Orlando Affordable Housing Community Receives $28 Million in Financing via Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc. announced today that it structured $27,900,000 in financing for the acquisition of Brooke Commons Apartments in Orlando, Florida. The affordable, garden-style community consists of 288 units across 38 buildings and is subject to a Land Use Restrictive Agreement (LURA), requiring that half of the units have household income of 60 percent or less than Area Median Income (AMI) and that 5 percent of the units cater to residents with household incomes of 55 percent or less than AMI. In the growing Orlando market with consistent demand for multifamily housing, Brooke Commons Apartments serves an important role in providing quality apartment units at affordable rents.

Led by Managing Director John Gilmore, Walker & Dunlop’s team identified Freddie Mac as the ideal lender for the transaction. Leveraging the GSE’s Capital Markets Execution (CME) program, Gilmore locked in an attractive rate and five years of interest-only payments for the sponsor, Avanath Capital Management, a premier owner and operator of affordable, workforce, and value-oriented apartment communities. This property represents the first acquisition within Avanath’s fourth affordable housing fund, the firm’s latest socially responsible fund.

Avanath’s President and Chief Investment Officer, John Williams, stated, “We very much enjoyed working on our first transaction with Walker & Dunlop. We found their team to be efficient and transparent during the process. We look forward to many future transactions with the Walker & Dunlop team.”

“As incomes fail to keep up with rent increases and the supply of affordable multifamily options remains limited, the nationwide demand for affordable housing continues to increase,” Walker & Dunlop’s Gilmore commented. “We are honored to be a part of this transaction and are confident that this community will continue to provide high quality living for working families in this growing market.”

Despite a recent wave of apartment supply within the region, Brooke Commons Apartments has maintained consistently high levels of occupancy, thanks to its affordability and excellent location. Situated just 13 miles northeast of Orlando’s central business district, Brooke Commons Apartments has excellent access to employment centers such as the city’s downtown area, the University of Central Florida, Quadrangle Business Park, Lockheed Martin, the AdventHealth East Orlando hospital and the Central Florida Research Park.

Walker & Dunlop is one of the largest multifamily lenders in the country and is ranked within the top five non-bank affordable lenders in the United States, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2018 Commercial/Multifamily Origination Rankings. In 2018 alone, Walker & Dunlop closed over $1 billion in transaction volume for affordable properties. Learn more about Walker & Dunlop’s footprint in the affordable housing market here:

• Hawaii Affordable Housing Development Receives $41 Million in Financing via Walker & Dunlop
• Walker & Dunlop Arranges $16 Million in Financing for Affordable Housing Development in San Mateo, California

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE: WD), headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, is one of the largest commercial real estate finance companies in the United States. The company provides a comprehensive range of capital solutions for all commercial real estate asset classes, as well as investment sales brokerage services to owners of multifamily properties. Walker & Dunlop is included on the S&P SmallCap 600 Index and was ranked as one of FORTUNE Magazine’s Fastest Growing Companies in 2014, 2017, and 2018. Walker & Dunlop’s 700+ professionals in 29 offices across the nation have an unyielding commitment to client satisfaction.