Dealmaker: Berkeley Point Capital Provides $79M in Agency Green Financing

Berkeley Point Capital, Bethesda, Md., provided $79.1 million in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac “green” financing for multifamily properties in Charlotte, N.C. and Sarasota, Fla.

On March 30 BPC closed a $59.4 million refinancing on Autumn Park Apartments in Charlotte, a 586-unit community completed built in 1999. Rambleside Real Estate Capital, New York, acquired the property in 2012 for $56.3 million. Since acquisition, Rambleside has invested $3.3 million in exterior/common area and unit interior upgrades. It also transitioned the property to paperless leasing in January, so now all leases and rent payments are handled electronically to improve efficiency and reduce expenses.

A BPC production team led by Senior Managing Director Mitch Clarfield and Vice President Joshua Braceros coordinated the debt placement by soliciting Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and commercial mortgage-backed securities executions. Clarfield said Fannie Mae won the transaction due to the flexibility offered by its 15-year execution with a shortened 10-year yield maintenance period and 10 years of interest only payments.

“The loan was financed through the Fannie Mae Green Rewards program and the customer was able to quickly rate lock the cash-out refinance,” Clarfield said.

BPC also provided a $19.7 million Freddie Mac Green Advantage Refinancing loan on Beneva Place, a nine-building, 192-unit community in Sarasota. Managing Director Brian Kochan led the transaction.

Kochan said BPC worked with Freddie Mac and an environmental consultant to qualify the asset for Freddie Mac’s Green Up program, resulting in a lower interest rate for the sponsor. To qualify for the Green Up program the sponsor agreed to upgrade water fixtures throughout the property, promoting lower consumption and energy bills for tenants.

BPC also structured the loan with an alternative prepayment structure on a fixed-rate loan, allowing maximum flexibility for the sponsor.