Ashcroft Capital, a New York-based fully integrated multifamily investment firm, and SFO Capital Partners, a London-based global real estate investment management firm, today announced their joint acquisition of Elliot Gateway (formerly Discovery Gateway), a garden-style community located in Marietta, Ga., one of metro Atlanta's thriving suburbs. The transaction marks the first joint venture between the two companies.
The community features 388 apartment homes and marks Ashcroft's sixth community in metro Atlanta, a market the company entered just more than a year ago, and SFO Capital Partners' 19th acquisition in the U.S. housing sector. Birchstone Residential, Ashcroft Capital's in-house property management company, has assumed day-to-day management of Elliot Gateway.
We are honored to partner with such a respected institutional firm as SFO Capital Partners, and we look forward to expanding this relationship in the future. We are also excited to expand our presence in the Atlanta market. Atlanta is a market with exceedingly positive multifamily fundamentals that bode well for our value-add strategy."
Frank Roessler, founder and CEO of Ashcroft
Mohamad Abouchalbak, CEO of SFO Capital Partners, said: "We are thrilled to partner with Ashcroft Capital on this exciting acquisition in Atlanta, a metro with robust macroeconomic fundamentals, favorable demographics and a clear growth outlook. To date, SFO Capital Partners has acquired over USD1 billion of U.S. housing assets comprising more than 7,500 units located across the nation's fastest growing metro areas. This has demonstrated our continued conviction in the sector. We are looking forward to growing our successful partnership with Ashcroft Capital."
Elliot Gateway sits in the South Cobb/Cumberland Galleria submarket in Marietta. The booming submarket is home to a large and growing concentration of office space, a robust inventory of industrial properties, a substantial number of military personnel supporting Dobbins Air Reserve Base and highly regarded public schools. According to census data, the submarket has added the highest number of renter households with a bachelor's degree of any metro Atlanta submarket in recent years, helping drive demand for high-end apartments in the area. The submarket is also home to Truist Park (home of the Atlanta Braves) and the surrounding Battery Atlanta mixed-use development. Fortune 500 companies with offices in the area include TKE, Synovus, Genuine Parts, Comcast and HD Supply.
"This tremendous submarket combined with our renovation plans, our growing 'boots on the ground' in Atlanta and the operational expertise of Birchstone Residential all set the stage for Elliot Gateway to excel and become one of the most desired apartment communities in the area," said Scott Lebenhart, chief investment officer at Ashcroft Capital. "This property and the surrounding area have so much going for them that we could not be more bullish about how Elliot Gateway will perform moving forward."
In-home improvements, which will be executed by Birchstone's construction team, will include the addition of quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances, tile backsplashes, faux-wood flooring, upgraded plumbing and lighting fixtures, new cabinet fronts with brushed nickel pulls and 2-inch faux-wood blinds. Other improvements will include a landscaping update, the replacement of pool-area furniture, the installation of a package locker system and the implementation of a valet trash service.
Situated at 720 Franklin Gateway SE, Elliot Gateway was built in 1984 (30 of the units were constructed in 2021). The gated property offers one-, two- and three-bedroom homes. Community amenities include a resort-inspired swimming pool, a new clubhouse and fitness center, playground, soccer field, outdoor kitchen and barbecue area.
About Ashcroft Capital
Founded in 2015, Ashcroft Capital is a vertically integrated multifamily investment firm that has acquired more than 14,600 apartment homes spanning nearly 50 communities since its inception. It now has approximately $2 billion in assets under management throughout several high-growth metros of the Sun Belt. The firm focuses on capital preservation while striving to return strong, risk-adjusted cash-on-cash to investors. Ashcroft is capitalized with high net worth, family office and institutional capital. Ashcroft specializes in value-add multifamily real estate and exhibits an expertise in extracting maximum value from every asset it acquires. Rather than attempting to play cycle timing, the firm strives to acquire excellent apartment communities within well-located submarkets of large and growing U.S. metros.
About SFO Capital Partners
SFO Capital Partners is a London-based global real estate investment management firm focused on investing in high quality assets acquired at attractive valuations with a clear path to value creation. SFO Capital Partners adopts disciplined investment strategies organized by asset classes and geographies. SFO Capital Partners hands-on approach to investing combines entrepreneurial agility with best-in-class practices, consistently delivering superior risk adjusted returns to its private and institutional investors. SFO Capital Partners has acquired in excess of USD2.0 billion of assets located in Europe and the USA (as of May 2022).
About Birchstone Residential
Birchstone Residential is the in-house property management company of Ashcroft Capital. It has a comprehensive property management platform that provides all essential services, including leasing, maintenance and construction management. Birchstone was purpose-built to execute the value-add business plan for each Ashcroft property, optimize financial returns and deliver high resident satisfaction. Committed to a people-centric culture and employee development through job training, job enrichment and accelerated development, Birchstone seeks to provide best-in-class service that attracts new residents and enriches the lifestyles of current residents.