Developer Pearlstone secures financing for site of planned 300-unit Austin condo project

Knighthead Funding provides loan for Austin condo site purchase

Knighthead's Jonathan Daniel and Pearlstone's Robert Lee with 2500 Willow Hill Drive (Knighthead Funding, Pearlstone Partners, LoopNet)
Knighthead's Jonathan Daniel and Pearlstone's Robert Lee with 2500 Willow Hill Drive (Knighthead Funding, Pearlstone Partners, LoopNet)

Austin-based developer Pearlstone Partners, which plans to build another condo complex in the Texas capital, secured a loan for the site from Knighthead Funding.

The Connecticut-based real estate finance company gave Pearlstone a $7.1 million loan to buy a more than 104,500-square-foot site southeast of downtown Austin, Knighthead said in a news release. Pearlstone, a development firm behind multiple condo tower projects in Austin, plans to redevelop the site into a roughly 300-unit condo complex about four miles from downtown.

The 10-month, interest-only first mortgage financing helped secure 2.7 acres at 2500 Willow Hill Drive. It’s located in Austin’s East Riverside neighborhood on the south side of the lake.

Pearlstone’s plans underscore the demand for housing in the Texas capital as people and companies relocate to the metropolitan area. Developers are hungry to put more units on the ground and add density outside of the central business district.

“With Austin’s impressive continued growth comes the need for more housing … that caters to the young, dynamic workforce that is attracted to the robust employment opportunities there,” said Knighthead Principal Jonathan Daniel.

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The condo project will include ground-level retail and target the middle-market buyer, according to the release. Construction is expected to begin in the next eight months.

This marks Pearlstone’s seventh transaction in the Austin area financed by Knighthead, according to the release.

Pearlstone is constructing a 41-story condo tower in downtown Austin called Vesper alongside New York-based ATCO Properties & Management. It’s also working on a 225,500-square-foot condo development called Parkside at Mueller. Pearlstone’s portfolio also includes a 33-story tower called Natiivo and a 68-unit condo development called EastGate Condos.

Knighthead has provided $2.16 billion in capital across 166 loans in 29 states, according to its website.

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