New owner plans upgrades for midtown apartment complex
The new owner of the San Miguel Court Apartments in Santa Fe plans to add amenities to the complex of four threestory residential buildings and update the mid-2000s interiors.
Irvine, Calif.-based private equity firm The Bascom Group closed March 7 on acquiring the 1974 property on Calle Lorca just west of the Smith’s Food & Drug on Pacheco Street. They are buying it at an undisclosed price from LCL Management LLC, owned by Elliot S. Leibowitz of Parsippany, N.J.
“I would say the seller team did a good job maintaining the interiors,” said Tom Gilfillan, vice president at The Bascom Group, which owns 52 apartment communities in 12 states. “The seller had owned it for a very long time. The price made sense for the vintage of the assets.”
Still, the property is 50 years old.
“Exterior renovations, we will be managing,” Gilfillan said. “The development has very [few] common amenities available. That’s one area we want to be able to invest in. There is so much open space that is underutilized, so much opportunity for us.”
Bascom plans to create a central park area with a “tot lot” for kids, a play structure and a covered barbecue area.
“We want places where residents can gather,” Gilfillan said. “Right now, there’s not anywhere to gather. We will be fixing anything that’s broken. We will fix some of the plumbing.”
He said the 96 units have washing machines and dryers and stainless steel appliances, but the interiors are dated. He said the company plans to update countertops and fixtures and paint the walls.
San Miguel Court rents are $1,200 for a 600-square-foot, one-bedroom unit; $1,450 for a 750-square-foot, two-bed, one-bath unit; and $1,700 for a 950-square-foot, three-bed, two-bath unit. Gilfillan said the complex is 96% occupied.
The Bascom Group made its first New Mexico acquisition in February in Albuquerque with the 344-unit Overlook Apartments on Eubank Boulevard. Bascom has had a presence in Arizona, Colorado, Utah and Texas for years.
“We’ve been actively looking in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Las Cruces for a few years,” Gilfillan said. “We wanted to make sure we are finding the right spot. I’m spending huge amounts of time driving to New Mexico. The more we learned, the more we were excited about it.”
San Miguel Court was all about location, location, location. He noted many other Santa Fe apartment complexes are a bit isolated for useful services.
Gilfillan found San Miguel within walking distance of Smith’s, near the midtown district and its growing film industry, and near Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center.
“It’s really the location,” he said. “I like the feel and neighborhood.”
The Bascom Group, in part, specializes in distressed properties acquired through foreclosures, bankruptcy or short sales, but Gilfillan said San Miguel was a normal sale. Bascom also specializes in “vintage” apartments.
“We have experience with properties as old as the 1920s in Los Angeles,” Gilfillan said. “We have experience in properties of all ages. [San Miguel Court] is a smaller property for us.”
More apartment acquisitions in Santa Fe and New Mexico are possible.
“We’re actively looking all over,” Gilfillan said.