Dobbins Group LLC recently closed the sale of the company’s 135-home upscale multifamily development, The Moretti at Vulcan Park, to Raia Properties for $24.6 million. The Birmingham-based firm purchased the parcel in 2012 with the intention of redeveloping the existing 1940s-era housing with first-in-class home and community amenities.
Construction was completed in June by Birmingham-based Capstone Building Corp. Cushman & Wakefield, led by Michael Kemether, represented Dobbins Group in the sale.
“The Moretti has given new life to the area around Vulcan Park and Museum by adding a community that offers luxury living in a convenient location, while generating an attractive return for our investors, ” says Bill Dobbins, principal of Dobbins Group.
Birmingham, once seen as too small to attract much institutional investment interest, is now being courted in such deals as yields get thinner in primary markets. Millennials, often happy to rent rather than own, also are doing their part to boost the high-end multifamily housing market
“It’s a very stable investment and we had multiple offers on the property. There’s a lot of money chasing deals right now and investors want that money in a competitive situation. They’re finding in secondary markets like Birmingham, they get a premium, ” Dobbins says.
Dobbins and his partners had one secret weapon in the property’s name to lure their target market, particularly UAB medical students, to the property. “They come to Birmingham one time for their residency interview, and what’s the one thing they’ll probably remember about the actual city when they go online to find an apartment? Vulcan, of course.”
Dobbins Group formed in 2010 to pursue real estate investments throughout the Southeast.
Text by Dave Helms
