AEP Charter Renaissance, an affiliate of Portland-based Charter School Capital, just purchased a 105,002-square-foot charter school in Tamarac for $22 million.
Aventura-based ESJ Capital Partners and Hollywood-based MG3 Development Group traded Renaissance Charter School, at 8399 North University Drive, for about $210 per square foot.
Colliers International Education Services Group ‘s Todd Noel, from Phoenix, and Miami-based Achikam Yogev represented the sellers.
The companies bought the property in 2012 for $6.3 million and built the school. MG3 principal Hernan Leonoff said the site was originally a Target retail store.
As part of the latest deal, CSC also purchased a charter school called Kid’s Community College South in Riverview, in Hillborough County. That school sold for $11 million, bringing the total sale to $33 million.
Charter schools have caught the attention of developers since their inception more than two decades ago. Though they’re publicly funded, charter schools still have to pay rent if they don’t own their facilities — translating to steady income for investors like Charter School Capital.
CSC has acquired other charter schools in Florida in recent years. Last year the firm scooped up five charter schools in Riverview, Vero Beach, Coral Springs, Davie and Plantation for $71.7 million. The portfolio encompassed 295,992 square feet spread across the five schools. Last month, CSC took out a $38.2 million mortgage for two of the charter schools that it owns in Broward County.