Christopher Todd Communities, one of the nation’s leading innovators in the Build To Rent housing segment, continues to evolve to feed the apparent insatiable appetite for single-family rentals after selling the largest Build To Rent property (by unit count) in the nation.
The purchase of Christopher Todd Communities At Stadium, a 313-home community located in Phoenix, Ariz., was facilitated by Matthew Tice, senior vice president of Inland Real Estate Acquisitions, LLC on behalf of an affiliate of The Inland Real Estate Group of Companies, Inc. The deal was brokered by NorthMarq’s President of Investment Sales Trevor Koskovich, Vice President Jesse Hudson, and Executive Vice President Bill Hahn. “The investor appetite for the Built-To-Rent communities has exploded in the last two years, with Christopher Todd Communities leading the way. Not only are we seeing demand from institutional investors, we also have seen increasing interest from the lender community to bring capital to the sector, said Koskovich.” NorthMarq also arranged the financing for the purchase through its Fannie Mae relationship.
This community sale to Inland is the final component of a multi-community transaction announced in March of this year which included a total of five Christopher Todd Communities in the greater Phoenix metro area, with a combined 943 homes. Three communities closed in March, one closed in April and the last one closed Nov 12, 2020. These five communities were the first to be developed as the Company embarked on a path to disrupt the multi-family industry. All communities were developed and wholly owned by Christopher Todd Communities.
“We are so proud that all of our communities experience unprecedented high rent rates, even during the height of the pandemic,” said Todd Wood, CEO of Christopher Todd Communities
Comprised of single-story, single-family pet-friendly smart homes, the communities are less dense than typical multi-family, with no one above or below, the keyless door entry makes it easy to come and go with minimal touching of materials, and the private backyards give people the space to be socially distant, yet maintain a sense of connection. Resort-style amenities are included in every one of these gated communities.
As part of the sale, each community will retain the Christopher Todd Communities brand, bringing added value to this transaction.
“We have been extraordinarily grateful for the incredible demand our innovative rental product has commanded, both from the investor side as well as the consumer side, propelling our company. As a part of our national expansion we have announced that Greystar will assume management of two existing communities in the Phoenix area,” added Wood. Christopher Todd Communities On Happy Valley in Peoria, Ariz. and Christopher Todd Communities At Estrella Commons in Goodyear, Ariz. are the first to migrate to Greystar, with more communities potentially in the pipeline locally and beyond.
Greystar is one of the world’s leading residential real estate firms specializing in the investment, development, and management of rental housing through its vertically integrated global platform. “We are honored to have been selected by Christopher Todd Communities to provide leasing and management services on these assets,” said Greystar Executive Director Mike Clow. “Christopher Todd Communities has built a strong brand in the single-family rental housing sector based on a foundation of excellent customer service. At Greystar we share their passion for delivering superior service and will leverage our global economies of scale, market insights, and technologies to further enhance their offerings to residents. Programs such as ‘Beyond Expectations’ drive our customer experience strategy — helping us not only anticipate needs and delight our residents, but also ensuring we collect feedback to measure, track and continually improve our ability to deliver above and beyond, each and every day”
Christopher Todd Communities is evolving in the industry as a “brand asset maximizer” which reflects the 25 to 30 percent higher rent rates and 50 percent higher resident retention the brand commands, which all leads to a strong investor value. While Christopher Todd Communities will continue to own some of its communities, the majority of the future Christopher Todd Communities will be part of national home builder Taylor Morrison’s portfolio. The two companies formed a strategic exclusive partnership in 2019 to bring the Christopher Todd Communities-branded Built To Rent product to strategic markets where Taylor Morrison, America’s Most Trusted® Home Builder five years running already builds. Taylor Morrison serves as land acquirer, developer and builder, while Christopher Todd Communities brings its successful Build To Rent playbook, community design and formula for higher resident satisfaction ratings.
The first Christopher Todd Communities Built By Taylor Morrison will open next fall at Ellsworth and University in Mesa, Ariz. followed soon thereafter by two communities in the Phoenix metro west valley. Several other communities are in the planning stages locally, along with national expansion in Texas, North Carolina, and Florida where land searches are underway.
