$33,700,000 Cross Collateralized Refinance of Two Multifamily Properties in Southern California

Transaction Description

George Smith Partners secured a $33,700,000 refinancing loan for two multifamily properties in Southern California. The 10 year loan with 5 years interest only, priced at 10 Year Swaps + 2.30 (4.41% coupon), replaced expensive high leveraged bridge debt. The loan was cross collateralized with both properties, which totaled 397 units. The two very different properties consisted of a 97 unit trophy asset overlooking the ocean and a less well located 300 unit property with a higher cap rate.

Challenge

For the 97 unit trophy asset, the sponsor’s proceeds requirement to refinance the preceding high leveraged bridge debt could not be met by a conventional lender, including agency lenders. This was because the property’s extremely low cap rate and debt yield constrained the potential loan size, therefore hindering the property’s ability to refinance its current debt.

Solution

GSP understood the diverse property dynamics of each asset and developed the strategy of cross collateralizing the two assets. GSP recognized the upside in presenting the properties as a “package deal”, particularly as it related to solving the debt yield challenge. By crossing the two properties, GSP synthetically created a debt yield in the sweet spot of most lenders. At the same time, lenders became more comfortable with the less well located building because it was being bundled with a trophy asset with an irreplaceable location. Additionally, GSP knew by bundling the properties together and creating a larger transaction that lenders would be prone to increase proceeds and decrease pricing, as compared to two separate smaller transactions. GSP ultimately was able to identify and place incredibly aggressive bond financing, which was appealing because of its leverage, proceeds, and 5 years of interest only.

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