Goodman Real Estate and Ginny Gilder, a co-owner of the Seattle Storm, have sold a four-story apartment building in the city’s Interbay area for $33.75 million, according to public records.
It’s the latest acquisition for Rise Properties Trust, which has been on a buying spree in Washington state. Rise, a Canadian real estate trust that’s based in Seattle, said it bought the 117-unit Flats at Interbay building at 3036 16th Ave. W., with Cigna Investment Management.
The acquisition appears to be a contrarian move as investors for several years have been favoring properties in suburbia, where demand is increasing as renters get priced out of the city. The Covid-19 pandemic is expected to accelerate the suburban living trend.
Despite its location between downtown Seattle and Ballard, Interbay has a bit of a suburban feel with large green spaces, including a nine-hole golf course.
Rise President Barrett Sigmund said there’s been a change in preferences among urban renters in recent months as most people employed in office jobs work from home. He thinks larger one-bedroom with dens – common in the Interbay property – will grow in popularity as working from home becomes more viable.
According to the King County Assessor’s Office, the Flats at Interbay property has 39 such units and they are 770 square feet. There are 39 one-bedrooms at the property, and they are 625 square feet.
A limited liability company affiliated with Goodman and Gilder paid $1.9 million for the approximately half-acre Interbay site in 2011, according to county records. The building permit listed a project value of $11.25 million, and the county assesses the value of the property at just under $40.1 million.
The property is along the future downtown-to-Ballard light rail line, and a station at Interbay is planned. The line is scheduled to open in 2035, though Sound Transit is considering systemwide schedule changes due to Covid-19.
Kenny Dudunakis, Ben Johnson and David Sorensen of Berkadia brokered the deal, and Thrive Communities of Seattle will manage the asset.
Earlier this year, Rise acquired a downtown Seattle apartment tower and a Vancouver, Washington, multifamily property for nearly $85 million. Rise owns about 4,570 apartment units across 27 properties in the Pacific Northwest.