.
While the building is said to be 95% occupied, renters and shoppers didn’t come quickly when the building first opened.
“It was a little bit of an education to get (people) used to living in this area,” he said, adding that several more midrise apartments by other developers were built on the next few blocks.
New lifestyles from the pandemic has led Kaplan Residential to build townhome rental communities, Nathan Kaplan said. The developer said their company research show more people are moving to Atlanta for work and they prefer more privacy than some multi-family communities provide.
“Some people want their own yard or private access,” Kaplan said. “They don’t want to get into an elevator with a lot of other people. And we think there has been less supply in rental townhomes.”
The developer said he also believes rental prices are at an all-time high.
In June, the company bought land in Stone Mountain and Dallas, Georgia to build townhomes for rent, he said. The developer plans to build more than 400 units in total on the two properties. Both properties were acquired for $11.3 million, according to the company.
The townhomes will rent for about $2,100 a month, Kaplan said.
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