Rental Asset Management buys Little Havana apartments for $30M

Rental Asset Management paid $30.1 million for the First & Sixth apartment building in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood.

The Oakland Park-based firm, through an affiliate, purchased the 13-story building at 35 Southwest Sixth Avenue from the developer, Eastern Atlantic Companies, according to records.

The deal for the 100-unit property breaks down to $301,000 per apartment.

Miami-based Eastern Atlantic Companies, led by Eric Milne, bought the 0.3-acre development site just over two blocks south of the Miami River in 2018 for $1.6 million, property records show. It completed construction in 2019.

First & Sixth offers two-bedroom apartments, spanning 1,200 square feet, for $2,800 in monthly rent, according to Apartments.com. Amenities include a pool.

Rental Asset Management is a real estate investor and manager with a portfolio spanning $750 million in assets under management across more than 50 properties and over 3,000 units in Florida, according to its website.

German Guzman and Axel Jordan are managers of the entity Rental Asset Management used to buy First & Sixth, state corporate records show.

In September, Rental Asset Management bought the 112-unit Lago Mar multifamily complex at 1035-1055 West 71st Street in Hialeah for $17.5 million.

The South Florida multifamily market is thriving because of high demand, created by population influx, allowing landlords to push up rents to new highs and stirring investors’ appetite.

Miami posted the biggest rent increase nationwide since the onset of the pandemic, up 58 percent for a median monthly rent of $2,988, according to a Realtor.com report issued in March.

Developers are betting on the hot market and rushing to build apartments. Pedro Camejo of Miami-based Cam Group is planning a 12-story building at 711 Beacom Boulevard and 2555, 2525, 2521 and 2515 Southwest Eighth Street, which is Little Havana’s famous Calle Ocho.

In a recent neighborhood deal, Canadian firm Ivanhoé Cambridge paid $104.8 million in November for the two-tower, 15-story InTown apartment complex at 1900 Southwest Eighth Street.