Chicago firm pays $94M for Fort Lauderdale apartments

The Port Royale apartments at 3300 North Port Royale Drive in Fort Lauderdale
The Port Royale apartments at 3300 North Port Royale Drive in Fort Lauderdale

The second phase of Fort Lauderdale’s Port Royale apartment community was just sold to a Chicago-based company for a whopping $94 million.

Port Royale Propco. LLC, an affiliate of the Waterton Associates real estate company, acquired the apartments through a deed filed Wednesday in Broward County. The deal includes roughly 21.5 acres of land and 553 units, so the price breaks down to roughly $170,000 per apartment and $100 per square foot.

Records show the seller was Port Royale JV Phase II, an affiliate of the Mill Creek Residential Trust. The company is a major developer and owner of multifamily properties throughout the United States. Recently, it sold the Modera Dadeland and Modera Coral Gables developments in Miami, as well as the Modera Pemboke Pines community in similarly high-priced deals.

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Mill Creek bought both phases of the Port Royale in 2012 for $117.4 million. Chicago-based Equity Residential was the seller. According to Mill Creek’s website, the property has development rights to raze seven of the buildings in favor of erecting 555 new units.

The community’s two phases were built in 1989 and 1991. It includes 25 buildings, 737 units, two fitness centers, three pools and a variety of other amenities such as covered parking and basketball courts. Property records show Mill Creek still owns the first phase.

Waterton Associates, the apartments’ new owner, is a real estate company that was founded roughly 20 years ago. According to its website, Waterton focuses on multifamily and hospitality properties in the United States. The company’s current portfolio, which includes approximately 20,000 apartments and 13 hotels, is valued at $4 billion.