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Grant Cardone nabs waterfront Fort Lauderdale apartment complex
Waterton had paid $94M for the apartments in 2015
The real estate investment firm of author, speaker and soon-to-be reality TV star Grant Cardone bought a 553-unit waterfront apartment complex in Fort Lauderdale.
Port Royale Apartments, at 3300 Port Royale Drive North along the Intracoastal Waterway, span 22 acres with a private marina. The complex features 392 garden-style units across 16 acres and 161 units in a mid-rise building.
Robert Given of Cushman and Wakefield brokered the deal on behalf of the seller, Chicago-based real estate investor and property manager Waterton, according to a press release. A sale price was not disclosed.
Some of the funds used to purchase the complex came from $50 million raised from a crowdfunding campaign by Cardone’s firm, Cardone Capital, he told The Real Deal.
He said he expects to spend another $350 million on apartments in South Florida before Thanksgiving. “Despite Covid and this temporary glitch, we are doubling down on multifamily,” Cardone said.
Cardone Capital took over the property by buying property owner Port Royale Propco LLC, he said. The LLC is what Waterton used to buy the property in 2015 for $94 million, according to records. In September, Cardone signed on behalf of the LLC for a $79.24 million loan from CBRE Multifamily Capital.
The apartments were developed between 1988 to 1990, according to marketing materials. The property has developmental rights for an additional 292 units. Monthly rents range from $1,400 for a one-bedroom unit to $2,247 for a two-bedroom unit, according to the complex’s website.
Cardone said that population growth in Fort Lauderdale attracted him to the purchase. With Port Royale, the firm’s portfolio totals about 8,300 units across 26 properties.
Cardone wrote the book “The 10X Rule” and will star in the next season of Discovery’s reality show “Undercover Billionaire,” expected to air after the election. He is known for a flashy Instagram account but more measured approach to real estate. Based in Aventura, Cardone Capital typically buys apartments across the Southeast where rents average less than $1,500 per month.
Last year, Waterton bought a majority stake in Pathway to Living, a Chicago-based senior living operator with 29 facilities totaling more than 2,600 units.
Other recent multifamily deals in Fort Lauderdale include a group of investors from California paying $13.13 million for a portfolio of apartments in Fort Lauderdale’s Victoria Park and Las Olas neighborhoods; and apartment giant AMLI Residential selling a rental complex in Fort Lauderdale’s Flagler Village for $67.5 million.