Brightwood Apartment Building Sells For $40M To Swedish Investor
Swedish investor Akelius is continuing to grow its D.C. portfolio with the acquisition of a Brightwood apartment building.
An Akelius affiliate acquired the Rittenhouse Apartments at 6101 16th St. NW from an affiliate of Nuveen Real Estate for $40.2M, according to documents posted Wednesday with the D.C. Recorder of Deeds.
The 208-unit apartment building, constructed in 1956 and renovated in 1990, sits at the intersection of 16th St. NW and Rittenhouse Road. It was the most recent apartment building of more than 200 units developed in Brightwood, according to CoStar data presented last year by a developer planning a 300-unit project in the neighborhood.
Greysteel represented the seller in the deal. Greysteel CEO Ari Firoozabadi said the deal achieved a record price for the submarket.
"The Rittenhouse is a trophy asset in a neighborhood that has long attracted investment because of the proximity to downtown D.C. and Silver Spring," Firoozabadi wrote in an emailed statement. "More recently, the redevelopment at Walter Reed promises to fundamentally change the microeconomy of Brightwood."
The property was last sold in 2011 for $30.7M to Henderson Global Investors. Henderson's U.S. portfolio was acquired in 2013 by the real estate arm of TIAA, which last year rebranded as Nuveen Real Estate.
Nuveen in January sold The Woodley apartment building, a 212-unit property at 2700 Woodley Road NW, for $180M. It also partnered with Jair Lynch Real Estate Partners on the $82M acquisition of a Woodbridge, Virginia, apartment building in July.
The Brightwood acquisition continues the expansion in the D.C. market for Akelius. The Swedish investor made a $16.5M Columbia Heights acquisition in 2016, a $34M Capitol Hill acquisition in 2017 and a $170M Ballston acquisition in 2018. Last month, Akelius broke ground on a 52K SF office redevelopment near Thomas Circle.
UPDATE, SEPT. 17, 6:15 P.M. ET: This story has been updated with comments from Greysteel CEO Ari Firoozabadi.
