JLL Income Property Trust, an institutionally managed daily NAV REIT with more than $6.3 billion in portfolio assets and 119 properties, announced the acquisition of Jefferson Lake Howell, a newly constructed, class-A apartment community in the northern Orlando suburb of Casselberry, Florida. This lakefront, 384-unit garden-style apartment community was acquired for approximately $154 million.
“This addition to our growing residential portfolio, an overweight portfolio allocation for us, aligns with our strategy to invest in well-located communities with strong demand drivers and high barriers to entry for new competition,” said Allan Swaringen, JLL Income Property Trust President and CEO in a statement. “The community’s proximity to high paying employment centers and top-rated schools, limited supply of competitive properties along with minimal developable land in the area for new apartments, along with the region’s consistently low vacancy rates made this an attractive investment that we believe will drive long-term, stable cash flow for our portfolio.”
Swaringen also noted, “Orlando apartment demand was highly resilient and remained positive even during the pandemic-induced recession of 2020, despite deep job losses due to a decline in tourism. Then, in 2021, occupied units grew by a record 7 percent and rents increased 26 percent ranking seventh for recent rent growth among 162 markets tracked by LaSalle.”
Located less than 10 miles north of Downtown Orlando, Jefferson Lake Howell provides residents with easy access to highways serving major employment and transportation nodes via Interstate Highway 4 and State Road 17, along with nearby retail amenities including a Publix-anchored shopping center, a Walmart Supercenter and numerous dining and entertainment options. The Orlando apartment market is a LaSalle Research & Strategy recommended overweight for core investment given its strong in-migration trends, limited for-sale housing stock and record-low residential vacancy rates. Orlando’s population is forecasted to grow 1.9 percent through 2026, well above the US average of 0.7 percent, while vacancy currently sits at a record-low 2.1 percent, below its 20-year average of 5.6 percent. The property is also within three miles of highly rated schools that are part of Seminole County’s school system, which ranks in the top five in Florida.
JLL Income Property Trust’s aggregate residential allocation is now over $2.7 billion, with more than 9,900 residential units across 24 apartment communities and a 14-market single-family rental portfolio representing 43 percent of its $6.3 billion property portfolio.
