Investor’s long hold on a West Covina affordable housing development pays off

Affordable housing developments in LA have been increasing in recent years amid more incentives aimed at luring developers

WNC Investors CEO Wilfred N. Cooper Jr. and the Cameron Park Apartments (Credit: Google Maps)
WNC Investors CEO Wilfred N. Cooper Jr. and the Cameron Park Apartments (Credit: Google Maps)

It seems now was the right time for Steadfast Companies to sell the 158-unit affordable housing complex in West Covina it had been holding for more than 15 years.

The Irvine-based company unloaded Cameron Park Apartments at 901-929 Cameron Avenue for $53.2 million, after having acquired it in 2002 for $13.2 million, The Real Deal has learned.

The buyer was Irvine-based WNC, a real estate investment firm that specializes in affordable housing.

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In April, the family-owned firm secured a $109 million low-income housing tax credit to help it develop and renovate more than 1,300 units across the nation. The firm has projects in other states, including Texas, Montana and Massachusetts. Affordable housing projects around Los Angeles have increased in recent years as government incentives have been able to encourage developers into the space.

WNC did not immediately return requests for comment.

The Cameron Park Apartments include one-bedroom units for $950 a month, ranging up three-bedroom units for $1,300 a month.

In June, MetLife Investment Advisors closed one of the largest multifamily transactions in recent years in West Covina. The institutional investment giant paid UBS Group $171.5 million for the five-story Colony at the Lakes complex, which has 450 units.